Graduate Transfer Credit Information

• I have already started a graduate program somewhere else. Do I do something special to apply as a transfer student?

  No. There is not a different application process for students that are already in a graduate program at another institution. You should apply and be admitted as normal. The review of transfer credit might be done within your department at the time of admission, but it is not part of the admission process at OSU. Transfer credit is evaluated during the submission of the plan of study, which is done during the second or third semester.

• I have already earned a master's degree at another university. Can I transfer hours to my master's degree at OSU?

  Yes. Up to nine hours of graduate level coursework taken at an accredited university can be transferred to a master’s degree at Oklahoma State University. The courses must have been completed with a letter grade of ‘B’ or better. The courses must be less than ten years old at the time of your graduation. And please remember that any transfer credits must be approved by your advisory committee, just like the rest of your plan of study.

• I thought the time limit to complete a master's degree was seven years. What is this talk about a ten year rule?

  There are time limits for degree completion for both masters and doctoral degrees at OSU. Masters student have seven years from first admission to complete their degree. Doctoral students have nine years. There is also a separate time limit for coursework validity. Courses are valid for ten years. This means that at the time of your graduation, no courses older than ten years can be included on your plan of study as part of the degree requirements. This can be especially relevant if you switch degree programs while at OSU or are transferring in hours from another university.

• Can I transfer hours from my master's degree to my doctorate program?

  Admission to a sixty hour PhD or EdD program requires the completion of a master’s degree. The existence of the master’s degree allows the thirty hour reduction from a ninety hour program, but none of the courses are actually transferred. If you have other graduate work beyond the master’s degree (including a second master’s degree), you could transfer up to nine hours of those courses toward your doctoral program at OSU.

• I began a doctoral program at another university, but want to switch to OSU. Can I only transfer nine hours?

  A doctoral student who wishes to transfer coursework from a similar doctoral program at an accredited university is not limited to nine hours. There is no official maximum limit on transfer credit hours for a student in this situation. But they must complete a minimum of thirty credit hours at OSU.

• Can I transfer hours from my DVM to a graduate degree at OSU?

  That depends on the degree you are pursuing at OSU. For credential evaluation purposes, medical professional degrees (e.g., DO, DVM and MD) are treated as masters’ degrees. So an applicant with a DVM could be admitted to a sixty hour PhD with no credits eligible for transfer, or admitted to a master’s degree and allowed to transfer up to nine credit hours.

• I am already a graduate student at OSU. Can I take an online class at another university for my degree here?

  It is possible to take a course outside of OSU while you are in the middle of a degree program, online or traditional. If you want that course to count toward your degree program, three criteria need to be met.

  1) The course must be a graduate level course offered by an accredited university and be taught by a member of that institution’s graduate faculty.

  2) You must earn a letter grade of ‘B’ or better in the course.

  3) Your advisory committee must have approved the course for use in your degree plan.

• I am doing a study abroad program. Is that considered transfer work?

  Maybe. If you are participating in an OSU study abroad program, then you will probably be enrolled in OSU credit hours while completing the international experience. If you are actually registering at an international institution for a semester or year, then you will be earning hours as a student of that institution and will need to transfer those credits back to OSU.

•  I am definitely transferring hours from another university. How do I enter those courses on my online plan of study?
   

  Transfer courses should be entered individually in the “Transfer / Non-Graduate Courses” section at the bottom of the Update Courses screen. Be sure to enter all information for the course(s) as it appears on the transcript from the institution where the credits were earned. You do not need to match transfer courses to equivalent courses at Oklahoma State University for the Plan of Study.

•  My plan of study listing valid transfer courses was approved by the Graduate College. Why are the courses not showing up on my transcript?
  
  

  Transfer courses at the graduate level are not listed on the OSU transcript. If they are on your approved plan of study, then they are officially part of your approved degree requirements. When you graduate, a notation will be added to your transcript stating that ___ hours were transferred from _____ institution and counted toward the degree requirements. Also be aware that since transfer courses are not directly transcripted, they do not affect your cumulative GPA.

•  Where can I find more information?
   

  The written policies governing transfer of graduate credit can be found in the Graduate College section of the University Catalog. The Office of the Registrar typically has a PDF version of the most recent edition of the Catalog available on their website : http://registrar.okstate.edu/