COVID-19 Guidance for Spring 2020-Summer 2021

The Ways program will consider requests for both in-person and online transfer credit from non-Stanford institutions, for Spring 2020, Summer 2020, and through academic year 2020-21, including summer session. Requests will also be accepted for post-course completion evaluations per the below table.  The Ways program cannot guarantee that a transfer evaluation request will be approved.

Academic Year 2020-21

Transfer courses completed during academic year 2020-21, including summer session, and taken for a letter grade, CR/NC grading with a Credit (CR) grade or S/NC grading with a Satisfactory (S) grade will satisfy that Way.

Spring 2020

For Spring 2020, a post-course completion Ways evaluation request process will replace the pre-approval request process. The post-course request must be submitted no later than December 1, 2020. For spring quarter only, an exception to the letter grade requirement was made, so S/NC grading was allowed.

Transfer Credit for courses taken at another institution

You are a matriculated student and are interested in fulfilling a Ways requirement at another institution. Incoming frosh cannot apply for Ways transfer credit for courses taken prior to enrollment at Stanford. For incoming transfer students, please see the Ways Incoming Transfer Students page for guidance. 

You may fulfill a maximum of five of the eleven Ways breadth requirement courses from non-Stanford institutions. These courses may be certified in any of the eight Ways categories but no more than one course in any one Way (i.e., up to one course in Way-AII, Way-SI, Way-SMA, which have a two-course requirement; one course in Way-AQR, Way-ED, Way-ER, Way-FR; and Way-CE). Please review the Ways Guidelines to identify the most appropriate Way for a course and to ensure that the course syllabus contains the elements needed in a Ways-certifiable course.

Independent study courses are ineligible for Ways credit, but they may be eligible for general university credit. Courses taken prior to matriculation are ineligible for Ways credit, so frosh students cannot submit a request for any courses taken prior to enrollment at Stanford. As a reminder, courses must be taken for a letter grade and a minimum of three units, except CE, to fulfill the Ways requirement. 

Once Ways transfer credit has been posted to the student’s record by the Registrar's Office, it is final and may not be changed.

Submitting a Request and Deadlines

You can submit a Ways transfer evaluation request for up to three course evaluations (e.g. one course submitted for both SI and ED will count as two requests) each quarter for pre-approval or post-course completion review. See below for further guidance.
 

• Pre-Approvals – As indicated on the table below, Ways transfer evaluation requests submitted no later than the Pre-Approval Deadline date will be reviewed upon receipt of the Ways transfer credit request. The Ways program will be as responsive as possible, but it cannot guarantee that you will receive a decision prior to enrollment. A late submission will not be accepted for pre-approval evaluation; however, you can submit a post-course Ways transfer evaluation request.
• Post-Course Completion (COVID exception) – As indicated on the table below, you can submit a Ways post-completion transfer request no later than the Post-Completion Deadline date. After completing the course, you will be more knowledgeable about whether the course meets a particular Ways category. Frequently, a more detailed syllabus may be provided after the start of a course which could more fully demonstrate your experience using the Ways skill/capacity.

 

Pre-approval quarter or semester term deadlines

Term for AY 2019-20	Pre-Approval Deadline	Post-Course Deadline
Winter Quarter	Nov. 15, 2019	Dec. 1, 2020
Spring Semester	Nov. 15, 2019	Dec. 1, 2020
Spring Quarter	May 22, 2020	Dec. 1, 2020
Summer Quarter or Semester	May 22, 2020	Dec. 1, 2020

Term for AY 2020-21	Pre-Approval Deadline	Post-Course Deadline
Autumn Quarter or Semester	July 17, 2020	Feb. 5, 2021
Winter Quarter	Nov. 1, 2020	May 14, 2021
Spring Semester	Nov. 1, 2020	Sept. 17, 2021
Spring Quarter	Feb. 5, 2021	Sept. 17, 2021
Summer Quarter or Semester	May 14, 2021	Oct. 2, 2021

Where do I submit a request?   

If you plan to take a course in the U.S., please complete the Transfer Credit Evaluation eForm.

If you plan to take a course overseas, please complete the Request for Non-Standard Study Abroad Transfer Credit Evaluation form.  

What else will I need?

Once you have submitted the transfer credit request, it will take approximately 4-6 weeks after the Ways program receives the transfer request before you will be sent a decision notification via e-mail. Please note that the Registrar's Office will evaluate the transfer request before it is forwarded to the Ways program.

You may request a maximum of three courses for evaluation request per quarter and you must provide a comprehensive syllabus for each proposed course containing elements as described in the Ways Guidelines, in English, from the instructor and/or institution to demonstrate that the course fulfills the Ways criteria.  In most cases, it should include a reading list, assignments, and grading structure. Partial or incomplete requests, including substituting a course description for a full syllabus, will not be considered for review.  It is your responsibility to acquire the syllabus from the non-Stanford institution.  If the current syllabus is unavailable, you may submit a syllabus for the same course, taught by the same instructor, and dated no more than one year prior to the course term.