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Office of the Registrar

Transfer Credit

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Transfer of credits from other universities
Other educational credits
Transfer of credits while in high school


Transfer of Credits from Other Universities

The Office of the Registrar evaluates all transfer records and provides advising materials designed to assist students in the completion of university requirements. These materials include a summary of university-wide requirements completed and the total hours accepted. Individual schools and departments determine which courses satisfy major requirements. College-level courses completed with a grade of C- or higher at other regionally accredited colleges or universities normally will be accepted for graduation credit as pass credit and will not be calculated into the PLU grade point average.

  • A student may transfer a maximum of 96 semester or 144 quarter hours. Of these, the maximum transferable from a two-year school is 64 semester or 96 quarter hours.
  • Students who complete the direct transfer associate (DTA) degree from an accredited Washington state community college before matriculation at PLU will be admitted with junior standing and will have satisfied all Distributive Core general university requirements except for four semester hours in Religion (from either Line one or Line two) and four semester hours in Perspectives on Diversity.
  • Students with transcripts from out-of-state schools will be evaluated and credit will be awarded on an individual basis. Your grade point average does not transfer in with you and will not be figured into your PLU cumulative GPA. Transfer classes must be a minimum of five quarter hours or three semester hours to fulfill a PLU requirement. For information, please contact one of the evaluation administrators in the Office of the Registrar.
When transferring courses from an institution that operations on a Quarter Hour system (all Washington Community Colleges, UW, etc.) the credits transfer into PLU's Semester Hour system as follows:

Quarter Hours
Semester Hours
6 quarter hours
4 semester hours
5 quarter hours
3.33 semester hours
4 quarter hours
2.67 semester hours
3 quarter hours
2 semester hours
2 quarter hours
1.33 semester hours
1 quarter hour
.67 semester hour


Transfer of Credits Earned in High School

The university awards credit to high school students for college-level courses completed before high school graduation. The university may award transfer credit to high school students who have completed courses in approved programs, as described below.

  • Advanced Placement Program: Students who complete advanced placement or credit toward graduation through the examination program of the College Board may receive credit for such courses. Inquiries should be addressed to the Office of Admission.
  • Running Start Program: Accepted students who have completed courses under the Washington State Running Start Program will be awarded transfer credit. Such courses must be completed at an accredited Washington state community college, posted on an official transcript, and must be college level coursework completed with a grade of C- or better.
  • International Baccalaureate: Pacific Lutheran University grants credit for the IB program. PLU awards 30 semester hours of credit for completion of the IB Diploma. The 30 credits awarded for the diploma satisfy the following general university requirements: Fine Arts, Literature, Philosophy (only if higher-level Philosophy is included in the IB Diploma), Social Science, Natural Science/Computer Science/Mathematics, Science and Scientific Method, and Mathematical Reasoning. Students who do not receive the full IB Diploma are granted 5 semester hours of credit for each higher-level examination with a grade of four or higher. This credit is awarded for the appropriately matched general university requirements from those listed above. No credit is awarded for subsidiary-level examinations. For further details, please contact the Office of Admission.
  • Other Programs: Students who have completed college courses while in high school may receive credit. The courses must be listed in the official college catalog, be from a regionally accredited college or university, be posted on an official college or university transcript, and must be college level coursework completed with a grade of C- or better.

The university reserves the right to make transfer decisions on an individual basis.

Other Educational Experiences

  • Credits earned in nonaccredited schools are not transferable. Students who have matriculated at Pacific Lutheran University may petition a department or school to waive a particular requirement on the basis of previous nonaccredited course work or may petition a department or school to receive credit by examination.
  • The university allows up to 20 semester hours of USAFI/Dante credit and up to 20 semester hours for military credit, providing the total of the two does not exceed 30 semester hours.
  • The university does not grant credit for college-level General Equivalency Diploma (GED) tests.
  • For information on the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), contact one of the Evaluation Administrators in the Registrar's Office.
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Office of the Registrar
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA 98447

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