Theory

Information About Transfer Credit in Computer Science

General Policy

The main standard we use when deciding whether to accept a computer science course for transfer credit at Wesleyan is whether there is a comparable course offered under the COMP heading. For an introductory computer science course, this means determining whether the course is "comparable" to either COMP 112 or COMP 211 at Wesleyan.

In general, a course is comparable to COMP 112 if the main focus of the course was doing an extended series of programming assignments using a standard programming language such as Java, C++, or Visual Basic. An important criterion is that the student essentially writes the programs from scratch.

A secondary criterion for a comparable course is the type of school where the course was taken. Generally speaking, this means an accredited four-year college or university.

In particular, computer courses which are intended to teach general computer skills (like file management) or to teach the basics of standard computer software packages (such as Word, Excel, or Frontpage) are not comparable to COMP 112 or any other computer science courses at Wesleyan and are not acceptable for transfer credit.

In general, a course is comparable to COMP 211 if the course is a rigorous introduction to computer science at the school; usually the first course in a computer science major.

For transfer credit for advanced courses, the phrase "comparable" means either a upper-level standard computer science course or an elective in the computer science major at the school. Examples of these types of courses are operating systems, database systems, computer graphics, artificial intelligence, or networking.

Exceptions

In certain situations, a hybrid course can be comparable. For example, a course that involves both writing HTML source code and programming Java applets might be comparable to COMP 112. These exceptions will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

Procedures

If you plan to take a computer science course at another school and transfer it for credit at Wesleyan, you need to get pre-approval before you take the course.

This approval is accomplished by the following two steps. First, send the Computer Science faculty member of DADCOM/CADCOM an e-mail with the name of the course that you want to transfer and a URL for the course so that we can look at the course description. We will send you back an e-mail that either grants or denies approval of the course for transfer credit.

Assuming that we approve your course for transfer credit, you will need to get a filled-out transfer credit form to the CADCOM member. Your form will be signed and returned to you, and then you must submit it to the registrar.