Using Transferology

Add an Equivalent to Transferology (for current UW–Madison undergraduates)

If you have searched Transferology and the course that you intend to take comes back as a “Maybe,” it means that we have not reviewed that course yet. Current UW–Madison students are able to submit a syllabus for the course they would like to take and request that we evaluate it and add the equivalent to Transferology so that it will show up in the “Matches” list instead. Because CES works with faculty and departments to evaluate coursework, your equivalent request can take up to six weeks to be added to Transferology.

Eligibility Guidelines

  1. You must be a currently enrolled UW–Madison undergraduate student. Special Students and prospective students are not eligible to use this service.
  2. The course you are requesting we review must be from a U.S. institution. Courses from non-approved study abroad programs or from international institutions cannot be equated before the course is taken.
  3. The course must not already have a “Match” or a “Miss” on Transferology. Existing matches are valid and will not be re-reviewed; misses are not eligible for credit. Please use the videos at the top of the page to ensure that you have searched the correct way for your course and it does not have a match at UW–Madison.
  4. You must obtain a syllabus for the course from the past academic year that includes (at a minimum) information about the textbook used, the assignments/exams required, and a weekly schedule of topics covered. If the course contains a lab, the syllabus must also include a schedule of experiments performed.

How does it work?

  1. You submit an equivalent using the form linked below.
  2. Assuming the equivalent you’ve requested is not already on Transferology, Credit Evaluation Services will send your syllabus to the department for review and create an equivalent in our system for the course that says “AdminUse TBD.”
  3. Once Transferology is updated, the course will begin to show up as a match with the “AdminUse TBD” equivalent. This is just a placeholder to let you know that your course is in the process of being reviewed.
  4. When the equivalent decision is made by the department (within six weeks of the time of submission), we will update our system to reflect the actual course equivalent you will receive.  Transferology will be updated with the actual equivalent the next Saturday.

Questions? See the FAQ section below for more information.

Form Instructions

  • Each form submission can be used for only one course. While you may submit more than one form, this service is meant to be used for courses a student truly intends to take. Submitting a large number of requests for courses you are not really intending to take just to see how they transfer will result in delayed processing time for everyone using the service. We reserve the right to deny excessive requests.
  • The form requires you to certify with your initials that you have checked Transferology for the equivalent, that you understand that courses from international institutions and non-approved study abroad programs are not eligible to be evaluated, and that you understand that you must find your equivalent on Transferology after six weeks have passed but will not receive an email with the equivalent.
  • You must upload a detailed syllabus in a PDF format. You may submit up to two documents with the above information, but each doc can be a maximum of 10MB. If you need to merge or compress PDFs, SmallPDF can help.
  • All student-submitted syllabi are subject to verification by the external institution, must represent the actual coursework and learning outcomes completed at the external institution, and may not be modified, altered, or revised by the student. Students who submit course syllabi that are forged or falsified may be investigated for and subject to sanctions under UW–Madison’s Academic Misconduct policy.

Complete the form

Syllabus Requirements

  • Must be from the the most recent academic year.
  • Should include learning outcomes, list of weekly topics, required textbooks, and an assignment calendar.
  • Examples of unacceptable and acceptable syllabus submission:
    • Unacceptable: This is just a list of learning outcomes and lacks information about the textbook, weekly schedule, and assignment calendar.
    • Acceptable: Contains all required pieces.

FAQs

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Can your office confirm for me that what I see on Transferology is correct?

Our office will not confirm course equivalents visible on Transferology upon request. For currently enrolled UW–Madison undergraduate students, course equivalents in Transferology will be honored at the time of enrollment in the course. The Transferology User Guide provides directions on how to utilize Transferology. Please review to ensure that you are using the tool correctly.

How long is the equivalent I see on Transferology good for?

For currently enrolled undergraduates, we will generally honor equivalents visible on Transferology at the time of enrollment in the transfer course. If you are planning to take a course more than one term in the future, we recommend re-checking Transferology the term before you plan to take it to be sure you know the current equivalent.

I submitted the form and I never got an email from CES with my equivalent.

We are not able to correspond with students regarding individual equivalents requested. By submitting the form, you asked that the equivalent be added to Transferology. When the equivalent has been evaluated by the appropriate department, it will be visible on Transferology. Please remember this can take up to six weeks from the date of submission. Transferology is updated weekly on Saturday mornings.

I checked Transferology last week and my equivalent wasn't there.

Courses can take up to six weeks to be evaluated by the department. Transferology is updated weekly on Saturday mornings. Please check Transferology on a weekly basis for your course. If it has been more than six weeks since your submission and your equivalent is not on Transferology, please contact our office at crediteval@registrar.wisc.edu and provide your name, campus ID number, and the school, course department, number, and name you requested.

I checked Transferology and my course is a "match" but says "AdminUse TBD". What does this mean?

“AdminUse TBD” is a temporary equivalent we use to signify that we have already received a request for this course to be evaluated and are working with the corresponding department to assign an appropriate equivalent. Once the department has indicated how it should transfer, the equivalent will be updated and will reflect how the course will transfer. You will never see the AdminUse TBD equivalent on your credit evaluation as it is only used to indicate on Transferology that an evaluation is pending.

How many credits will my course transfer for?

You will receive the number of U.S. semester-hours you earned for the course. For example, if you attended a semester school and took a course for four semester-hours, you will receive four credits at UW–Madison, regardless of what our equivalent is worth. Credits from institutions on systems other than the American semester system will be converted to semester-hours. Please refer to our Transfer Credit Guidelines for more information.

 

I am not able to get a syllabus with the information requested.

In order to properly evaluate a course, our faculty need the information we have specified in our requirements. We will reach out to you to let you know what is missing and close your request. You will then have the opportunity to obtain that information. You may submit a new request once you have it. Without all the information requested, we will be unable to evaluate your course properly and it will not be added to Transferology.

The only syllabus posted online for the course is from several years ago.

In order to properly evaluate a course, our faculty need the syllabus to be reflective of the way the course is currently offered, so we require that it be from the past academic year. If we receive an older syllabus, we will be unable to confidently judge that it is the same content offered today, and your course will not be evaluated or added to Transferology. If you are not able to find a recent syllabus posted online, we recommend reaching out directly to the department that teaches the course.

I am a prospective student. How can I request that an equivalent be added to Transferology?

Unfortunately, we are not able to accept requests from prospective or recently admitted students. If the equivalent you are looking for is not on Transferology, please check our Transfer Credit Policy to understand how your courses might transfer.

Credit Overload

If you plan to combine transfer credits along with UW–Madison credit that exceeds 18 total credits in a Fall or Spring term, or 12 credits in a Summer term, you are encouraged to contact their academic dean’s office to see if a credit overload exception can be considered.

L&S students can get information and make requests for overloads on the L&S Policies and Forms site.