Applicants seeking advanced standing must specify the Faculty to which they are requesting admission, the program they wish to study, and the level of admission sought on their applications. All programs, with the exception of Architecture, Engineering, Optometry, Pharmacy, and Software Engineering, operate on a course credit system where students' progress is measured by courses completed rather than by years completed. Applicants to faculties that operate under the course credit system will have previous work evaluated on an individual course basis. For other applicants, advanced standing will be determined to the appropriate year or term. Applicants must submit course descriptions, in addition to an official academic transcript from all institution(s) they have previously attended or are currently attending. The provision of such information will greatly facilitate the evaluation of previous work and the consideration of possible transfer credits.
The University of Waterloo subscribes to the following General Policy on the Transfer of Course Credits, as adopted by the Council of Ontario Universities:
Acceptance of transfer credits among Ontario universities shall be based on the recognition that, while learning experiences may differ in a variety of ways, their substance may be essentially equivalent in terms of their content and rigour. Insofar as possible, acceptance of transfer credit should allow for maximum recognition of previous learning experience in university-level courses.
Subject to degree, grade and program requirements, any course offered for credit by one Ontario university shall be accepted for credit by another Ontario university when there is an essential equivalency in course content.
At the University of Waterloo, the assignment of transfer credits to a specific degree program will be at the discretion of the admitting authority for the Faculty or other academic unit concerned.
Students are advised to refer to the Faculty sections in this Calendar for detailed regulations on advanced standing or transfer credit.