Conservatorio de Artes del Caribe—Puerto Rico
This program enables students to begin their music education at Conservatorio de Artes del Caribe (CAC) in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and complete undergraduate degrees as Berklee College of Music students in Boston. Once accepted to Berklee, students may receive transfer credit for certain courses taken at CAC.
Visit the CAC website to learn more about the credit transfer pathway to Berklee.
About the Program
Students Who Entered CAC on or after September 1, 2022
Entrance Requirements
Students transferring from CAC to Berklee must earn a grade of “B” (3.00/4.00 GPA) or better in each course specified in the Berklee Global Partner (BGP) credit transfer agreement (see "Courses and Credits" below) to receive credit. If a student receives a grade of “B-“ or lower in any of the required core music courses, no credit will be awarded to the student for any of the core music courses listed in the credit transfer agreement.
In this case, the student will enter Berklee as a transfer student. In the first semester of study, they will be required to take the Entering Student Placement Assessment (ESPA) for course placement in core music courses. They may transfer in any applicable liberal arts and sciences courses admissible under the transfer credit policy in place at the time of the student's matriculation to Berklee.
Admissions: CAC students who wish to transfer to Berklee are required to go through Berklee's official undergraduate admissions process. Students accepted to Berklee will receive transfer credit for courses taken at CAC in accordance with an agreement between the two schools. Transferring students must send Berklee an official transcript showing all courses specified as completed with a satisfactory grade of "B" or better before credit transfer at Berklee can take place.
CAC students planning to transfer to Berklee under this agreement must do so within four years after completing their program of study at CAC.
Liberal Arts and General Electives
Students seeking to transfer credit to Berklee must first take the steps outlined in the Pre-Approval Process to determine whether the desired course(s) qualify for transfer.
- Students may transfer up to 24 credits of liberal arts courses toward their liberal arts requirements at Berklee.
- Only 15 of those 24 credits can be completed and transferred in after a student has started their studies at Berklee.
- Those 15 credits can be applied to a student’s academic requirements as follows: 9 credits can be applied to liberal arts requirements, and six credits can be applied to general elective requirements.
- Students in the Bachelor of Music or Arts degree programs must earn a minimum of 39 credits in liberal arts and may use six additional liberal arts credits (two courses) as general elective credit.
- Students in the Professional Diploma program must earn a minimum of 6 credits in liberal arts and may use up to 12 liberal arts credits (four courses) as general elective credits.
See detailed information about transfers of liberal arts courses and general elective courses.
Performance Courses
- Ensembles:
- CAC transfer students will receive up to 3 transfer credits in ensembles after completing one or two credits per course taken at CAC based on credit equivalency with an average grade of “B” or better.
- All students are required to enroll in an ensemble in their first semester at Berklee.
- Principal Instrument:
- Principal instrument courses (private lessons) taken at a BGP school are nontransferable.
- Berklee’s policy states that all students, including transfer students, must participate in and pass a minimum of four semesters of principal instrument instruction at Berklee, regardless of their level of proficiency.
- All transfer students are required to take a Berklee instrumental/vocal proficiency placement examination upon arrival at Berklee to ensure appropriate placement in principal instrument courses.
Requirements to Graduate
Berklee College of Music students must meet the following requirements to qualify for graduation:
- Residency: All students, including candidates transferring from another school, are normally required to complete a minimum of four semesters of full-time attendance and earn a minimum of 60 credits (48 credits for diploma students) at Berklee College of Music in order to graduate. Credit by exam (CBX), advanced placement credit, CLEP credit, and transfer credit do not count as residency requirement credits, even if earned while at Berklee College of Music. This requirement will be applied regardless of the number of credits transferred.
- Attain at least a 2.70 cumulative GPA in all major courses and have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00.
- Complete the principal instrument proficiency level, as specified by the major.
- Complete a required final project in the chosen area of concentration, as described and approved by the department chair (as applicable).
- For music education majors, complete all observation and student teaching requirements.
- For music therapy majors, complete all coursework and a six-month, full-time, post-coursework internship.
- Fulfill all financial obligations to the college.
Learn more about the requirements to graduate.
We encourage you to review the Berklee Global Academic Partner Berklee Track Guidebook, which provides comprehensive information about the credit transfer process.
Courses and Credits
Required Transfer Credits: 12
| Conservatorio de Artes del Caribe Courses | Berklee College of Music Course Equivalents |
|---|---|
| Music Fundamentals I and Music Fundamentals II | PW-111 Music Application and Theory (4 credits) |
| Jazz Harmony 1 | HR-112 Harmony 2 (2 credits) |
| Arranging I | AR-111 Arranging 1 (2 credits) |
| Ear Training I | ET-111 Ear Training 1 (2 credits) |
| Ear Training II | ET-112 Ear Training 2 (2 credits) |
Additional Potential Transfer Credits: 1
Note: Contact the academic advisor at this institution to ask about the courses below.
| Conservatorio de Artes del Caribe Courses | Berklee College of Music Course Equivalents |
|---|---|
| Basic Keyboard I | ISKB-211 Basic Keyboard Techniques 1 (1 credit) May be applied as general elective credit or a major requirement, depending on the major |
Potential Transfer Credit Summary
Required Transfer Credits: 12
Additional Potential Credits: 1
Potential Ensemble Credits: 3
Potential Transfer Credit Total: 16
Students Who Entered CAC Prior to September 1, 2022
Entrance Requirements
CAC students transferring to Berklee must earn a grade of "B" or higher (3.00–4.00) in each core music course, and a grade of "C" or higher (2.00–4.00) in each liberal arts and general elective course designated for transfer in this agreement (see "Courses and Credits" below) to receive transfer credit from Berklee.
To earn credit for any core music course for which a student receives a grade below B, students will be required upon entering Berklee to:
- take the entering student proficiency assessment (ESPA) for harmony and ear training courses
or - earn credit by exam (CBX) for music technology, tonal harmony, and counterpoint courses
or - enroll in the course at Berklee
For any liberal arts and sciences courses for which a student receives a grade below C, no credit will be granted.
Admissions: CAC students who wish to transfer to Berklee are required to go through Berklee's official undergraduate admissions process. Students accepted to Berklee will receive transfer credit for courses taken at CAC in accordance with an agreement between the two schools. Transferring students must send Berklee an official transcript showing all courses specified as completed with a satisfactory grade of "B" or better before credit transfer at Berklee can take place.
CAC students planning to transfer to Berklee under this agreement must do so within four years after completing their program of study at CAC.
Liberal Arts and General Electives
Students seeking to transfer credit to Berklee must first take the steps outlined in the Pre-Approval Process to determine whether the desired course(s) qualify for transfer.
- Students may transfer up to 24 credits of liberal arts courses toward their liberal arts requirements at Berklee.
- Only 15 of those 24 credits can be completed and transferred in after a student has started their studies at Berklee.
- Those 15 credits can be applied to a student’s academic requirements as follows: 9 credits can be applied to liberal arts requirements, and six credits can be applied to general elective requirements.
- Students in the Bachelor of Music or Arts degree programs must earn a minimum of 39 credits in liberal arts and may use six additional liberal arts credits (two courses) as general elective credit.
- Students in the Professional Diploma program must earn a minimum of 6 credits in liberal arts and may use up to 12 liberal arts credits (four courses) as general elective credits.
See detailed information about transfers of liberal arts courses and general elective courses.
Performance Courses
- Ensembles:
- CAC students may receive up to 3 transfer credits in ensembles with an average grade of “C” or better.
- All students are required to enroll in an ensemble in their first semester at Berklee.
- Principal Instrument:
- Principal instrument courses (private lessons) taken at a BGP school are nontransferable.
- Berklee’s policy states that all students, including transfer students, must participate in and pass a minimum of four semesters of principal instrument instruction at Berklee, regardless of their level of proficiency.
- All transfer students are required to take a Berklee instrumental/vocal proficiency placement examination upon arrival at Berklee to ensure appropriate placement in principal instrument courses.
We encourage you to review the Berklee Global Academic Partner Berklee Track Guidebook, which provides comprehensive information about the credit transfer process.
Requirements to Graduate
- Residency: All students, including candidates transferring from another school, are normally required to complete a minimum of four semesters of full-time attendance and earn a minimum of 60 credits (48 credits for diploma students) at Berklee College of Music in order to graduate. Credit by exam (CBX), advanced placement credit, CLEP credit, and transfer credit do not count as residency requirement credits, even if earned while at Berklee College of Music. This requirement will be applied regardless of the number of credits transferred.
- Attain at least a 2.70 cumulative GPA in all major courses and have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00.
- Complete the principal instrument proficiency level, as specified by the major.
- Complete a required final project in the chosen area of concentration, as described and approved by the department chair (as applicable).
- For music education majors, complete all observation and student teaching requirements.
- For music therapy majors, complete all coursework and a six-month, full-time, post-coursework internship.
- Fulfill all financial obligations to the college.
Learn more about the requirements to graduate.
Courses and Credits
Level 1: Required Core Music Courses (12 Transfer Credits)
| Conservatorio de Artes del Caribe Courses | Berklee College of Music Course Equivalents |
|---|---|
| Music Fundamentals I and Music Fundamentals II | PW-111 Music Application and Theory (4 credits) |
| Jazz Harmony 1 | HR-112 Harmony 2 (2 credits) |
| Arranging I | AR-111 Arranging 1 (2 credits) |
| Ear Training I | ET-111 Ear Training 1 (2 credits) |
| Ear Training II | ET-112 Ear Training 2 (2 credits) |
Level 2: Other Liberal Arts and General Elective Courses (1 Potential Transfer Credit)
Note: Contact the academic advisor at this institution to ask about the courses below.
| Conservatorio de Artes del Caribe Courses | Berklee College of Music Course Equivalents |
|---|---|
| Basic Keyboard I | ISKB-211 Basic Keyboard Techniques 1 (1 credit) May be applied as general elective credit or a major requirement, depending on the major |
Potential Transfer Credit Summary
Level 1 courses: 12 credits
Level 2 courses: 1 credit
Ensemble courses: 3 credits
Total: 16 credits