Policy Regarding College Work Done While in High School or During a Gap Year
A combined maximum of 16 credits from external sources may be applied toward the 128 needed for graduation at Brandeis. College courses taken while in high school or during a gap year may be transferred to Brandeis if ALL of the below criteria are met:
- Courses were not needed for high school graduation.
- Students earned a grade of B- or better.
Summer courses have additional requirements:
- Acceptable sessions comprise a minimum of 5 weeks and 37 contact hours. Foreign language courses require 52 contact hours.
- A student may earn credit for no more than 3 semester courses in a single summer (2 semester courses in a single session).
If the work meets ALL of the above mentioned criteria, you will need to:
- Complete the Petition for Evaluation of College Work Done While in High School. The form allows you to petition for up to four courses at a time.
- Provide a letter from your high school verifying that the course(s) were not used to fulfill high school graduation requirements.
- Submit an official transcript to the Office of the University Registrar.
The official transcript and letter from your high school can be emailed to transfer@brandeis.edu or mailed to the address below:
Office of the University Registrar, MS 068
Brandeis University
415 South Street
Waltham, MA 02453
If your petition is approved and the courses have been transferred to your Workday record, you may then contact the appropriate department regarding major/minor credit for the course(s) by completing the Online Petition to Request Substitution for a Requirement.
Please note:
Brandeis does not measure progress towards the degree in terms of “semester hours” or “quarter hours.” Units such as these are converted to “semester courses” according to the formula which follows:
We ascertain the number of hours or courses required for the receipt of a bachelor’s degree at the institution from which you are transferring. We total the number of credits acceptable to us for transfer credit, divide them by the requirement at your previous institution and multiply by 32 (the degree standard at Brandeis). For example, if your previous school requires 128 credits and you attended one semester, completing 16 credits acceptable for transfer, the equation will appear as 16/128 x 32 = 4. Hence, one full semester at that institution will receive full credit at Brandeis. If you worked at a higher or lower rate, credit transferred will reflect that rate. For example, if you complete 12 credits acceptable for transfer at a school that requires 120 credits for graduation, the equation is 12/120 x 32 = 3. In this scenario, the student will receive 3 Brandeis courses. For two year schools, we multiply by 16 (e.g., if the degree requirement is 60 credits, the equation will be x/60 x 16 =?)