Frequently Asked Questions

We answer frequently asked questions about the credit transfer process.

Students listen to a presentation in the library.

Questions About My Transfer Credits

We only review transcripts for students who are currently registered for classes, or who completed credits at Bellevue College in the past. If you are a new student, please do not submit a transfer credit request until after you register for classes. If your request was canceled, please submit a new request after you register for classes.

  • If you are a veteran, active duty military, veterans dependent, or you applied for admission to a selective program, you do not have to register first. We will review your transcripts if you have not registered yet.

Your request will also be canceled if we did not receive your official transcripts. Please submit a new request after sending your official transcripts.

Log in to your ctcLink account. Click “Academics” in the blue Navigation pane on the left. Then select “Transfer Credit.”

When possible, we give transfer credits the same course number as the equivalent Bellevue College course. However, sometimes we do not offer the exact same course. In this case, we will use a generic number not used for other courses (the 900 series). For example, we do not offer an Introduction to Ethics course. If you took Introduction to Ethics at a different school, it may transfer as PHIL 930 as a general Social Science class.

Bellevue College operates on the quarter system. Many US colleges operate on the semester system. When transfer credits come from a semester school, we multiply the credits by 1.5 to convert them to quarter credits. For example, 3 credits at a semester school equals 4.5 credits at Bellevue College. 4 credits at a semester school equals 6 credits at Bellevue College.

If you transferred from a semester school, you do not have to take an additional 0.5 credits to reach 5 credits for a degree requirement. However, you still need to meet the minimum total credits required for the degree. This usually means you must a take a few extra Electives.

For example, if your degree requires 5 credits of math, 4.5 credits is enough if you transferred from a semester school. Instead, you may need to take an extra Elective class to reach the minimum total credits required for your degree. If your semester course transferred as less than 4.5 credits, please ask a transfer credit evaluator for more information by submitting a ticket here: Need help or have a question?

Many of our degrees require 5 credit courses. But sometimes a course transfers as only 3 or 4 credits. You may need to take more courses to complete a 5 credit requirement. It depends on the degree and type of class.

Transfer Associate’s Degrees:

  • English & Math: 4 credits is not enough. You will have to take another class. Please contact the Evaluations & Graduation Office for more information.
  • Humanities, Social Science, Natural Science: If you are only missing 1 credit, we will use an Elective credit to fill the deficiency. If you are missing more than one credit, you have to take another course.

Professional/Technical and Bachelor Degrees:

  • For General Education courses (English, Math, Humanites, Social Science, Natural Science), 3 credits is not enough. If your transfer course is only 3 credits, you will have to take a second class to complete a 5 credit requirement. 4 credit courses may be accepted on a case-by-case basis.
  • For technical courses, both 3 and 4 credit courses may be accepted on a case-by-case basis.

If your 3 or 4 credit course is accepted, you still need to meet the minimum total credits for the degree. This usually means you will need a few extra Elective credits.

If you have a mix of quarter and semester credits, or are unsure about how your credits will transfer, you can ask the Evaluations & Graduation Office online.

There are several reasons why some courses may not transfer. Here are some common reasons:

  • In general, we only transfer credit that you actually need for your degree. If you don’t need a course to graduate, we probably will not transfer it. If you change to a different degree, please submit a new transfer credit request for your new degree. We will review your transcripts again.
  • We only accept English composition from the U.S., Canada (except Quebec), The United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.
  • Courses that contain sectarian religious instruction (such as ministry, evangelism, or doctrine), or courses taught from a single religious perspective generally do not transfer.
  • Courses that are below college level do not transfer.
  • Courses with grades below a “D” or 1.0 do not transfer. (Some selective admissions programs may have a higher requirement)
  • Your course is similar but not close enough to be used for a degree requirement. If you are seeking a Professional/Technical degree, certificate, or bachelor’s degree, you can you can request a course substitution from the Program Chair. If the substitution is approved by both the Program Chair and the Evaluations Office, you can use the alternative course for a degree requirement. See this webpage for more information: Substitution of Degree Requirements Course substitution is not possible for Transfer Degrees.

If these situations do not apply, you can ask a transfer credit evaluator for more information by submitting a ticket here: Need help or have a question?

One-third of the credits used for your degree must be taken at Bellevue College. This means that the maximum number of transfer credits is two-thirds of your degree. For example, the Associate in Arts and Sciences DTA requires 90 total credits. The maximum number of transfer credits for this degree is 60. If you want to complete a certificate that is only 30 credits, then the maximum number of transfer credits is 20.

Bellevue College recently started a new computer system called ctcLink. The Academic Progress and What-If Report features are still being built and are not accurate yet. It will take several months to update all degrees. Right now, please use the degree worksheets to track your progress toward graduation. You can also meet with an academic advisor to review your degree progress.

Transfer credit is determined by each school independently. How a different school transfers your courses has no influence on how Bellevue College will transfer your courses. Different colleges can have different requirements, standards, and agreements that can affect transfer credit.

There are two types of GPA:

  1. Bellevue College cumulative GPA: This includes every course you took at Bellevue College, and only the courses you took at Bellevue College. This does not include transfer credits.
  2. Degree GPA: This is the GPA of every course used for your degree, including transfer credits. This does not include classes you do not need for your degree. This does not appear on your official transcript.

Transfer credits will not affect your Bellevue College cumulative GPA. Grades from transfer courses will not appear on your Bellevue College transcript. However, transfer grades do affect your Degree GPA. To graduate, both GPAs must be 2.0 or above. (Some selective admissions programs may have a higher requirement).

If you took a course with higher level content than your degree requires, you can request a course substitution from the Program Chair. If the substitution is approved by both the Program Chair and the Evaluations Office, you can use the alternative course for a degree requirement.

Course substitutions can only be granted for Professional/Technical degrees, certificates, and bachelor’s degrees. Course substitution is not possible for Transfer Degrees. See this webpage for more information: Substitution of Degree Requirements

What classes will transfer is determined by the receiving school. For example, if you want to transfer to the University of Washington, you need to ask the University of Washington what courses they will accept. Many colleges publish a transfer equivalency guide on their website. Here is a list of equivalency guides for Washington schools.

Questions about Schools and Accreditation

Bellevue College can only accept credit from schools that have regional accreditation. Here is a  list of regional accrediting agencies. Your school must be accredited when you attended and took classes.

You can search for your school’s accreditation online here: Search for Accredited Institutions. Your school must be accredited by a regional accrediting agency when you attended and took classes.

If your school did not have regional accreditation when you took classes, you may still be able to get credit through a process called “Prior Experiential Learning”. Please visit this webpage for more information: Academic Credit for Prior Learning.

Bellevue College accepts credit from other countries. The school must be accredited in its home country. Please visit our webpage about international credit for more information.

In general, we will accept any credits if we have an equivalent course. There are a few exceptions:

  • Accounting and Economics taken outside the U.S. usually transfer as electives only.
  • We only accept English composition from the U.S., Canada (except Quebec), The United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.

Do you have more questions?

You can ask a question online. A Student Central staff member will follow up with you.