Mar 29, 2024  
2016-2017 CSU East Bay Catalog 
    
2016-2017 CSU East Bay Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

How may I obtain credit by examination as an undergraduate student?


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Image of students outside of the RAW building.Cal State East Bay grants credit to those students who pass examinations that have been approved for credit system wide. These include the Advanced Placement Examinations and some College Level Examination Program (CLEP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) exams.

Credit by Examination Policy

The award of credit for successfully passing any approved examination is subject to the following conditions:

  • Credit shall not be awarded for successful passage of any examination if the student previously took that examination during the past quarter.
  • Credit shall not be awarded when equivalent degree credit has been granted for regular coursework, credit-by evaluation, or other instructional processes such as correspondence.
  • Credit shall not be awarded when credit has been granted at a level represented by the examination in question.
  • Duplicate credit shall not be awarded where there are overlapping tests, university level work, or both. Where there is partial overlap, the amount of examination credit shall be reduced accordingly.
  • The total amount of credit earned on the basis of externally developed tests, which may be applied to a baccalaureate degree, shall not exceed 45 quarter units. Advanced Placement credit is excluded from this limit.
Challenging Courses

Students may challenge courses by taking examinations developed at Cal State East Bay. Credit shall be awarded to those who pass them successfully. No instructor is obliged to offer credit-by-examination for a course.

The university recognizes that exceptional students, by reason of special studies or experiences, may already have achieved the objectives of certain courses in the basic program; therefore, students with this background may petition to receive credit in selected courses by special examination. Such an examination is normally from three to six hours in length and may be oral as well as written. Each course may be challenged only once.

Students who wish credit under this plan must enroll for the course during the enrollment period for the units to be earned by the examination. The class being challenged for credit must be listed in the Class Schedule for the particular quarter. Obtain a petition for credit by examination from the office of the department offering the course, and get the permission of both the instructor and department chair. The examination must be administered during the first two weeks of the quarter and the results, in grade form, must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar by the end of the fifth week. The instructor is responsible for notifying the student of the results of the examination.

If the exam is passed with a grade of “C-” or higher, the letter grade and credit by examination will be indicated on the student’s permanent record. If students receive a grade of “D+,” “D,” or “F” on the examination, the student must either continue taking the course formally or officially withdraw from it within one week after completing the examination. (Note: The instructor need not inform the Office of the Records and Registration of the grades “D+,” “D” or “F.”) Some departments (e.g., Modern Languages and Literatures) only allow their courses to be challenged for a “CR” grade.

No more than 36 quarter units of credit obtained by challenging courses may be applied toward the baccalaureate degree. No credit earned by examination may be used to satisfy the requirement of 45 quarter units in residence at Cal State East Bay.

Advanced Placement

Cal State East Bay grants credit toward its undergraduate degrees for successful completion of examinations of the Advanced Placement Program of the College Board. Students who present scores of 3 or better will be granted 4-12 quarter units of transfer college credit.

The Exams - AP s are prepared and offered by the College Board. Unit credit will be granted to those passing the exams, but no letter grade will be assigned or computed in a student’s grade point average.

If you have Advanced Placement credit, request the College Board to send your test score(s) to the Office of Admission at Cal State East Bay.

Normally, if Advanced Placement course credits satisfy G.E. Area B, C, and/or D requirements, they will apply to sophomore year general education requirements and not to freshmen clusters because all freshmen benefit from participating in these learning communities. Only if the amount of Advanced Placement credit exceeds what can be applied to the second year will it be applied to freshmen clusters.

Please see the list of Exams - AP  and credit awarded.

International Baccalaureate Exams

Cal State East Bay recognizes the International Baccalaureate (IB) as a challenging college-preparatory program. Four (4) to fifteen (15) units of college credit will be awarded for each IB Higher Level Examination passed with a score of 4, 5, 6, or 7. (No credit will be awarded for IB Subsidiary Level passes.) A copy of the official IB transcript must be supplied to the university when credit is requested. All credit is granted in terms of existing Cal State East Bay courses with equivalent subject matter determined by the department.

Please see the list of Exams - IB  and the Cal State East Bay credit awarded.

College Level Examination Program

Please see the list of Exams - CLEP  Tests and the Cal State East Bay credit awarded.

Science Equivalency Test Program

Students who pass the American Chemistry Society Cooperative Examination in General Chemistry at or above the 50th percentile will receive 5 units of credit.

Credit for Non-Collegiate Instruction

Cal State East Bay grants undergraduate degree credit for successful completion of non-collegiate instruction (either military or civilian) appropriate to the baccalaureate degree that has been recommended by the Commission on Educational Credit and Credentials of the American Council on Education. Attendance in military courses and schools must be documented by forms DD214 or DD295. Such credit shall be clearly identified on the permanent record.

Credit for the following types of courses may be granted:

  • Lower division baccalaureate/associate degree credit courses which are comparable to courses offered on most CSU campuses. (Credit is not allowed for occupationally oriented courses designed to enable a student to function only as a technician.)
  • Upper division baccalaureate degree credit courses.
  • Graduate degree credit courses.

The numbers of units allowed are those recommended in the Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experience in the Armed Services and the National Guide to Educational Credit for Training Programs.

Cal State East Bay shall determine which units shall be applied as general education, major, or elective credit.

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