Bring Credits to GW

First-year and transfer applicants may earn college credit before they matriculate at the George Washington University (GW), which may be applied to their degree requirements.

Assuming there is no duplication of coursework, a maximum of 24 credits may be awarded on the basis of work completed while enrolled in high school through examinations such as AP/IB/A-Levels.

Students enrolled in college coursework while in high school should apply as a first-time student. There is no limit to the number of pre-matriculation credits a student can bring to GW from a post-secondary institution. (See "Colleges Courses Taken in High School" below for details.)

For transfer students, an evaluation of your courses taken at other institutions is completed when you have been admitted to GW and comes with your letter of admission. This evaluation will give you an idea of which credits will transfer to GW. However, a final determination of how this credit will be applied to a degree must be obtained from your academic adviser.

These policies are made in collaboration with the faculty, Office of the Registrar, and the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment and are in effect for incoming students to Columbian College of Arts and Sciences (including Corcoran School of the Arts and Design and School of Media and Public Affairs), Elliott School of International Affairs, School of Business, School of Engineering and Applied Science, and School of Public Health. Students entering into other schools should refer to the University Bulletin. Requests for changes to these policies should be submitted via petition to the Office of the Registrar.

Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Credit

In order to receive credit for College Board Advanced Placement (AP) examinations, you must have official score results forwarded directly to us from the College Board. GW's College Board code is 5246. Official AP scores and International Baccalaureate (IB) results should be sent as soon as they are available, but no later than the end of a student's first year at GW.

Arts

Examination

Score

Credit
Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Art History

4 or 5

6 hours

AH 1031 & 1032

Studio Art-Drawing

4 or 5

3 hours

CSA 1301

Studio Art- 2D or 3D Design

4 or 5

3 hours

FA 1099

Music Theory

4 or 5

3 hours

MUS 1101

 

English

Examination

Score

Credit
Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

English Language and Composition

4 or 5

3 hours

UW 1099

English Literature and Composition

4 or 5

3 hours

ENGL 1050

 

History and Social Sciences

Examination

Score

Credit
Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Microeconomics

4 or 5

3 hours

ECON 1011

Macroeconomics

4 or 5

3 hours

ECON 1012

Comparative Government & Politics

4 or 5

3 hours

PSC 1001

United States Government & Politics

4 or 5

3 hours

PSC 1002

United States History

4 or 5

6 hours

HIST 1310 & 1311

European History

4 or 5

3 hours

HIST 1120

World History

4 or 5

3 hours

HIST 1011

Human Geography

4 or 5

3 hours

GEOG 1001

Psychology

4 or 5

3 hours

PSYC 1001

 

Math and Computer Science

Examination

Score

Credit
Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Computer Science A

4 or 5

3 hours

CSCI 1111

Computer Science Principles

4 or 5

3 hours

CSCI 1021

Calculus AB

4 or 5

3 hours

MATH 1231

Calculus BC

4 or 5

6 hours

MATH 1231 & 1232

Statistics

4 or 5

3 hours

STAT 1051

 

Sciences

Examination

Score

Credit
Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Biology

4 or 5

8 hours

BISC 1111 & 1112

Chemistry

4 or 5

8 hours

CHEM 1111 & 1112

Environmental Science

4 or 5

3 hours

GEOL 1099

Physics 1: Algebra-Based

4 or 5

4 hours

PHYS 1011

Physics 2: Algebra-Based

4 or 5

4 hours

PHYS 1012

Physics C: Mechanics

4 or 5

4 hours

PHYS 1021

Physics C: Electricity & Magnetism

4 or 5

4 hours

PHYS 1022

 

World Languages and Cultures

Examination

Score

Credit
Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Chinese Language and Culture

 

5

8 hours

CHIN 2003 & 2004

4

4 hours

French Language and Culture

5

6 hours

FREN 1004 & 2005

German Language and Culture

5

6 hours

GER 2009 & 2010

4

3 hours

GER 1099

Italian Language and Culture

5

6 hours

ITAL 1004 & 2005

Japanese Language and Culture

5

8 hours

JAPN 2003 & 2004

4

4 hours

JAPN 2003

Latin

4

3 hours

LATN 2001
Latin 5 3 hours LATN 2002

Spanish Language and Culture

5

6 hours

SPAN 1014 & 2005

Spanish Literature and Culture

4 or 5

3 hours

SPAN 2006

 

The university reserves the right to change policy regarding AP credit without advance notice.

Studies in Language and Literature

Unless otherwise noted, IB examinations listed below are Higher Level.

Examination

 Score

 

 Credits Awarded

 

GW Course Equivalent

Arabic A1 (Literature; Language and Literature)

 6 or 7

 

 3 hours

 

Arabic 1099

English A1

6 or 7

3 hours

English 1340
French A1 (Literature; Language and Literature)

 

6 or 7

6 hours

French 2005 & 2006

5

6 hours

French 1004 & 2005

French A1 (Literature; Language and Literature) - Standard Level

7

6 hours

French 1004 & 2005

German A1 (Literature; Language and Literature)

6 or 7

3 hours

German 1099
Greek (Literature; Language and Literature) 6 or 7 3 hours Greek 1099

Indonesian A1 (Literature; Language and Literature)

6 or 7

3 hours

Interdisciplinary Studies 1099
Italian A1 (Literature; Language and Literature)

 

6 or 7

6 hours

Italian 2005 & 2006

5

6 hours

Italian 1004 & 2005

Italian A1 (Literature; Language and Literature) - Standard Level

7

6 hours

Italian 1004 & 2005
Korean A1 (Literature; Language and Literature) 6 or 7 3 hours Korean 1099
Latin (Literature; Language and Literature) 6 or 7 3 hours Latin 1099
Persian A1 (Literature; Language and Literature) 6 or 7 3 hours Interdisciplinary Studies 1099
Portuguese A1 (Literature; Language and Literature) 6 or 7 6 hours Portuguese 1003 & 1004
Spanish A1 (Literature; Language and Literature)

 

6 or 7

6 hours

Spanish 2005 & 2006

5

6 hours

Spanish 1004 & 2005

Spanish A1(Literature; Language and Literature) - Standard Level

7

6 hours

Spanish 1004 & 2005

Turkish A1 (Literature; Language and Literature)

6 or 7

3 hours

Interdisciplinary Studies 1099


Language Acquisition

Unless otherwise noted, IB examinations listed below are Higher Level.

Examination

Score

Credits Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Arabic B

6 or 7

6 hours

Arabic 1099

English B

--

None

None
Chinese B 6 or 7 8 hours Chinese 1099
French B

 

7

6 hours

French 2005 & 2006

6

6 hours

French 1004 & 2005

German B

6 or 7

6 hours

German 1099
Italian B

 

7

6 hours

Italian 2005 & 2006

6

6 hours

Italian 1004 & 2005

Japanese B

6 or 7

8 hours

Japanese 1099

Mandarin B

6 or 7

8 hours

Chinese 2003 & 2004
Korean B 6 or 7 8 hours Korean 1099
Spanish B

 

7

6 hours

Spanish 2005 & 2006

6

6 hours

Spanish 1004 & 2005

Portuguese B

6 or 7

6 hours

Portuguese 1099


Individuals and Societies

Unless otherwise noted, IB examinations listed below are Higher Level.

Examination

Score

Credits Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Business Management

6 or 7

3 hours

Business
Administration 1099

Economics

6 or 7

6 hours

Economics 1011-1012

Geography

6 or 7

6 hours

Geography 1099

History

6 or 7

6 hours

History 1099

Global Politics

6 or 7

3 hours

PSC 1099

History of Africa and the Middle East

6 or 7

6 hours

History 1099

History of the Americas

6 or 7

6 hours

History 1099

History of Asia and Oceania

6 or 7

6 hours

History 1099

History of Europe

6 or 7

6 hours

History 1099

Information Technology in a Global Society

6 or 7

6 hours

Interdisciplinary Studies 1099

Philosophy

6 or 7

6 hours

Philosophy 1099

Psychology

6 or 7

6 hours

Psychology 1099

Social and Cultural Anthropology

6 or 7

3 hours

Anthropology 1002


Sciences

Unless otherwise noted, IB examinations listed below are Higher Level.

Examination

Score

Credits Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Biology

6 or 7

8 hours

Biology 1099
*effective for the class entering fall 2020, credit will be awarded for Biology 1111 and 1112

Chemistry

6 or 7

8 hours

Chemistry 1099

Computer Science

6 or 7

6 hours

Computer Science 1099

Design Technology

6 or 7

6 hours

Interdisciplinary Studies 1099

Physics

6 or 7

8 hours

Physics 1099

Sports, Exercise, and Health Science

6 or 7

3 hours

Exercise and Nutrition Sciences 1099


Mathematics

Unless otherwise noted, IB examinations listed below are Higher Level.

Examination

Score

Credits Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Mathematics

6 or 7

6 hours

Math 1099


The Arts

Unless otherwise noted, IB examinations listed below are Higher Level.

Examination

Score

Credits Awarded

GW Course Equivalent

Art/Design

6 or 7

6 hours

Fine Art 1099

Film

6 or 7

6 hours

Film 1099

Music

6 or 7

6 hours

Music 1099

Theatre Arts

6 or 7

6 hours

Theatre and Dance 1099
Visual Arts 6 or 7 6 hours Fine Art 1099


The university reserves the right to change policy regarding IB credit without advance notice.

College Courses Taken in High School

Assignment of credit for college courses taken during high school depends on the grade earned, the appropriateness of the coursework, the standing of the institution at which the coursework was completed, and the regulations of the school or college to which the student is transferring. For Columbian College of Arts and Sciences (including Corcoran School of the Arts and Design and School of Media and Public Affairs), Elliott School of International Affairs, School of Business, School of Engineering and Applied Science, and the Milken Institute School of Public Health coursework completed at another institution must have received a grade of “C-“ or above to be accepted for transfer credit.

In order to receive credit, you should have official transcripts sent to the Office of the Registrar as soon as possible. While there is no limit to the number of credits that can be transferred to GW, students must complete at least 60 of the total credits required for their degree at or through GW. School-specific regulations on transfer credit can be found in the University Bulletin or by contacting the appropriate Dean’s office.

Transfer Credit

Assignment of credit for transfer applicants depends on the grade earned, the appropriateness of the coursework, the standing of the institution at which the coursework was completed, and the regulations of the school or college to which the student is transferring. For Columbian College of Arts and Sciences (including Corcoran School of the Arts and Design and School of Media and Public Affairs), Elliott School of International Affairs, School of Business, School of Engineering and Applied Science, and the Milken Institute School of Public Health coursework completed at another institution must have received a grade of “C-“ or above to be accepted for transfer credit.

A meeting with your adviser upon acceptance is encouraged to help you determine which courses will fulfill degree requirements for your intended major. While there is no limit to the number of credits that can be transferred to GW, students must complete at least 60 of the total credits required for their degree at or through GW. School-specific regulations on transfer credit can be found in the University Bulletin or by contacting the appropriate Dean’s office.