Alternative Credit Options

For information on alternative credit options, click on a link to be taken to the entry below.

• Credit for Prior Learning
• Advanced Placement Exams
• International Baccalaureate Transfer Credit Award
• College-Level Examination Program (CLEP)
• Attainment Examinations
• Departmental Credit by Examination
• Portfolio Assessment
• Credit for Military Training and Other Training Programs

Credit for Prior Learning

Successful completion of national examinations, departmental examinations, a prior learning portfolio, or assessment of nonaccredited training programs through published guides may be used to award credit or may permit placement in advanced courses. A student may earn up to 60 semester hours of credit toward degree requirements using prior learning credit options. Prior learning credit may not be used toward the last 12 semester hours of a degree program, does not substitute for residency requirements, and cannot be used to challenge prerequisite courses for courses already completed. Students are advised that letter grades are not assigned for such credit, and some institutions may not accept transfer credits that do not include letter grades. Additional information is available from the offices indicated in each section below.

Advanced Placement Examinations

Students who have performed satisfactorily in special, college-level courses while in high school, and who have passed appropriate Advanced Placement (AP) examinations conducted by the College Entrance Examination Board may have official scores submitted directly to the Office of Admissions for consideration for college credit. This office, in consultation with the appropriate department chair, determines the amount and nature of the credit and/or advanced placement granted. Students should contact collegeboard.com or 888-225-5427 to request official AP scores; MSU Denver’s AP code is 4505.

International Baccalaureate

MSU Denver recognizes the high level of achievement that the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program represents. Students who complete the IB Diploma Program and the IB examinations are guaranteed admission to the University and are eligible to receive credit and advanced placement standing. To receive credit, a student must receive at least a score of four (4) on each IB examination and call 301-202-3025 or visit ibo.org/informationfor/alumni/transcripts to request that official scores be mailed directly to the Office of Admissions from the IB organization. For specific equivalencies, see the table below. Please contact the Office of Admissions at 303-556-3058 for more information. Students should consult with the appropriate department for further advising and with their major departments about acceptance of credits toward their majors.

*See Math Department for further advising.

 College-Level Examination Program (CLEP)

The College Level Examination Program (CLEP) consists of a series of national standardized examinations. They are designed to evaluate non-accredited, college-level learning in order to award credit for successful demonstration of this knowledge. Based on the results of one or more of the CLEP examinations that are accepted at MSU Denver, the University may award up to 30 credits toward the General Studies requirements. Thus, students may test out of many of the traditional courses required during the freshman year. Students are advised to check with their major departments for information on specific General Studies requirements that may not be met through the use of CLEP examinations.

MSU Denver does not allow CLEP to be used for ENG 1020, Freshman Composition: Analysis, Research and Documentation.

No more than 60 credits may be earned through all of the approved CLEP examinations.

• Credit earned through the English composition with essay, humanities, natural sciences, social sciences/history, and college mathematics examinations may be applied only to General Studies requirements. Credit earned through the other approved examinations may be applied toward any requirements for completing the degree, unless otherwise stated.
• Credit earned will be entered on the student’s transcript with the title of the examination(s) and without reference to any specific MSU Denver course(s). CLEP examinations are recorded without reference to a letter grade and are not figured into the student’s GPA. Credit earned through CLEP examinations does not count toward residency credit requirements and therefore may not be awarded as part of the last 12 semester hours applicable to a degree.
• In order to have CLEP examination or military examination (DANTES) results evaluated, the student should have a copy of the official score report sent to: Metropolitan State University of Denver, Office of Admissions, Campus Box 16, P.O. Box 173362, Denver, CO 80217-3362. To request an official CLEP score report, contact collegeboard.com/clep or 800-257-9558. MSU Denver’s CLEP code is 4505. DANTES test scores can be obtained by calling 850-452-1063.
• All CLEP examinations will be subject to the statement of policy in place at the time the scores are submitted, not the policy in place at the time the examination was taken.
• Credit awarded through CLEP examinations at other colleges or universities will be re-evaluated at MSU Denver according to the MSU Denver policy in place at the time the test scores are submitted. Students are advised to have an official copy of their score(s) sent to the University in order to have that credit evaluated.
• MSU Denver will not grant credit for a CLEP examination if, prior to the semester the exam is taken, a student has completed, or was enrolled in, college courses equivalent to or more advanced than the subject material of the exam. This restriction includes courses designated at a higher level (i.e., 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000) within the same subject prefix (e.g., HIS, ENG). Credit will not be recorded on a student’s permanent record until all official transcripts from other regionally accredited colleges and universities attended by the student have been received and evaluated by the Office of Admissions.
• Any exception to these policies must be approved through the Board on Academic Standards Exceptions (BASE). Information about filing an appeal through BASE is available from the Dean’s Office of the School corresponding to the student’s major.
• Failure to achieve the required score(s) listed will not be entered on the permanent record. However, a copy of the CLEP score report will be retained in the student’s file.
• Any examination may be repeated six months after the date of the previous examination.

For advising assistance with CLEP examinations, departmental credit by examination, and portfolio assessment, students may contact the Center for Individualized Learning, St. Francis Center, 2nd floor, Room 10, 303-556-8342. Additional information about the content and format of CLEP examinations is available through the College Board website at collegeboard.com/clep. Examinations may be taken through MSU Denver’s Office of Assessment and Testing located in the Tivoli Student Union, Room 347, 303 556-3677, msudenver.edu/testing. Other official testing centers can be found through the College Board website listed above.

* Does not meet general education requirements

¹ Although the examinations are essentially independent, where there is overlap, credit may be obtained by completing only one of the two overlapping examinations.

² If during or subsequent to the semester the exam is taken, the student earns credit in any course(s) in column 5, accepted at MSU Denver, the credit value of the course(s) will be subtracted from the corresponding CLEP credit previously awarded.

³ Introductory Psychology may be applied to a psychology major or minor.

⁴ Students wishing to take Calculus I at MSU Denver must first pass MSU Denver’s departmental calculus placement exam.

Examination scores are based on standards set by NTE/ETS and in consultation with the appropriate department chairperson.

Attainment Examinations

Any student may take attainment examinations in some departments for the purpose of waiving specific graduation requirements. Passing such an examination, although it does not reduce the number of credits required for graduation, entitles students to substitute their own choice for the required subject. The examination is approximately the equivalent of the final examination in the course.

Departmental Credit by Examination

A department may grant a student credit for college courses for which the student requests and passes appropriate examinations. The charge for each credit hour requested is one-half the student’s portion of in-state tuition for one credit hour, and must be paid prior to taking the examination. A maximum of 30 semester hours of credit may be awarded through departmental credit by examination. Credit through departmental examination is based on knowledge equivalent to a regular course offered by the University. Omnibus-numbered courses are excluded. Permission for departmental credit by examination must be obtained in advance from the instructor giving the examination, the department chair and the appropriate dean.

To earn credit by examination, a student must be currently enrolled in good standing in a degree or certificate program at the University.

Credit by examination may not be counted as part of the last 12 semester hours of a degree program unless it is approved by the Board on Academic Standards Exceptions (BASE). Applications for submitting a request to BASE are available in the dean’s office for each school.

If a student has registered for a higher numbered course in a sequence, the exam for a prerequisite for that higher-numbered course must be completed within the first three weeks of the semester. Credit by examination for a course which is a prerequisite for a course already completed will not be granted unless approved by BASE.

Examinations cannot be taken to raise grades, to remove failures, or to remove notations that have no effect on the GPA. Credit by examination is not applicable toward academic residency requirements. Credit by examination cannot be obtained for a course in which a student has been enrolled at MSU Denver or at another regionally accredited college or university unless approved by BASE. Credit by examination will not be granted for courses attended as a listener, visitor or auditor.

Examinations for credit will be taken at a time specified by the department. A grade equivalent to “A” or “B” must be attained on the examination in order to receive credit, but credits earned for the course will be recorded without a grade on the student’s permanent record and are not considered in computing university grade point averages.

The hours granted for credit by exam are not included as a part of the student’s semester enrollment. The credit will appear on the transcript for the semester in which the examination was taken, but the hours do not count as part of the student’s total enrollment for the purposes of financial aid or any other purpose predicated on total hours of enrollment for a given semester.

Credit by examination will be posted after a student has completed eight semester hours of credit at Metropolitan State University of Denver and after an evaluation of all transfer credit has been completed. The application form will be maintained in the student’s file. No record of failures on such examinations will be entered on the student’s permanent record. Departmental examinations attempted for course credit under these guidelines may not be repeated.

Applications for departmental credit by examination are available at the Center for Individualized Learning (303-556-8342) and from the Office of the Registrar (Student Success Building, Suite 160, #3).

Portfolio Assessment

Students may apply for credit for college-level learning gained through experience by preparing and submitting a prior learning portfolio. Credit is awarded on the basis of a careful assessment of the prior learning portfolio by faculty in the department from which credit is sought. Portfolio assessment is available in many, but not all, academic departments. To earn credit, a student must be a continuing student enrolled in good standing in a degree or certificate program.

The portfolio is developed with the assistance of the Center for Individualized Learning, 303-556-8342. Portfolio assessment may be used to apply for credit for specific courses listed in the Catalog. Students may also apply for credit for omnibus courses through portfolio assessment with the permission of the appropriate academic department. Applicants for credit through portfolio assessment will be required to take

Policies that govern credit for prior learning options apply to credit awarded through the portfolio process. The charge for each credit hour assessed is one-half the student’s portion of in-state tuition for one credit hour. The assessment charge is payable prior to evaluation of the portfolio by faculty for academic credit.

Information sessions about portfolio assessment and other credit for prior learning options are held on a regular basis. For assistance and further information, contact the Center for Individualized Learning at 303-556-8342 or msudenver.edu/cil. 

Credit for Military Training and Other Training Programs

Military training and other educational programs, including DANTES, that have been assessed for college credit by the American Council on Education (ACE) will be evaluated by the Office of Admissions for transfer credit at MSU Denver. The Army, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Navy now produce a Joint Services Transcript (JST) to replace the AARTS and SMART transcripts. To request a JST, visit: jst.doded.mil. Community College of the Air Force transcripts can be requested at au.af.mil/ccaf. Military credit limit is 30 semester hours. Questions regarding credit awarded for military experience or other prior learning assessment options should be directed to the Prior Learning Specialist in the Center for Individualized Learning at 303-556-8342. Military transcripts should be sent to MSU Denver’s Office of Admissions.