University Studies

Authorization to Take Courses at Another Institution

Note: Only UNIVERSITY STUDIES students should use this form. If you are not in University Studies, please contact YOUR academic advisor or YOUR Dean's Office to obtain any required forms or permissions for transferring credit for courses taken elsewhere: the University Studies office cannot approve these courses for you--only your own major can.

Complete the form below for courses not listed in this current year's VCCS Transfer Guide. Submit it no later than one month prior to your enrollment at another institution. Note: the VCCS Transfer Guide is linked to the Registrar's website; just click on "Transfer Guide" in the left-hand menu.

Not all courses taken elsewhere will earn Virginia Tech credit:

-- If you want to major in Engineering (including Computer Science): For any English 1105-1106, chemistry, math, physics, ENGE, computer science, or engineering departmental prefix courses (such as ChE 2114 and ECE 1574), download and complete the College's authorization form, and take it to 212 Hancock. Approval by the College of Engineering is required for these courses even if they are listed elsewhere for VT credit.

-- If you want to major in Biochemistry, all required biochemistry courses must be taken here at Virginia Tech.

Because courses differ slightly at different institutions, it is often better to take a sequence (i.e., math, economics, chemistry) at one school. In most cases the second semester builds on information from the first semester. If you take part of a sequence at Tech and the other part at another institution, you may not cover all the material that is covered in the sequence at Tech; that could put you at a disadvantage in higher level classes at Tech.

ALL TRANSFER COURSES are subject to the following:

  1. Credit for the approved course(s) will transfer to Virginia Tech ONLY IF

    • you have an official transcript sent to the Virginia Tech Registrar, 250 New Student Services, as soon as you complete the course(s);
    • you are NOT on academic suspension at the time you take the course(s);
    • you earn a grade of "C" or better (not C-) in the course(s) (P/F courses do not transfer);
    • the material in the course(s) does not duplicate material in courses for which you already have credit at VT.

  2. Courses must be approved for VT credit by the VT department that offers the course. Also, the department/major that you transfer into may re-evaluate and disallow credit toward degree requirements for graduation. Note: Only credits transfer; grades do not.

  3. No more than 50 percent of the credits required for graduation from Virginia Tech may be transferred from two-year colleges.

You do not need to submit this form for courses listed in the VCCS Transfer Guide. If you have additional questions, please discuss them with your advisor.

Authorization to Take Courses at Another Institution

** This form is for University Studies students only. **

Complete one of the following forms for each institution where you intend to take courses.








You can enter up to four courses below. Please tell us,

-- first, the name and number of the course you want to take elsewhere;

-- second, the URL linking to a description of the course's content from the other institution's website, possibly from their course catalog or from the department's webpages;

-- third, the name and number of the course at VT for which you expect to receive credit.

If you need to list more than four courses, just fill out a second form. And if you cannot find a URL where the other institution's course is described, just ask the institution/instructor for a printed description of the course and bring it to our office.