In order to earn a degree from the College of the University of Chicago, a student must obtain credit for at least forty-two quarter courses, distributed among general education requirements, concentration requirements, and electives, as described in the previous section. All students receive credit toward their degrees by taking courses in the College. In addition, students may receive credit in the following ways: by placement test; by Advanced Placement (AP) examination; by accreditation examination; and by advanced standing, which is credit transferred from another institution. The limits and conditions placed on credit earned in these various ways are explained in the following section. A student must complete a minimum of eighteen quarter courses in the College and be in residence for at least six quarters to graduate with a degree from the University of Chicago. At least half of the concentration courses must be taken at the University.

Placement tests serve to adapt the needs and backgrounds of individual students to the College curriculum. They place entering students at the proper level of study in a given subject and may be used to award academic credit where appropriate. On the one hand, placement tests minimize the repetition of subjects already mastered and, on the other, they reduce the possibility that students might begin their programs with courses for which they are inadequately prepared. Placement tests measure skill in problem solving as well as general knowledge in a subject field. Students who have some background in the areas being tested are urged to review it, but incoming students without such knowledge are not expected to acquire it over the summer preceding entrance.

The College offers placement tests to entering students only during Orientation in late September. Placement tests may not be taken at a later date. Over the summer, information that describes these tests in detail is sent to all incoming first-year and transfer students.

Optional Language Placement Tests. Students are urged to take placement tests if they have studied any of the languages listed under "Language Competence in the Liberal Education at Chicago" section of the catalog. Course credit may be granted on the basis of performance on the placement tests.

Honors Chemistry Placement Test. Students who wish to enroll in the honors variant of General Chemistry (Chemistry 121-122-123) must meet one of two criteria. They must either have earned a score of 5 on the AP chemistry test, or they must perform well on the honors chemistry placement test. The honors variant of General Chemistry assumes that a student completed a rigorous chemistry course in high school.

Mathematics Placement Test and Calculus Placement Test. Every student must take either the mathematics placement test or the calculus placement test during Orientation. Students with no knowledge of calculus should take the mathematics placement test. Students who have taken a calculus course before coming to the University of Chicago should take the calculus placement test. Scores on the mathematics placement test determine the appropriate beginning mathematics course for each student: a precalculus course (Mathematics 105) or one of three other courses (Mathematics 112, Mathematics 131, or Mathematics 151). Scores on the calculus placement test also determine which level of mathematics is appropriate, but they also place students into Honors Calculus (Mathematics 161-162-163) or give placement credit for one, two, or three quarters of calculus.

Scores on the mathematics placement test are also used to place students into Chemistry 111 and Physics 131. Scores on the calculus placement test are used to determine placement into Chemistry 111, Physics 131, and Physics 141.

Optional Physical Sciences Placement Test. For students whose probable field of concentration is in the Humanities, Social Sciences, or New Collegiate divisions, a good performance on this test will confer credit for three quarters of the physical sciences. Students with good high school preparation in both chemistry and physics are encouraged to take this test, which is offered early in autumn quarter.

Optional Biological Sciences Placement Test. The optional placement test in the biological sciences measures understanding of basic concepts of evolution, heredity, and regulation of processes at the macromolecular, cellular, organismic, and population levels. Students with good high school preparation in biology are encouraged to take this test. On the basis of their performance, students who do not plan to concentrate in the biological sciences may meet the general education requirement in the biological sciences.

Students who concentrate in the biological sciences, however, must complete one of the Biological Sciences 170s, 180s, or 190s sequences to meet the general education requirement. For these students, a high score on the placement test confers credit for three quarters of electives.

Advanced Placement Credit

Students who request college credit for Advanced Placement (AP) courses taken in high school (i.e., before a student matriculates in the College) are asked to submit an official report of their scores on the AP tests given by the College Entrance Examination Board. In most cases, credit is granted for a score of 4 or 5. The decision to grant credit is reported at the end of the first quarter in residence and units of credit awarded appear on the student's official academic record.

The following chart shows how AP credit may be applied to the forty-two credits required for graduation.

While AP scores alone are sometimes used to establish placement or to confer credit, satisfactory performance on the College's own placement tests may supplement AP scores and lead to additional credit.

For further information on AP credit and how it relates to the Chicago degree program, a student should consult his or her College adviser. NOTE: Credit for no more than six electives may be gained by examination.

International Baccalaureate Programme

Credit earned for courses in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme may be applied to certain general education requirements or to electives. Grades of 6 or 7 on higher-level IB exams will give credit analogous to the AP credit described on the preceding chart. Special circumstances, as described under AP credit, apply to mathematics, chemistry, physics, and biology.

British A-Levels and Other Examinations

Credit is not automatically granted for examinations and course work taken in countries abroad. The College Curriculum Committee will, however, consider petitions for credit earned by British A-Level and other international examinations.

Advanced Standing (Transfer Credit)

Courses Taken While in a Degree Program Elsewhere. Students transferring from other institutions must complete a minimum of eighteen courses in the College and must be in residence for at least six quarters. Generally, the College grants transfer credit for liberal arts courses carrying at least three semester hours or four quarter hours of credit and passed with a grade of C or better (in some cases, a grade of B or better is required) from an accredited institution.

Transfer credit is listed on the student's University of Chicago transcript only as units of credit. Courses and grades are not listed, nor do transferred courses contribute to the student's University of Chicago grade point average. Credit for courses in precalculus and calculus mathematics and in foreign language must be validated by College placement examinations. Depending on the student's concentration and on the level of work to be evaluated, credit for some courses in chemistry, physics, and biology may also be subject to examination.

Professional or technical courses (e.g., journalism, business, law, musical performance, speech, and nursing) do not transfer; only courses similar to those taught in the College may transfer. The College grants credit for some CEEB Advanced Placement examinations with scores of 4 or 5, but not for CLEP, USAFI, or correspondence course work.

Most transfer students can complete their studies with no more than one extra quarter beyond the usual four college years, although this may depend on how course work elsewhere relates to the structure of a Chicago degree program. College housing and financial aid are available to all transfer students. After matriculation in the College, transfer students may not earn additional credits from schools other than the University of Chicago, except for study abroad programs sponsored by the University of Chicago. However, these courses may not be counted toward the six-quarter residency requirement or toward the minimum of eighteen courses that are required to be taken in the College.

NOTE: More than half the courses required by a student's concentration program must be taken in residence on the University of Chicago campus.

Courses Taken Elsewhere While in a Degree Program at the University of Chicago. Students who wish to take courses at other institutions after they enter the College should discuss their plans with their advisers. Before registering for course work elsewhere, students must submit to the Office of the Dean of Students course descriptions and a petition requesting tentative approval for transfer credit to be applied toward their graduation requirements. Upon completion of the course work, students should have an official transcript sent to the Office of the Dean of Students. Credit for language courses must be validated by examinations. Depending on the student's concentration and on the level of work to be evaluated, credit for some courses in biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics may also be subject to examination. Only courses similar to those taught in the College may transfer; professional or technical courses do not transfer. Transfer credit is listed on the student's transcript only as units of credit.