Credit Transfer

Class credits transfer at Owens Community College.  Students can earn the first two years of baccalaureate degree credit at Owens then transfer to other four-year colleges and universities. Students can also transfer credits from other colleges or universities to earn an associate degree or certificate at Owens.

For more information, visit the Owens Transfer Website.

Institutional Transfer

The Ohio Board of Regents in 1990, following a directive of the 119th Ohio General Assembly, developed the Ohio Articulation and Transfer Policy to facilitate students’ ability to transfer credits from one Ohio public college or university to another in order to avoid duplication of course requirements. A subsequent policy review and recommendations produced by the Articulation and Transfer Advisory Council in 2004, together with mandates from the 125th Ohio General Assembly in the form of Amended Substitute House Bill 95, have prompted improvements of the original policy. While all state-assisted colleges and universities are required to follow the Ohio Articulation and Transfer Policy, independent colleges and universities in Ohio may or may not participate in the transfer policy. Therefore, students interested in transferring to independent institutions are encouraged to check with the college or university of their choice regarding transfer agreements. In support of improved articulation and transfer processes, the Ohio Board of Regents will establish a transfer clearinghouse to receive, annotate, and convey transcripts among state-assisted colleges and universities. This system is designed to provide standardized information and help colleges and universities reduce undesirable variability in the transfer credit evaluation process. 

Ohio Transfer Module

The Ohio Board of Regents’ Transfer and Articulation Policy established the Transfer Module, which is a subset or entire set of a college or university’s general education curriculum in A.A., A.S. and baccalaureate degree programs. Students in applied associate degree programs may complete some individual transfer module courses within their degree program or continue beyond the degree program to complete the entire transfer module.
The Ohio Transfer Module¹ contains 54-60 quarter hours or 36-40 semester hours of coursework in general education. It is a subset or the complete set of general education requirements at each college or university. In order for general education courses to be a part of an institution’s transfer module, all coursework is subject to a review by the statewide transfer module panels against the Ohio Transfer Module Guidelines and learning outcomes.

Each transfer module must include a minimum of 24 semester hours of approved OTM courses as outlined below:

• At least three semester credit hours in English Composition and Oral Communication (e.g., First Writing, Second Writing, Public Speaking)

• At least three semester credit hours in Mathematics and Data Analysis (e.g., College Algebra, Pre-Calculus, Trigonometry, Calculus, Statistics, Formal/Symbolic Logic)

• At least six semester credit hours in Arts and Humanities (e.g., Art History, Ethics, American History, Literature, Philosophy, Religion, Ethnic or Gender Studies)

• At least six semester credit hours in Social and Behavioral Sciences (e.g., Anthropology, Economics, Geography, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology)

• At least six semester credit hours in Natural Sciences (e.g., Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Geology, Physical Geography, Physics)

The additional 12-16 semester credit hours needed to complete the OTM are distributed² among the same five categories but may be distributed differently in the Associate of Arts and the Associate of Science degrees. Typically an Associate of Arts degree would include more credit hours in the oral and written communication and arts and humanities areas, while an Associate of Science degree would include more credit hours in the mathematics and science areas.

Transfer Module course(s) or the full module completed at one college or university will automatically meet the requirements of individual Transfer Module course(s) or the full Transfer Module at another college or university once the student is admitted. Students may be required, however, to meet additional general education requirements at the institution to which they transfer. For example, a student who completes the Transfer Module at Institution S (sending institution) and then transfers to Institution R (receiving institution) is said to have completed the Transfer Module portion of Institution R’s general education program. Institution R, however, may have general education courses that go beyond its Transfer Module. State policy initially required that all courses in the Transfer Module be completed to receive its benefit in transfer. However, subsequent policy revisions have extended this benefit to the completion of individual Transfer Module courses on a course-by-course basis.

The Transfer Module at Owens Community College consists of a minimum of 36 semester hours of credit. Students will be expected to take at least the minimum number of course hours from each area as listed and students must select 12 additional credit hours from any of the academic categories labeled with an asterisk (*).  

• English Composition* - A minimum of 3 semester hours is required.

• Mathematics* - A minimum of 3 semester hours is required.

• Arts/Humanities* - A minimum of 6 semester hours is required.

• Social and Behavioral Sciences* - A minimum of 6 semester hours is required.

• Sciences* - A minimum of 6 semester hours is required. At least one must be a laboratory course.

The Ohio Transfer Module (OTM) Approved Courses Reporting System will help you identify Transfer Module approved courses that are guaranteed to transfer and apply toward related general education subject areas at Ohio’s public colleges and universities.You can search by the OTM Subject Area that transfers as a general credit and/or by individual English and Math courses under the Learning Outcome (LO)-Based OTM Subject Area that transfers as a direct equivalent. Use to course filter to search the Owens Course Listing  for OTM approved courses by selecting type “OTM”.

Transfer Assurance Guides (TAG)

Transfer Assurance Guides (TAG) comprise Transfer Module courses and additional courses required for an academic major. A TAG is an advising tool to assist Ohio university and community and technical college students planning specific majors to make course selections that will ensure comparable, compatible, and equivalent learning experiences across the state’s higher-education system. A number of area specific TAG pathways in the arts, humanities, business, communication, education, health, mathematics, science, engineering, engineering technologies, social sciences and criminal justice have been developed by faculty teams.

TAGs empower students to make informed course selection decisions and plans for their future transfer. Advisors at the institution to which a student wishes to transfer should also be consulted during the transfer process. Students may elect to complete the full TAG or any subset of courses from the TAG. Because of specific major requirements, early identification of a student’s intended major is encouraged.

The Courses Bulletin Board helps students identify equivalent TAG courses. Bulletin Board users can search more than 6,500 approved courses to determine if specific courses will transfer from one university to another.

Conditions for Transfer Admission

• Ohio residents with associate degrees from state-assisted institutions and a completed, approved Transfer Module shall be admitted to a state institution of higher education in Ohio, provided their cumulative grade point average is at least 2.0 for all previous college-level courses. Further, these students shall have admission priority over out-of-state associate degree graduates and transfer students.

• When students have earned associate degrees but have not completed a Transfer Module, they will be eligible for preferential consideration for admission as transfer students if they have grade point averages of at least a 2.0 for all previous college-level courses. 

• In order to encourage completion of the baccalaureate degree, students who are not enrolled in an A.A. or A.S. degree program but have earned 60 semester or 90 quarter hours or more of credit toward a baccalaureate degree with a grade point average of at least a 2.0 for all previous college-level courses will be eligible for preferential consideration for admission as transfer students. 

• Students who have not earned an A.A. or A.S. degree or who have not earned 60 semester hours or 90 quarter hours of credit with a grade point average of at least a 2.0 for all previous college-level courses are eligible for admission as transfer students on a competitive basis.

• Incoming transfer students admitted to a college or university shall compete for admission to selective programs, majors, and units on an equal basis with students native to the receiving institution.

Admission to a given institution, however, does not guarantee that a transfer student will be automatically admitted to all majors, minors, or fields of concentration at the institution. Once admitted, transfer students shall be subject to the same regulations governing applicability of catalog requirements as native students. Furthermore, transfer students shall be accorded the same class standing and other privileges as native students on the basis of the number of credits earned. All residency requirements must be completed at the receiving institution.

Acceptance of Transfer Credit

To recognize courses appropriately and provide equity in the treatment of incoming transfer students and students native to the receiving institution, transfer credit will be accepted for all successfully completed college-level courses completed in and after fall 2005 from Ohio state assisted institutions of higher education. Students who successfully completed A.A. or A.S. degrees prior to fall 2005 with a 2.0 or better overall grade point average would also receive credit for all college-level courses they have passed. (See Ohio Articulation and Transfer Policy, Definition of Passing Grade and Appendix D.) While this reflects the baseline policy requirement, individual institutions may set equitable institutional policies that are more accepting.

Pass/fail courses, credit by examination courses, experiential learning courses, and other nontraditional credit courses that meet these conditions will also be accepted and posted to the student record.

Responsibilities of Students

In order to facilitate transfer with maximum applicability of transfer credit, prospective transfer students should plan a course of study that will meet the requirements of a degree program at the receiving institution. Students should use the Transfer Module, Transfer Assurance Guides, and Course Applicability System for guidance in planning the transfer process. Specifically, students should identify early in their collegiate studies an institution and major to which they desire to transfer. Furthermore, students should determine if there are language requirements or any special course requirements that can be met during the freshman or sophomore year. This will enable students to plan and pursue a course of study that will articulate with the receiving institution’s major. Students are encouraged to seek further information regarding transfer from both their advisor and the college or university to which they plan to transfer.

Appeal Process

Following the evaluation of a student transcript from another institution, the receiving institution shall provide the student with a statement of transfer credit applicability and inform the student of the institution’s appeal process.  Students who wish to appeal a transfer credit decision must file a formal appeal through the Records Office and a response will be granted within 30 days. The Credit By Transfer Appeal Form can be found on the Records Office Website.

University System of Ohio

The University System of Ohio includes 14 universities with 24 regional branch campuses, 23 community colleges, and an adult workforce education and training network across 200 locations. Additional information can be located on The University System of Ohio Website. 

Articulation Agreements and Pathways to Transfer

Owens Community College enters into a number of different types of agreements to assist our students in pursuing their field of study or transferring after they complete their field of study at Owens. The various types of articulation agreements are described below with links to summaries of the agreements which exist between Owens and various educational partners.

Post Secondary Education Articulation Agreements

These are agreements between Owens and local high schools that create an opportunity for high school students to take college courses on their high school campus. These types of agreements assist high school students in getting a head start on their college education before they graduate from high school.

Ohio College Tech Prep Articulation Agreements

Ohio College Tech Prep blends college academics with technology skills training. Its core is a sequential course of study, called a pathway, that includes at least two years of high school and two years of college education, with emphases in math, science and technology. Each pathway leads to an associate or bachelor’s degree or to post-secondary certification and high tech employment.

Owens works closely with the Northwest Ohio Tech Prep Consortium to ensure that high school Tech Prep students are able to continue their technical pathway into college.  For more information about Tech Prep and scholarship information, visit the Ohio College Tech Prep Website.

College or University Articulation Agreements

These agreements between Owens and four-year colleges and universities help students who want to transfer after studying or completing their degree at Owens. These articulation agreements are very diverse and range from articulating an Associate’s degree from Owens into a Bachelor’s degree program at the four-year institution or articulating how one course at Owens is the equivalent to a course at the receiving four-year college or university. 

- view Transfer Articulation Agreements

Transfer Advising

To initiate the transfer process:

• Students should meet with an Advisor.

• The Academic Advising Office has transfer information available including catalogs, applications, scholarship information and transfer guides. Transfer information also is available on www.transferology.com. Students can access transfer course-equivalents, telephone numbers of advisors, articulation agreements and campus visit information. The Academic Advising Office also provides information on campus visits, articulation agreements and contact information for advisors at the four-year institutions.

• Early in the academic experience at Owens, students should meet with a representative at the institution to which they are planning to transfer. The Owens Academic Advising Office has information on area institutions.

• There is a difference between transferability and applicability of coursework between institutions. 

• The institution receiving the transfer credit determines if their school has an equivalent course. If it does, the credit is transferable.

• It is a separate issue whether this transfer credit applies to the student’s major at the receiving institution. When a course applies to the major, this is known as applicability.

• Be aware that developmental courses will not be applicable to any degree program.

• Students should also research what qualifies them as a transfer student at the institution they are planning to transfer to. i.e. Ohio State requires 45 quarter hours or 30 semester hours be completed in the choice of major to be considered a transfer student.

Students transferring to Owens Community College:

Owens strives to provide a smooth transition for students transferring in from other higher education institutions. The following list of recommendations may help those students:

• Students need to request an official copy of academic transcripts from all institutions attended, and the transcripts must be mailed directly to the Records Office. Academic credit is not posted to a student’s record until all official transcripts are received and evaluated by the Records Office.

• Students should bring a copy of academic transcripts from all institutions attended to their advising to assist in assessing academic readiness and transfer credit.

Transferology

Transferology is a free web-based tool that allows students to plan for their academic futures by viewing courses, transfer course applicability and program requirements. Many colleges and universities nationwide participate in Transferology, and it’s free for anyone to use.  Visit the www.transferology.com to get the credit you deserve.

¹The Ohio Transfer Module requirements are available on the Ohio Board of Regents Articulation and Transfer Policy website at  http://regents.ohio.gov/transfer/policy/transfer_policy_d2aa.php

²The distributive model outlined above is not meant to discourage institutions from experimenting with thematically clustered or multidisciplinary general education courses, particularly when those courses are approved as OTM or TAG courses.