There are several reasons why you might want to transfer credits between college and university:
Changing programs
Upgrading credentials
Moving to a new community
Experiencing a different learning style (hands-on vs. theoretical)
Personal reasons (e.g., moving closer to home / friends / family)
All publicly funded colleges and universities in Ontario have agreements for transferring credits between programs and institutions. To simplify the credit transfer process, the Ontario Council on Articulation and Transfer (ONCAT) created ONTransfer.ca, an online resource for current and prospective post-secondary students looking for potential credit transfer pathways.
What is a Credit Transfer?
The term “credit transfer” means getting credit for courses completed at one institution or in one program when switching to another. Courses taken in one program can be transferred to the same program at another institution, or to a different program at either the same institution or a new one.
There are two types of credit transfer:
Course Transfer - Transferring courses from one institution to another or taking a course at a different institution that will transfer back to your current institution.
Program Transfer - Transferring a block of courses from one program to a similar program at another institution (college or university).
How Credit Transfer Works
The new institution will evaluate your previous courses to determine whether they can be transferred to your new program and how much credit you'll receive for them.
Institutions consider several factors when granting a credit transfer, including:
Similarity – Do the courses cover the same material or subject matter and give you similar skills and knowledge?
Relevance – Are your previous courses relevant or related to the new program?
Grades – Did you meet the grade requirements or minimum GPA for your course or program?
Time – When did you complete your course or program?
Hours – How many hours were required for the previous course or program?
Colleges and universities also have something called “residency policies”, which require you to complete a certain percentage of a program at their institution to receive your credential there.
For more information about credit transfer, visit the Transfer Credits page on the Ontario Colleges website.