Transfer credits for Go Global

Use this Course Search Tool to check out evaluated courses at partner universities that previous Go Global students have transferred back in the last 5 years. You can search by partner university course information, or the evaluated UBC equivalent. If you don’t see a particular course listed, it simply means the course needs to be submitted as a new course request for transfer credit.

Note: Not all previously evaluated courses listed are offered every session at the partner university. This is a general guideline only - research the partner’s website for course offerings.

Any questions? Contact us at go.global@ubc.ca.

Once you have finalized your course registration at the partner university (e.g., after the partner university’s add/drop deadline), submit your courses for evaluation in the Transfer Credit Portal. You can submit course requests at any time, but they are only processed after each submission deadline has passed. There are four submission deadlines throughout the year, and the process takes approximately 16 weeks following each deadline.

For important deadlines to consider when submitting your transfer credits, see the Transfer Credits Submission Deadlines section below.

Credits taken abroad may be transferred in one of three ways:

1. Unassigned faculty credit with year level (e.g., ARTS 3rd)
2. Unassigned department credit with year level (e.g., POLI 3rd)
3. Specific course credit (e.g., PSYC 350)

Your academic advisor will determine how the credits will be applied to your program and degree requirements. For academic advising assistance, reach out to your faculty designate, listed below.

Only the partner university name and the total UBC credit you received appears on your UBC transcript (e.g., "University of Sydney, 15 credits"). Grades earned abroad do not appear on your UBC transcript. How individual courses transferred will only appear on the Student Services Centre (SSC)  (e.g. "HIST 300" or "HIST 3rd year") or Degree Navigator. The exchange (EXCH) code on your transcript is never updated with grades or credit.

Please have a digital copy of your transcript provided to go.global@ubc.ca. 

If hardcopy mailing is your only option, have the transcript mailed to:

Go Global: International Learning Programs 
University of British Columbia 
1100-6138 Student Union Boulevard
Vancouver, BC  V6T 1Z1 Canada

Credits taken abroad may be transferred in one of three ways:

1. Unassigned faculty credit (e.g., ARTS, third-year)
2. Unassigned department credit satisfying a general requirement (e.g., POLI, third-year)
3. Specific course credit (e.g., PSYC 350)

You can suggest or request certain transfer credits, but the faculty or department reviewing your courses will determine how the credits transfer. For reference, you can view transferred courses from previous Go Global students through our Course Search Tool.

Since many partner universities do not grant the same number of credits per course as UBC, a credit equivalency formula exists for each partner university. 

Use the partner university search tool to search by university. View the equivalency formula on the “Courses + Transfer Credit” tab on each partner page. This formula calculates the equivalent UBC credits from coursework taken abroad.

The maximum number of credits you can earn on a winter session term exchange is 15 UBC credits per term. This may vary by faculty, so check with your faculty's academic advising office. For the summer session, the maximum credits vary by summer program. 

The minimum number of credits you need to be enrolled in are determined by your host institution. You also need to maintain minimum enrolment requirements for immigration purposes and loans or scholarship eligibility, where applicable.

For graduate students, please refer to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies transfer credit web page for information on transferring credits to UBC.

Contact your faculty designate (listed below) if you have questions about the number of credits that you can transfer.

Unfortunately, not all courses meet the academic standard of UBC. If a course falls within the following categories and does not include any academic coursework, you may not be able to receive transfer credit for it:

• Physical education courses/ sports / activities (e.g., Kung Fu)
• Research or internship programs
• Field trips and sightseeing
• English language learning courses where English is not the partner university's language of instruction
• Non-credit courses (e.g., Continuing Studies or Extended Learning)
• Courses without assessment (e.g., exams, papers, grades, etc.)

Ultimately, the faculty or department evaluating each course will determine if a course can be granted transfer credits.

This is up to you! Select courses open to Go Global students at the partner university that you are interested in and meet any prerequisites for. Make the most of your Go Global study program by selecting courses that may fulfill your academic requirements for your degree and/or are in topics not available at UBC. 

Students often take upper-level academic courses (e.g., courses that are equivalent to 300- and 400-level UBC courses), but lower-level academic courses can be taken as well. 

Browse the course schedules at the partner university to see courses offered by using the partner university search tool going to the "Courses + Transfer Credits" section. You can also search the already evaluated courses that previous Go Global students have taken and transferred back using the Course Search Tool.  

Don't see the course you want to take or transfer? Don’t worry, new ones are added all the time as students take new courses at our partner universities.

For assistance with academic planning, please contact your faculty designate, listed below.

A course is likely a lower-level course if:

1. It does not have any prerequisites.
2. It is an "Introduction to" course.
3. It covers the subject at a very broad level without going into detail in a particular topic.

Courses in the last year of a three-year degree program will often transfer as upper-level UBC credit. Ultimately, the faculty or department evaluating each course will determine the year level.

At some partner universities, students have the option to choose between receiving pass/fail credits or grades. Please see below for your Faculty’s policy on pass/fail credits.

Arts & Science

If an Arts or Science student chooses to receive pass/fail credit while on Go Global, the credit can only count towards elective credits. Pass/fail credits count towards the 12 maximum allowable credit/D/fail credits permitted in an Arts or Science degree. 

For example, if a student already has 6 credit/D/fail credits on their UBC transcript, they may only take 6 pass/fail credits while on a Go Global study program. If pass/fail is the standard grading system at the partner university, there are no limitations to the courses taken under pass/fail.

Science students, please refer to faculty specific credit/D/fail policy here. 

Commerce

COMM and COHR courses cannot be taken by pass/fail. Pass/fail credits obtained on a Go Global study program for non-business courses count towards the 12 maximum allowable credit/D/fail credits permitted in a Commerce degree. 

For example, if a student already has 6 credit/D/fail credits on their UBC transcript, they may only take 6 pass/fail credits while on exchange. If pass/fail is the standard grading system at the partner university, there are no limitations to the courses taken under pass/fail.

Other faculties

Please consult your academic advising office to learn more about pass/fail credits.

You are welcome to do programs independently of Go Global, but it’s unlikely you’ll be able to transfer credit for coursework you complete. This includes programs at partner schools that Go Global has not offered that session.

When students apply for Go Global programs, we secure faculty approvals during the application review process that allow you to transfer credit. While students can apply to some programs directly without going through Go Global, they would need prior permission from their home faculty to transfer credit back to UBC. Independents are also ineligible for student services and funding opportunities related to Go Global programs.

If you're considering applying to programs as an independent, please reach out to your faculty advising office about next steps.

To minimize the time it takes to process your transfer credits complete the following steps:

1. Review the tutorial video above.
2. Log into the Transfer Credit Portal with your CWL.
3. Update the information in your student profile.
4. Then enter in your partner university details to begin a new package which will contain your requested courses for transfer credit.
5. Search and add courses that have already been transferred to your draft package (e.g. already exist in the database of evaluated courses), OR submit new course requests (more information below).
6. Once you have added all of your course requests, submit your transfer credit package by the deadline for course review.

If you are taking a course at your partner university that has previously been transferred by other UBC students, you can add this existing course to your package. In most cases, you don't need to add any additional information.

Keep all of your syllabi and materials, even if the course already exists in our database. Course evaluations are reviewed every five years, and you may be asked to provide an updated syllabus to your faculty designate, listed above.

For any new course, you will need to provide detailed course information. The new course request form requires the following information:

• Course number (subject code & course code) & title at the partner university
• Instructor name & contact info
• Credit hours at the partner university
• Info about the degree structure at the partner university (e.g. 4-year undergraduate degree)
• Course description
• Prerequisites
• Description of assignments & grading breakdown
• Schedule of topics
• Reading list
• Copy of the syllabus
• What UBC credits you are requesting (what you think this course should transfer as)

• Refer to your partner university's website 
• Contact your course instructor (email, visit them during office hours, etc.). 
• If they do not provide you with all the required information, compile the information yourself into a course outline format using the sample syllabus template provided
• If the course information is not in English, you will need to contact the relevant professor or department at your partner university to request an English version, or provide a rough translation to upload together with the original course syllabi

For any course(s) that you have added after submitting your package, submit a new course evaluation package with the added course(s). Your faculty designate will merge this new course with your first submitted package later. Please note it may take longer for any added courses to be evaluated. Contact your faculty designate when adding any new courses separate from your original package. 

For any course(s) that you have dropped, please email your faculty designate and go.global@ubc.ca and indicate which course(s) you have dropped.

Go Global requires your transcript as a part of the transfer credit process. Some transcripts get sent to Go Global automatically, while others require action on students’ part - see the next question in this section for details.

Make sure you complete any necessary administrative tasks before departing your host university, in order to release your transcript. For example, you may be required to:

• Sign forms in person
• Complete teacher evaluations
• Pay outstanding fees

All official transcripts must be sent directly to UBC Go Global (see “Where should I have my partner university transcript sent?” in the first section of this page for our address). Go Global can only accept transcripts directly from partner universities as official.

Find out about transcript policies at the partner institution ahead of time and order transcripts for personal use  (e.g., for graduate school applications) before you leave.You will need to request personal-use transcripts directly from the partner university. 

Some partners automatically send transcripts to us, while several partners require action on students’ part in order to release transcripts. Plan ahead and find out from the partner university or contact Go Global before the end of your study program to see whether you need to take any action for your transcript to be sent.

Results from the Transfer Credit Portal are added to your academic record only after your final transcript from the partner university has been received.

Check with your partner institution about completing any administrative tasks that will allow your transcript to be released and ensure that all official transcripts are sent directly to UBC Go Global. Please see the section above on “How do I ensure the release of my partner university transcript?” for more information.

It can take up to 16 weeks for courses to be evaluated by your faculty and department. Final transcripts from partner institutions are usually available about 2-3 months after the program ends. Once your final transcript has been uploaded to your portal account, the transfer credit will be added to your UBC academic record. This may take up to 2-4 additional weeks.

Go Global receives over 900 course evaluation requests with each consisting of between 5 to 10 courses and coordinates with faculties and departments to get them evaluated.

It takes time to distribute your courses to all the relevant faculties for individual review, evaluate courses, receive and upload your transcript, and apply credits to your academic record. Transfer credit is a complex process involving many people from different units including partner institutions, Go Global, various faculties and departments, and Enrolment Services.

The results of the evaluation will appear online on the Student Service Centre, in the separate "Transfer Credit" section or in Degree Navigator if your faculty uses it. You can track the status of your transfer credits  in the online Transfer Credit Portal. Please contact your faculty designate if you have any questions.

See below for an example of how your transfer credits will appear on your “Transfer Credit” section of your SSC:

No, only the partner university name and the total UBC credit you received appears on your UBC transcript (e.g., "University of Sydney, 15 credits"). How individual courses transferred will only appear on the SSC (e.g., "HIST 300" or "HIST 3rd year") or Degree Navigator. The EXCH code on your transcript is never updated with grades or credit. Please see "Where can I view my transfer credits?" above.

Grades earned abroad do not affect your UBC GPA nor appear on your UBC transcript. However, they are still part of your permanent academic record which may affect your applications to graduate programs as well as present or future funding. We suggest requesting additional transcript(s) from the partner institution for personal use.

If you currently have a scholarship or loan, contact your Enrolment Services Advisor.

Contact the appropriate advisor in your department or faculty. For program requirements, contact your departmental advisor. For faculty requirements, contact the central faculty advising office. Bring a copy of your course syllabus with you when you meet with your advisor. At their discretion, an advisor may waive a program or faculty requirement if they feel it has been met abroad.

If you do not agree with how your course(s) has been evaluated, you can make an appeal for re-evaluation by contacting your faculty designate, listed above. It is important to provide specific information about why you think the courses should be evaluated differently and supporting documentation.

When Go Global receives your official transcript from the partner university, a scanned copy will be available for you to download from the Transfer Credit Portal. The original hard copy transcript will be sealed with your permanent record at Enrolment Services. If Go Global receives multiple copies, we will contact you to come pick up any additional copies.

To obtain a transcript for personal use (e.g. for graduate school applications), you will need to request this directly from the partner university. Plan ahead and  find out about transcript policies at the partner institution and order transcripts for personal use before you leave.