Once admitted to a degree academic plan in the Faculty of Arts, students wishing to take a course at another university for credit toward a UW degree must obtain a Letter of Permission. A Letter of Permission is granted only to degree students:
- who have successfully completed a minimum of four University of Waterloo courses, and
- whose standing is at least satisfactory; that is, they have satisfied the minimum cumulative average requirements for their current academic plan.
A maximum total of ten academic course units (for a four-year degree) or 7.5 academic course units (for a three-year degree) may be transferred towards an Arts degree. This maximum includes courses taken on a Letter of Permission (see Transfer Credit regulation for further details).
A Letter of Permission must be approved by the student's advisor prior to enrolling at the host institution and is subject to faculty and departmental regulations.
Upon completion of courses taken on a Letter of Permission, the student must arrange to have an official transcript from the host university sent to the University of Waterloo. Upon receipt, the transcript will be evaluated by the University of Waterloo for transfer credit to be awarded:
- Courses taken on a Letter of Permission at other institutions will appear on UW records as transfer credits (mark of CR) if a minimum grade of 60% or equivalent is attained.
The Letter of Permission form may be printed from the Registrar's Office website. More information about policies and procedures is given on page two of the form.
Notes:
- Courses taken on a Letter of Permission from universities which offer self-paced courses must correspond with the start and end dates of UW terms.
- Letters of Permission are not granted for courses to be taken at post-secondary institutions other than universities.
- UW students may not take courses at other universities on a "Challenge for Credit" basis.
- Post-degree students enrolled at the University of Waterloo normally do not require a Letter of Permission to take courses at other universities. Letters of Permission are granted only for students enrolled in undergraduate degree academic plans for whom a statement concerning "academic standing" could be made.