Credit Policies
Advanced Placement (AP) and college-level credit may be granted on the basis of the College Board’s Advanced Placement tests. For students who have taken AP course work in high school and receive scores meeting university standards in the AP examination, AP as well as college credit is granted. Granted college credit is treated as transfer credit without a grade, but counts toward graduation and meets other specific requirements for which it is appropriate.
The program's faculty set their own policies for grading and for granting incompletes. Special conditions may be noted on class syllabi. In all cases, students must present evidence of circumstances beyond their control that prevent them from completing the class. The student and faculty member must complete a written agreement (form available in program offices) outlining the terms of course completion and submit this agreement to the dean’s office.
Ordinarily, only students at the 3000- or 4000-level of studio are permitted to obtain independent study credit. Independent study credit may not be used to substitute for any required core or design studio course.
Typically, only students who have at least a 3.00 GPA are permitted to register for independent study. Additional requirements might be established depending on the proposed topic. Not more than 3 hours of independent study credit during one semester and not more than a total of 6 are given for the entire time the student is enrolled unless an exception is granted by the dean.
A complete description of the scope of the independent work, a summary of how it will be carried out, and a definition of the intended outcomes must be submitted to the supervising faculty member no later than five days after the official beginning of a semester. Approval of the description must be by the faculty member and by program administration before permission is granted for enrollment in the independent study course. Students should make arrangements for the independent study course details during registration or well before the semester begins.
Credits for teaching assistantships, research assistantships, internships, and for independent study are all guided by the same standards. Credits earned as a teaching assistant, research assistant, or intern are subject to a 3 credit-hour limitation. Teaching assistantships and internships are offered on a pass/fail basis.
A student may elect to take up to 6 semester hours toward the B.EnvD degree on a pass/fail basis, but these credits must fall in the category of general electives and may not include coursework taught within the Program in Environmental Design.
Students should confer with their academic advisor regarding specific academic standards for repeating laboratory, studio, and other undergraduate courses. Credits for repeated courses are not counted toward the 120 semester hours needed for graduation.
Students enrolled in the Program in Environmental Design are eligible to participate in the ROTC programs on the Boulder campus.
Students interested in such programs should contact the professor in charge of the ROTC program of their choice (Army, Navy, Air Force) and also their academic advisor for the program for information on residence and curriculum requirements for graduation. No more than 8 credit hours of ROTC courses may be may be applied to the B.EnvD degree.
Credits transferred from other institutions are limited to the number of credit hours given for similar work in regular offerings at the University of Colorado, and must meet the quality level expected at CU. The dean upon written petition may make exceptions to this regulation.
The program does not accept vocational/technical course work in design, graphics, or construction as meeting specific course requirements of the program; nor does it consider such course work as acceptable in fulfilling the program's elective requirements. Only in exceptional circumstances may a student petition the director of the program to request a transfer of such credits.
A grade of C- or better is required in any course for which credit is granted in transfer from another institution to the university. In order for transfer credit to meet core degree requirements, a a grade of B or better is required in the transferring class. Grades earned in other institutions (excluding other campuses of the University of Colorado) are not computed with the student’s CU grade point average.
Visit the Office of the Registrar for more information on transfer credit policies.