Transfer of Units
Prior to approving a request to transfer units, the Department Graduate Advisor should be satisfied that the courses being transferred are equivalent to UCSB offerings, particularly if they involve substitutions for departmental requirements. A General Graduate Student Petition is not necessary if the department is recognizing competencies attained in previous coursework rather than in unit credit.
Eligibility
Students must complete one academic quarter at UCSB before petitioning to transfer units. The student's department and Graduate Division must approve the request.
Policy
Students may transfer, to UCSB, units from upper-division and graduate courses that were completed while the student was enrolled in another graduate program. A grade of B or better is required and courses already applied toward a degree awarded are not transferable.
Students may transfer a maximum of 8-quarter units from an accredited college outside of the UC system and a maximum of 12-quarter units from another UC. Transferred units do not affect UCSB academic residency requirements.
Currently enrolled graduate students may not take courses through UCSB Professional and Continuing Education that can be completed through regular enrollment at UCSB. If courses are taken, no unit credit will be counted toward fulfillment of degree requirements.
Transferred units appear on transcripts as follows:
- Non-UC institutions - only total number of units transferred appear on unofficial and official transcripts
- Other UCs - name, course title, units and grade appear on unofficial and official transcripts
- UCSB Professional and Continuing Education course title, units and grade appear on unofficial and official transcripts
Exceptions
Summer Sessions
Pre-matriculated students, students who are enrolled in UCSB Summer Sessions immediately prior to their admitted quarter, do not need to submit a General Graduate Student Petition to have their Summer Session courses appear on their official transcript.
Continuing UCSB graduate students who attend a Summer Session at another UC may submit a General Graduate Student Petition requesting to transfer the units to their UCSB transcript. Please review the above Transfer of Units section for eligibility and policy requirements.
UCSB Professional and Continuing Education
Students who had applied to a UCSB graduate program at the time they completed coursework through UCSB Professional and Continuing Education, if admitted, may transfer up to 12 units and the grade points earned in those units.
Units taken through UCSB Professional and Continuing Education prior to submitting an application cannot be transferred.
In order for a current graduate student to enroll in UCSB Professional and Continuing Education courses and have those courses transferred for credit toward their degree, students must submit an exception memo from their department requesting permission to take courses and have units transferred along with the General Graduate Student Petition.
Education Abroad Program (EAP)
Reciprocity students who are subsequently admitted to a master's and/or doctoral degree program can transfer up to 12 units taken at UCSB while in non-degree EAP status.
One quarter of UCSB residency may be granted, but not guaranteed, to EAP students who are later admitted to graduate status. All UCSB fees and tuition must be paid for the quarter to be counted toward academic residency.