MSE-WE Transfer Credit Procedures

Two sets of requirements may be addressed by petitioning the transfer of previously earned graduate credit:

• The Graduate School's minimum credit hour requirement
• The MSE or WE graduate program degree requirements

[1] Transferring graduate credit to meet Graduate School requirements

Students who have earned graduate credit in engineering, math, physics, or chemistry at another school may petition to transfer credit from his/her previous school to be applied toward the 30 graduate credits needed for an MS or the 80 graduate credits needed for a Ph.D. Credit transferred into the Grad School may take two forms:

1. Students may transfer credit earned for individual graduate courses. This could come from grad credits earned while a Bachelor's student or in a Master's program. These credits will appear on the OSU transcript as transfer credit with a grade of "K"; these courses will have no effect on the student's OSU GPA.
   
   Note that this is different than the process for applying credits toward in-department degree requirements as described in [2] below.
    
2. If the student is seeking a Ph.D. and has earned an MS at another school, s/he may petition to apply the full Master’s degree (max 30 credits) toward OSU requirements. In other words, prior to MS transfer the student must earn at least 80 graduate credits at OSU; after MS transfer the student must earn at least 50 graduate credits at OSU.

To petition the Graduate School to transfer credits, log in to GradForms.osu.edu and follow the Transfer of Graduate Credit process (view PDF instructions; if seeking to transfer the full MS, note Step 5).

(ref: Graduate School Handbook sec 4.2.5-7, https://gradsch.osu.edu/handbook/all#4-2)

After submitting this form on GradForms, the student must provide a transcript, in English, to the student's Graduate Studies Committee Chair (cc Mark Cooper.73) showing proof of course and/or MS completion. Minimum grade for individual course transfer = B; minimum GPA for transfer of Master's degree = 3.0/4.0. The transcript will be used to evaluate the GradForms petition.

[2] Applying previous coursework toward specific MSE-WE degree requirements

Students may also wish to waive the need for specific courses or categories of coursework required by the MSE-WE degree. Students wishing to do so must email his/her Graduate Studies Committee Chair (cc Mark Cooper.73) with a detailed petition. This must include 

1. a description of what is being requested
2. a listing of the course(s) to be reviewed which were taken at the previous school
3. syllabi for each of these courses
4. suggested equivalent OSU course(s) (with syllabus and instructor name, if possible) 

Minimum grade required for transfer consideration = B

If proposing a direct equivalency with an OSU course, the student must prove that s/he has covered all major subjects taught in the OSU course. This will require the student to review the syllabus of the OSU course and show that the previously taken course (or courses) has covered all of the relevant subjects. For example, if a student took a graduate level Thermodynamics course at another school and wishes to waive the need to take MATSCEN 6730, s/he must review the 6730 syllabus. The student must then prove that s/he has addressed all major subjects in 6730 by presenting the syllabus of one or more previously completed courses.

While the grade received at the previous school will not be transferred * to OSU, any approved transfer credits will be applied against the MSE or WE degree requirements. Any approved petition will thus reduce the graded credits required of the student. This will be detailed in the response to the petition. Approved petitions will be noted in the student's department academic record.

* Note that the student's OSU GPA can only be generated from graded courses taken at Ohio State; grades received at another school are not applied to the student's OSU GPA.

Applying Graduate Non-Degree credits toward MSE-WE requirements

Students who have earned graduate credit as part of the GND track must request to apply these credits toward the degree requirements. To do so, a student should simply send an email to Mark Cooper (.73) and cc his/her advisor and should include confirmation that the student has submitted a Transfer of Graduate Credit form through GradForms.osu.edu (see above).

Note that no more than ten (10) credits taken while in GND status may be applied toward student's MSE or WE degree requirements.