Transfer Credit Guidelines
You may transfer an unlimited number of college credits to Purdue. However, at least 32 credit hours of upper-division courses must be earned at Purdue for a degree from the university.
Transfer Credit Overview
To assess earned credit, we will evaluate previous credits earned as well as experience, if applicable. There are no fees to complete this evaluation; however, we may prioritize evaluation of credit for those who have been admitted to Purdue as well as those with the nearest entry term.
There are a variety of ways you may earn Purdue credit for previous work as outlined below. If you have questions about the process of transferring credit to Purdue, please contact the Office of Admissions.
Courses Taken as a College Student
When you are admitted to Purdue as a degree-seeking student, Purdue’s credit evaluation department will assess your official college transcripts for possible transfer credit. The credit evaluation will be available in your application portal if you haven’t made your decision yet. If you’ve already accepted your offer of admission, the credit information will be added directly to myPurduePlan. To be transferable, coursework must meet the following criteria:
- It was earned at a regionally accredited institution.
- It is college-level coursework (not remedial or developmental).
- You received a grade of at least a C-.
Please note: Only credit transfers, your grades will not.
Dual/Concurrent or Early College Credit Earned in High School
You may earn Purdue credit from dual or concurrent high school coursework (courses you took in high school that also counted toward college credit, including Purdue’s dual credit program). We must have an official transcript from the college or university that administered the course; we cannot use your high school transcript to award Purdue credit.
Credit earned through Purdue’s dual credit program already exists on your Purdue student record; there is no need to submit a transcript.
Credit From Testing
There are a variety of national, international and Purdue-specific testing opportunities through which you may receive Purdue credit. These include the College Board’s Advanced Placement program, International Baccalaureate, A-level, departmental proficiency examinations and others. More information is available in the Credit Through Testing section below.
Military Experience, JST/CCAF Transcript, Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center (DLIFLC) and More
There are a variety of ways military experiences and credits can be evaluated for Purdue credit. For a detailed breakdown, please review the Military section below.
Additional Information
We must have official transcripts with final grades to award credit (not copied, scanned, faxed or sent from a personal email). Transcripts must be provided by the college or university that administered the coursework. Also, we cannot use high school transcripts to award credit for dual/concurrent credit courses. Coursework taken at a Purdue regional campus or as part of Purdue’s dual credit program is already on your student record; there is no need to submit a transcript.
Be sure to request or send transcripts at least two weeks before the application deadline. Transcripts must be submitted using one of the following methods:
- Deliver through an electronic transcript service (contact your institution’s registrar office). This is the quickest and most efficient method. Submit to admissions@purdue.edu for e-transcript services that require an email address. Do not use a Purdue staff member’s individual email address.
- Mail to Purdue at the following address from the institution that administered the course:
Purdue University Office of Admissions
2550 Northwestern Ave., Suite 1900
West Lafayette, IN 47906 - Deliver in person to the Office of Admissions in a sealed envelope on the institution’s stationery.
Do not send duplicate copies via different methods.
Our transfer credit course equivalency guide allows you to look up courses individually to determine how they may transfer to Purdue. You should use this tool along with the plan of study for your desired major to assess how previous college credit may apply to the major. Courses taken at a Purdue regional campus are Purdue credit; this tool is not needed to evaluate.
There are multiple ways you may earn Purdue credit based on scores from testing services:
College Board Advanced Placement program (AP): Tests taken as part of high school AP courses
- For information about AP credit Purdue accepts and the scores necessary to earn credit, visit our College Board Advanced Placement Credit page.
College-Level Examination Program (CLEP): Tests based on knowledge acquired through experience or independent study
- CLEP exams may not be used in place of coursework required for admission to Purdue. Purdue Testing Services offers CLEP exams to current Purdue students by appointment. For a listing of CLEP exams, required scores and available Purdue credits, visit our College-Level Examination Program page.
International Baccalaureate (IB): Tests taken as part of the IB program
- For information about IB credit available at Purdue and the scores required, visit our International Baccalaureate page.
A-level exams: Tests taken as part of Cambridge International’s A-level program
- For A-level exams listed by course and scores required, visit our A-Level Credit page.
DSST program: Tests based on knowledge students acquired through experience or independent study
- For detailed information on credit awarded based on exams, visit our DSST Exams page.
National Examinations in World Languages (NEWL): Proficiency-based language assessment
- For a listing of credit available for select language exams, visit our National Examinations in World Languages page.
Purdue-specific tests: Purdue departmental proficiency examinations
- Purdue Testing Services administers a variety of tests. For a full list, along with costs and details on scheduling, visit the Purdue Testing Services page.
Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Exam (CAPE): Credit awarded through examination
- Contact admissions@purdue.edu for information about how this credit transfers.
UExcel exams: As of August 2022, these exams are no longer offered by Excelsior University (formerly known as Excelsior College).
Purdue participates in statewide transfer initiatives coordinated by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education. In addition, the university has articulation (transfer) agreements for specific majors.
- Purdue core curriculum is a set of common learning outcomes required of all Purdue undergraduate students. In some cases, transfer courses may be used to satisfy specific learning outcomes.
- Indiana Core Transfer Library (CTL) includes a list of courses that transfer among all Indiana public colleges and universities.
- Indiana College Core (formerly STGEC) provides core student competencies and outcomes required at public institutions in Indiana. Students who have successfully completed the core requirement at one Indiana institution will not be required to complete it at another institution if they transfer. A variety of courses may satisfy a specific core requirement and whether a requirement is satisfied may be independent of courses a student still must complete at Purdue.
- Purdue Articulation (Transfer) Agreements are transfer agreements Purdue has with other institutions.
- Indiana Transfer Single Articulation Pathway (TSAP) is a program in which students in selected majors may complete an associate’s degree at an Indiana community college and transfer into a related field at a four-year public university in Indiana where credits earned for the associate’s degree will apply toward the bachelor’s degree.
Undistributed Credit: Military veterans or active-duty personnel with six months to one year of military service will receive four hours of undistributed credit. If you have at least one year, you will receive eight hours of undistributed credit. Submit your DD214 or LES when applying to Purdue or email it directly to transfercredit@purdue.edu.
The Joint Service Transcript (JST) for credit evaluation will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis as it pertains to the different sections of the JST.
- Section 1 — Military Courses and Section 2 — Military Experience (of the JST): If you are a service member who has a JST, you may submit your transcript to Purdue’s Veteran and Military Success Center for review of military courses and military experience. The center will then use the ACE Military Guide in combination with your plan of study to recommend applicable transfer credits.
- Section 3 — Transfer Courses (of the JST):
- Credits listed underneath the Transfer Credit Courses section of the JST will go through transfer credit evaluation by the transfer credit evaluation office. These courses are institutionally accredited. Examples are:
- Air University: Visit the Air University website for information on accreditation.
- DLIFLC Transfer Credit: If you have graduated from and received transfer credit from the DLIFLC, you may seek transfer credit through the credit evaluation office. Visit the DLIFLC’s website for accreditation information. Service members who graduate from DLIFLC are also considered within the population of those who do not need to take language placement exams.
- Additional courses as listed within the transfer course credit section of the JST.
- Credits listed underneath the Transfer Credit Courses section of the JST will go through transfer credit evaluation by the transfer credit evaluation office. These courses are institutionally accredited. Examples are:
Community College of the Air Force (CCAF): If you are a service member specific to the Air Force and the Space Force, you may have a CCAF that you can submit for transfer credit to the office of credit evaluations.