You may be eligible to receive transfer credit for studies taken abroad. There is no guarantee that all courses you complete abroad will be eligible for transfer credit or that you will receive specific Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design or Faculty of Arts & Science (FAS) courses as transfer credit equivalents. Consider what type of international experience you want to pursue and start researching whether the courses you plan to take are eligible for transfer credit as early as possible. Use Transfer Explorer to find previous transfer credit assessments for courses from host institutions. The transfer credit equivalencies listed are valid for a five-year period. 

Daniels students can earn Faculty of Arts and Science credits while on exchange. Students who wish to earn Architecture or Visual Studies credits, should contact the partner institution or the CIE to verify that the courses they wish to take are open to exchange students. All students considering an Outbound Exchange must review the information below. 

The CIE hosts Learning Abroad info. sessions and please see their Events page for details.

Please see the Learning Abroad website for deadline updates.

Student are also encouraged to consider taking part in a U of T Summer Abroad course (these are different to a summer exchange). 

Step 1: Apply for Outbound Exchange

All students are required to apply for Outbound Exchange through the Centre for International Experience. You can access the application and more information online here. When looking into opportunities to learn abroad, pay close attention to the eligibility requirements as they vary by program. Some opportunities may be open to specific Faculties or programs, and they usually require minimum credits and GPA. The deadlines are also program specific. Check the Learning Abroad website for details. 

Step 2: Once you receive approval for exchange (in addition to all steps required by the CIE):

Check the course offerings at the partner institution and decide which courses you are interested in taking. Review potential course equivalences on Transfer Explorer. Collect all course descriptions for the courses you are interested in taking, from the partner institution. Course descriptions must be in English. Weblinks are allowed as long as they contain enough information for an assessment to be made.

Submit an Outbound Exchange Pre-Assessment request along with your nomination letter and all course descriptions to transfer@daniels.utoronto.ca. This must be submitted no later than 8 weeks prior to your departure. The courses will then be assessed for transfer credit eligibility and you will receive a completed pre-assessment for your records

Step 3: While you are away

If there are any changes to your course schedule, you are expected to contact transfer@daniels.utoronto.ca; including any additional courses you are interested in completing as well as the corresponding course descriptions

Ensure that you retain all completed course work and any additional course descriptions, reading lists and/or syllabi

Step 4: Upon your return

Arrange for your official transcript to be sent directly to CIE (Student Exchange Program, 33 St. George St, Toronto, ON M5S 2E3)

A photocopy of your transcript will not be accepted. A transfer credit assessment cannot be completed until your final official transcript – sent directly from your host institution rather than provided by you – has been received.

A final assessment will be completed and all approved courses will be added to your student record (processing time is 6-8 weeks)

An email notification will be sent to you once your credits have been awarded and are viewable on Degree Explorer.

Important things to know about transferring learning abroad and exchange program credits:  

1. You are allowed to transfer up to a maximum of 2.5 credits per term for each of the Fall and Winter terms, and typically 2.0 for the Summer session (no more than 1.0 credit in each Summer term), depending on your enrolment at your host institution and as specified in the nomination letter.  Students must complete at least 10.0 credits in the Daniels Faculty to meet their degree requirements. Transfer credits received from studies completed on an official exchange program count toward this minimum 10.0 credit requirement.

2. Unless otherwise specified in the nomination letter, you will be paying Daniels Faculty tuition fees for 2.5 credits per term for each of the Fall and Winter terms, plus incidental fees. For the Summer session, you will be paying tuition fees for a maximum of 2.0 credits, plus incidental fees. More information on fees assessment in the Daniels Faculty is available on the Student Accounts website.

3. When selecting courses at your host institution, please keep in mind that you must complete at least 13.0 credits at the 200-level or higher to meet your degree requirements.

4. As a student participating in learning abroad opportunity, all transfer credits that you receive at the 300+ level will contribute toward your degree requirements.  

5. Transfer credits may count towards the completion of your overall degree requirements, but not necessarily the completion of your program requirements. Please consult the relevant academic unit(s) concerning whether transfer credits for which you may be eligible can contribute toward your program requirements.   

6. You are only eligible to receive transfer credit for courses that have an equivalent area of study in Daniels or the Faculty of Arts & Science.  Academic courses for which no equivalent discipline exists in Daniels or the Faculty of Arts and Science, may be eligible for breadth transfer credits.

7. Only courses in which you achieve a passing mark may be eligible for transfer credit. Failed courses will not be displayed on your U of T transcript, but will be displayed on your host institution’s transcript.

8. Courses that are not assigned a final mark are not eligible for transfer credit.

9. The marks that you receive for your courses at your host institution are not incorporated into your Daniels academic record. They do not appear on your transcript and are not included in your Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA).

10. You must ensure that official final transcripts are sent to CIE directly from the host institution.  

See this page on the Learning Abroad website for guidelines on how to plan and apply for an Exchange.

• Be a degree-seeking student within the Daniels Faculty
• Completed at least 4.0 credits at U of T before participating in an exchange
• Minimum CGPA of 2.25
• Not have already received 7.5 transfer credits (including on admission transfer credits)

Important Notes

Please retain all your course outlines, textbooks, reading lists, list of course topics, notes and graded work for each course that you took at your host institution. These may be requested by the academic unit(s) when the transfer credit assessment is being finalized. Note that an academic unit can also request an interview with you as part of the final assessment process.

Even if you take and pass a course during your exchange studies, you might not receive the transfer credit that was indicated by the academic unit in their pre-assessment due to one of the following reasons: 

• The credit weight calculation is incorrect 
• The equivalent full course load at the host institution has not been completed
• The course material is significantly different than what was provided to the academic unit when submitting a pre-assessment request
• The minimum passing grade at the host institution is not achieved 

A department may assign a variety of transfer credits for courses taken at a host institution. The marks that you receive for your courses at your host institution are not incorporated into your Daniels academic record: they do not appear on your transcript and are not included in your Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA).

Be advised that courses students are interested in completing on exchange must be pre-assessed, prior to leaving for exchange, in order to determine their potential for transferability. Students may be asked to provide final projects and/or coursework in order for transfer credit to be granted, particularly for Architecture or Visual Studies courses.

If you have questions about how transfer credits earned on exchange will impact your program and/or degree requirements, please arrange to meet with the Associate Registrar, Academic Advising & Student Engagement.

Any student approved for exchange in their final year, are strongly encouraged to meet with the Associate Registrar, Academic Advising & Student Engagement, prior to departure on exchange. If you are completing your final term abroad, please note that you may have to defer your graduation to November as your exchange transcript may not be received in time for you to graduate in June. You are responsible for requesting graduation on ACORN by the deadline in the relevant session.

For students attending a European institution at which the ECTS system is used, 60 ECTS credits is always equal to 5.0 UofT credits, regardless of any additional credit system the school may use.  Example: at the University of Nottingham, a 3‐year Bachelor’s degree requires 360 credits. The full course load calculation for the purposes of transfer credit assessment is 360 credits divided by 3 years, therefore 120 credits (even though 100 or 110 credits are still considered by Nottingham to be a full‐time load). 

How do I begin the final transfer credit assessment process?
Please retain all of your notes and graded work for each course that you took at your host institution, in case these are requested by the academic unit(s) assessing the courses for possible transfer credit. Note that the Associate Registrar, Academic Advising & Student Engagement can also can request an interview with you as part of the assessment process.

Ensure that your host institution sends an official final copy of your transcript for your studies at the institution directly to the Centre for International Experience (CIE) at the address below; a photocopy of your transcript will not be accepted.  A transfer credit assessment cannot be completed until your official final transcript – sent directly from your host institution rather than provided by you – has been received.  

The mailing address is:  
Student Exchange Program Office
Centre for International Experience  
University of Toronto
33 St. George St.
Toronto, ON, M5S 2E3
Canada

How long does the final transfer credit process take?
The assessment process may take up to 8 weeks to complete once all of your course pre‐assessment documents and your official final transcript have been received.  This normally means that if you are participating in a learning abroad experience during the Winter term you will not receive your transfer credit assessment prior to course enrolment beginning in July for the next Fall/Winter session. The Associate Registrar, Academic Advising & Student Engagement is best placed to advise you on course enrolment in the absence of a final transfer credit assessment.  

It is always in your best interest to submit all documentation required for your final transfer credit assessment as soon as possible. You will be notified via email once your transfer credits have been awarded and will be directed to Degree Explorer to review your credits and check for any relevant notes.   

Contact

Email: transfer@daniels.utoronto.ca

Call: 416-946-3897

Visit: Office of the Registrar & Student Services, Room 100

All U of T students participating in University-sanctioned international activities have access to the Safety Abroad Office (SAO) and emergency services.

The Safety Abroad Office works with students, staff and faculty to minimize risk by:

• Providing Safety Abroad Workshops
• Monitoring international security situations
• Assisting students with emergencies abroad
• Offering a 24-hour emergency line

We strongly encourage all Daniels students, engaging in any type of studies internationally, to register with the Safety Abroad Office.