Credit will be granted only for work done at four-year, accredited, universities and colleges in the United States, or in programs affiliated with four-year, accredited universities and colleges in the United States, in programs comparable to the language programs in at Cornell, and only with the approval of both the Associate Chair and the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
The Department reserves the right to deny credit to students who had their pre-approval form signed by someone other than the Associate Chair or the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Credit will be granted only for courses that are comparable to those offered at Cornell.
While The Department may grant credit for approved courses taken at other institutions, it will not grant equivalence. Students must take the appropriate department placement exam after they have completed the pre-approved course, in order to be placed in the appropriate course at a higher level. They should contact the Associate Chair for information about the appropriate exam. Students must apply for transfer credit and take the placement exam before taking a higher level course in the same language at Cornell.
IMPORTANT! The Arts and Sciences language requirement can only be fulfilled by courses taken at Cornell. This is a College, not a department, policy. Please take this into account as you plan your work at Cornell and elsewhere.
Procedure for approval of language courses:
1. Bring the following materials to the Associate Chair
- Course materials
- If you took the course already, then bring detailed course materials for the purposes of comparing the proposed course with equivalent courses at Cornell. These materials could include: a course syllabus or plan or a list of skills taught in the course, along with the means of teaching those skills (How many written exercises will be/were assigned? Of what length? How much reading will be/was assigned? What materials will be/were used in the course?)
- If you are planning on taking a course during the summer, save all of the course materials. You will be asked to show the syllabus, tests, writing assignments, and other course materials for final approval after the course is taken.
- Transcript
- A sealed, official copy of the transcript from the institution where the course was/is going to be taken. The minimum grade required to receive transfer credit is a B.
- Pre-approval form
- This form can be obtained from the Arts & Sciences Registrar's Office
2. After approval (or not) by the Associate Chair all documents are forwarded to the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
3. The Director of Undergraduate Studies gives final approval and notifies the students of the outcome.