Transfer Admissions

Transfer Requirements

To be considered for admission on transfer criteria rather than high school criteria, a student must have completed at least 24 hours of transferable, college-level coursework. (These hours must have been earned after high school graduation.) Students who have less than 24 hours completed will be considered for admission on the basis of the freshman admission requirements in addition to college work that has been completed. (Students transferring from non-regionally accredited institutions will also be considered as first-time freshmen. Credits cannot be transferred to Northwest from a non-regionally accredited institution unless the credit was applied to an Associate's degree at a regionally-accredited institution, in which case the credit will be awarded from the regionally-accredited institution.)

Transfer students must submit an application for admission along with official transcripts from all regionally-accredited colleges or universities attended. Students currently enrolled at a college or university should send an official partial transcript when making application for admission. Students must have a 2.00 (on a 4.00 scale) cumulative college grade point average in transfer in order to be accepted to Northwest. For students with a cumulative college grade point average in transfer below 2.00, consideration will be given based on professional judgment and acceptance may be granted on a probationary basis. If admitted, a transfer student who has less than 30 credit hours in transfer and a college cumulative GPA between 1.75 and 1.99 will be regularly admitted to the University, rather than on probation.

Application Fee

An application fee may be required for new students applying to Northwest. A complete listing of application fees is available at (800) 633-1175.

Transfer of Credits

Students transferring to Northwest from another regionally accredited institution may be given transfer credit as their transcripts are evaluated by the Office of Admissions-Operations. Non-college parallel courses or technical credit can be transferred only for the Bachelor of Applied Science degree or if part of an Associate of Arts degree unless the Office of Admissions-Operations and the corresponding academic department determine that the courses are equivalent to a liberal arts level course.

Continuing students at Northwest who wish to take courses at another institution as a visiting student should contact the Office of Admissions-Operations prior to enrolling to ensure the viability of transferring those courses into Northwest.

Students have the option of meeting degree requirements as governed by the academic catalog in force at the time of the student's initial enrollment in higher education (provided that the student has maintained continuous enrollment and has remained in the same major program) or by the academic catalog in force at the time of the student’s initial enrollment at Northwest.

Aside from possible waiver of Northwest Core requirements as detailed below, transfer credit will be evaluated on the same criteria established for native students as set forth in the academic policies section of this catalog. Students may challenge the interpretation of such criteria made by the Office of Admissions-Operations by petitioning Northwest's Transfer & Articulation Officer located in the Student Success Center.

Transfer credits do not always have an equivalent course at Northwest but may satisfy the Core 42 or department requirements. The following 900-series course numbers are used to show if transfer courses meet Northwest Core requirements, even though the courses are not directly equivalent, or transfer as electives only:

A student has the right to appeal a denial of credit made by the Office of Admissions-Operations to the academic department concerned. If the student is not satisfied with the decision of the academic department, further appeal may be made to Northwest's Transfer & Articulation Officer located in the Student Success Center.

Transfer Students Holding Associate of Arts or Associate of Science Degrees

Students who hold an associate of arts degree from a regionally-accredited institution will have satisfied the Core 42 requirements.

Students who have completed the Core 42-hour block at a Missouri college/university will have satisfied Northwest's Core requirements.

Students who hold an associate of science degree from a regionally-accredited institution will have satisfied The Northwest Core requirements if the student has at least 42 semester hours of general education with the following distribution of courses:

• Communication skills in the English language–nine credit hours total, six credit hours in written communication and three credit hours in oral communication; 
• Mathematical sciences–three credit hours minimum;
• Natural Sciences–seven credit hours minimum from at least two disciplines, including one course with a lab component;
• Humanities and Fine Arts–nine credit hours minimum from at least two disciplines;
• Social and Behavioral Sciences–nine credit hours minimum including one Civics course;
• Five additional credit hours in any of the sections above.

These 42 hours must be classified at a level designated for application towards a baccalaureate degree.

Students should note that additional courses in these areas may be required by specific academic programs that have professional licensure and in that case are not waived by the associate degree.

Transfer Guides

Northwest Missouri State University has a number of transfer guides with various community colleges. These guides express a shared commitment to increasing the opportunity for students to gain access to and succeed in higher education. By clarifying transfer policies and procedures which assure articulation between programs, the institutions involved seek to assist students in making a seamless transfer. A current listing of schools and guides may be found at https://www.nwmissouri.edu/admissions/apply/transfer/equivalencies.htm. 

Supersede Policy for Transfer Courses

When a student completes the same course two or more times before transferring to Northwest, credit will be awarded for only the highest grade when calculating the transfer grade point average. If a student completes the same course, once at Northwest and once at another institution, the procedures listed in Superseding Grades/Repeating Courses will be followed like so:

• If the student receives a grade of “D” or “F” in transfer, that grade will be superseded when the class is completed with the same or higher grade at Northwest. A petition for superseding must be completed at the time of registration in the course and can be completed in CatPAWS. The transfer grade will be averaged with the Northwest grade if a lower grade is received at Northwest.
• If the student receives a grade of “A”, “B”, or “C” in transfer, that grade will always be averaged with the Northwest grade that is earned. The grade in the transfer course will never supersede the grade earned when the course is taken at Northwest, regardless of the grade received during the time it was taken at Northwest.

To Transfer:

• Carefully and promptly complete the Application for Admission and submit it to the Northwest Office of Admissions - Operations.
• Applicants must also submit current official transcripts from each regionally accredited college or university previously attended (a composite transcript will not be accepted). Students currently enrolled should submit an official partial transcript at the time of application.
• Students who are transferring into Northwest’s School of Education should see The School of Education for additional requirements.