Transfer Credits And Course Waivers

Students who have taken graduate courses at another institution may apply to have certain credits transferred to UB. To apply, students must submit a letter to the department specifying which course credits they wish to have transferred, along with a copy of the course syllabus and their transcript.

The number of credits eligible for transfer will be determined by departmental committee. Currently, the committee is chaired by Professor Matthew Dryer and supported by Jürgen Bohnemeyer, director of Graduate Studies. Once each year, Professor Dryer will circulate a memo requesting that students submit their transfer credit materials for consideration. Students should observe this request at the first opportunity, ideally in the first semester after joining the department.

Students who have taken graduate courses at another institution may request to have some of the core courses waived. To request a course waiver, the student must consult with the UB faculty member teaching the equivalent course in the appropriate semester; if the course is not offered that semester, they may also consult the faculty member who most recently taught the course. The instructor may ask the student for a syllabus of the previous course in order to determine which topics were covered, the required textbooks and readings, and how the student was evaluated. (S)he may also discuss some of the pertinent topics with the student.

Once a student has consulted with the relevant faculty, the student should ask the faculty to sign the Course Waiver Form. The student should return the signed form to the Director of Graduate Studies, who will also sign and place the form in the student’s file in the main office. Students should request to have core courses waived at the first opportunity, ideally in the first semester after joining the department.