This post is just about applying for credit. For more info about how to transfer universities, check out https://careerchamp.com.au/how-to-transfer-universities-in-australia/
So you’d like to move universities.
Depending on what you’ve studied and where, you might be eligible for some credit towards your new degree. This could mean your new degree is shorter and less expensive, because you don’t have to pay for and study as many units.
Applying for credit is also free, so I always recommend doing an application for credit if you move universities. There’s no risk to making an application.
Don’t think that you can’t apply for credit because you’re moving between two unrelated degrees. You can. You can get credit for units similar to the ones you’ve already completed or for unrelated units. Read on for some more info.
What types of credit are there?
Universities usually assign one of two types of credit for your previous studies: “specified credit” and “unspecified credit“.
- Specified credit is credit for units at your new uni that are similar to units you’ve already completed. If you get specified credit, you’ll be told which units you should not enrol in at your new university.
- Unspecified credit is usually given when the units you’ve studied don’t align with units in your new degree. Unspecified credit still means you won’t have to do as many units to graduate your new degree, but it usually means you are being given credit for elective units. This might mean you have a bit less flexibility in unit choices in your new degree.
How can you research the credit you could receive?
One of the best ways to research your options is by checking to see if you can find the “credit precedent database” for the university(s) you’re interested in. These databases show you if other students have applied for credit for the same units you have studied in the past and what the result was – this can be a good guide to what might happen for you. You can usually find credit precedent databases by Googling “credit precedent database” and the name of the university you’re interested in.
Here are links to the credit precedent databases I’m aware of:
(Please feel free to share any others you find by posting them in the comments.)
What can you do if your preferred university doesn’t have a public credit precedent database?
If your preferred university hasn’t made their database publicly accessible, I’d suggest reaching out to the university’s Future Students and/or Admissions team via email. If you ask if there is a credit precedent for any of the units you’ve studied, these teams may be able to check their internal database and tell you. I’d suggest being really polite and giving them all the information they could need to answer your question – name of units, course codes for units, & the institution where you studied. You could also mention that you know this would be a guide, not a guarantee that you would receive credit. Hopefully they’ll be willing and able to help you.
How to apply for credit
Once you’ve decided on a university and course, it’s time to get ready to apply for credit. Applications for credit aren’t handle by tertiary admissions centres like QTAC, VTAC or UAC. And the process of applying for credit is different at each university. Most of the time the application form is digital and can’t be accessed until you are an enrolled student of the university. But I recommend doing some research about the application process for the universities you’re interested in before you apply to change degrees.
Here are links for credit transfer information from some big universities around Australia:
Queensland
New South Wales
- University of Sydney
- University of New South Wales (UNSW)
- University of Technology Sydney (UTS)
- Western Sydney University (WSU)
Victoria
National
When do you need to apply for credit?
You should apply straight after you receive an offer to study with a new university.
This is so the uni can process your credit transfer before you need to enrol for your first semester of study. The quick turn around means there’s a risk of missing out on credit if you don’t apply straight away.
I recommend getting together all the paperwork that you think you’ll need for a credit transfer application early. That way, you’re ready to apply for credit straight after offers come out. You will probably need to collect copies of your academic transcript that have been certified by a Justice of the Peace (JP). You might also need to supply a detailed, official Course Profile or Unit of Study Description for each unit you’ve completed, so your new university can see the academic level, learning content, reading list, etc. of units you’ve already completed.
Conclusion
As someone who’s applied for credit a few times, and helped lots of others understand the process, it is well worth the effort. Let me know how you go in the comments. And if you come across any more credit databases, please share.
Good luck! 💪