Credit transfer & advanced standing

Students may be admitted to undergraduate degrees or awards with credit for previous study and/or attainments. All credit granted in undergraduate degrees or awards must comply with the following rules. Note that the home Faculty may also have their own credit transfer procedures.

1. All credit assessments will be based on the completion date for the course to be used as credit and not the program.
2. Courses with a successful completion date of up to 10 years can be used for credit within a program.
3. Any credit granted must be consistent with the program progression rules applicable at the time the application is assessed
4. Students who are admitted to the University after completing, or partly completing, the requirements of another degree or award of another tertiary institution must complete a program of study deemed to be no less than that required of students in full-time attendance in the final year of the program concerned.
5. Where faculty rules permit, students who have been awarded the degree of Bachelor at Pass level may be permitted to enrol for the award of the degree at Honours level with credit for all courses completed if, during their studies for the Pass degree, they have satisfied the prerequisites for entry to the Honours level laid down by the schools concerned or the equivalent of those prerequisites.
6. Enrolled students have the right of appeal against credit transfer decisions under the Student Complaint Procedure.

Eligibility for credit in a UNSW program does not guarantee admission to that program.

The following guidelines apply to credit granted in postgraduate coursework degrees, diplomas or certificates. Note that the home Faculty may also have their own credit transfer procedures.

1. A postgraduate coursework student may be granted credit by the program authority. The credit granted must be consistent with the guidelines detailed below. Any credit granted must also be consistent with the rules governing progression within the program as determined by the relevant faculty.
   1. At least 50% of program requirements must be completed at UNSW for the award of a UNSW postgraduate coursework degree or diploma. Credit Transfer to a maximum of 50% of UNSW program requirements may be granted for completed or partially completed postgraduate awards from UNSW or from another institution. When considering the granting of credit transfer on the basis of previous postgraduate study at another institution, the program authority must take into account the quality of the institution and the quality, level and content of postgraduate courses previously undertaken. A Faculty Standing Committee may, for a particular program, determine the maximum credit transfer at less than 50% of program requirements. 
      
   2. A postgraduate coursework certificate student enrolling in a program that requires a total of 24 or more units of credit may be granted credit to a maximum of 50% of program requirements. No credit will be granted where program requirements are less than 24 units of credit.
2. Some postgraduate programs include preliminary courses similar in content to undergraduate courses, and provide exemption from these courses for students with the appropriate undergraduate background. In such programs, a postgraduate coursework student may be granted credit on the basis of a completed undergraduate degree but must complete a program of study equivalent to one year of full-time study or 48 units of credit.
3. All credit transfer assessments will be based on the completion date for the course to be used for credit and not the program.
4. Courses with a successful completion date of up to 10 years can be used for credit transfer within a program as provided within the program rules and the University rules on credit.

The following guidelines apply to credit granted in postgraduate articulated programs.

1. A postgraduate coursework student admitted to a UNSW articulated program is eligible for credit based on Guidelines 1 to 4 above at the time of initial enrolment in the articulated sequence.
   1. A postgraduate coursework student enrolled in an articulated program may apply to progress from Graduate Certificate to Graduate Diploma to Masters level with full credit for courses completed in earlier programs in the sequence, whether or not those awards have been conferred. 
      
   2. For progression of students who did not qualify for direct entry into a higher level program at initial enrolment in the sequence, a Faculty Standing Committee may stipulate a particular performance level (e.g. credit average) in early programs in the articulated sequence. Students not meeting this performance level would be awarded the Graduate Certificate or Diploma for which they have completed requirements, and would apply for entry into the higher program under Guideline 2(1) above. 
   3. A Faculty Standing Committee may determine that applications for progression through a particular articulated program sequence will be refused if a substantial time period (normally greater than 6 years) has elapsed since completion of requirements for the earlier award.
2. A postgraduate coursework student who chooses to have the Graduate Certificate or Diploma formally conferred and then wishes to undertake further study in the articulated program sequence, either immediately or after a period of absence, is subject to the Guidelines outlined above in 2(1).

The Go8 universities (Adelaide, Melbourne, Monash, ANU, Queensland, Sydney, NSW and WA) have developed a Credit Transfer Agreement, opens in a new window to enhance the mobility of students between Go8 institutions by facilitating the transfer of credit from one Go8 university to another. This Agreement is based on an acceptance that the assessment regimes at all Go8 universities are comparable and transferable.

See information on articulation pathways into UNSW programs from other institutions.