Transfer Credit

If you are a current Berklee student and would like to take courses at another college or university and transfer the credits to Berklee, you must submit the courses for pre-approval before enrolling at the other institution. You may transfer a maximum of 34 credits to fulfill your liberal arts or general elective requirements.

International students who are currently enrolled in English as a Second Language (ESL) courses at Berklee (LENG-104, LENG-105, LENG-106) must complete these courses before requesting pre-approval to take courses outside of Berklee for transfer credit.

Failure to submit a course for pre-approval may result in the denial of transfer credit for that course.

The pre-approval process is as follows:

• Provide a link to the other institution’s course catalog that includes the course description and number of credits for each course. Send the catalog link to transfercredits@berklee.edu and specify the page(s) on which the course(s) can be found (if applicable). Do not copy/paste course descriptions into an email. Course syllabi will not be accepted;
• Once the link is received, the course(s) will be evaluated for transfer credit eligibility. If approved for transfer into Berklee, you will receive a confirmation email within three business days; and
• Upon completing the course, please request that an official transcript be sent electronically to transfercredits@berklee.edu. Transfer credit will not be awarded until the transcript from the other institution is received.

Students may transfer a maximum of 34 credits towards liberal arts and general elective requirements. The number of liberal arts and general electives required for each major varies. Please refer to the Major Grids for specific requirements for your intended major and program.

Transferring Credits to Fulfill Liberal Arts Requirements

Not all liberal arts courses are eligible for transfer credit. The list below will help you determine which courses are acceptable for fulfilling your liberal arts requirements at Berklee. Depending on your major, you can also use these courses to fulfill general elective requirements.

Remember, courses you wish to transfer must be approved in advance. See the "Transfer Credit Pre-Approval Process" tab for more information.

English

College Writing: LENG-111 (1 course required)

• Eligible courses are College Composition and College Writing.
• Ineligible courses are first-year reading or writing seminars.

Literature: LENG-223 (1 course required)

• Eligible courses are College Writing 2, Composition 2, literature topics, and Creative Writing.

Social Science

Social Science: LSOC-200 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the social science topics to fulfill Berklee's LSOC-200 requirement.

• Eligible course topics include sociology, psychology, anthropology, cultural communication, gender studies, women’s studies, LGBTQ+ studies, microeconomics, macroeconomics, political science, government, international relations, political policy, public policy, and philosophy.

Mathematics/Natural Science: LMSC-200 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the mathematics/natural science topics to fulfill Berklee's LMSC-200 requirement.

• Eligible mathematics courses must be at a pre-calculus level or higher.
• Ineligible mathematics courses are college algebra, trigonometry, and geometry.
• Eligible natural science course topics include biology, chemistry, astronomy, environmental science, geology, oceanography, nutrition, physics, and statistics.

Art History

Art History: LVIS-223 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the art history topics to fulfill Berklee's LVIS-223 requirement.

• Eligible course topics focus on different and more narrowly defined themes, rather than a broad historical survey, such as the art of Egypt, the meeting of Eastern and Western art, and 20th-century American and European art.
• Ineligible course topics include art appreciation and any applied art courses, such as painting, sculpture, physical education, and photography.

History

History: LHIS-223 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the history topics to fulfill Berklee's LHIS-223 requirement.

• Eligible course topics include US history and Western civilization.

Music History: MHIS-201 or MHIS-300 

The number of courses required depends on the major.

• Eligible course topics focus on a specific period in music history, such as the history of jazz, the history of popular music, and the history of music in the European tradition (from the Middle Ages to the present).

Humanities: LHUM-200 (no requirements)

Extra courses that can fulfill liberal arts requirements or general electives include language courses, film/media, multimedia courses, introduction to AI, multicultural courses, pop culture, speech, public speaking, speech communication, oral communication, and oral presentation.

Transferring Credits to Fulfill General Electives

Additional courses that exceed liberal arts requirements may be used to fulfill general elective requirements. The number of general electives required for each major varies. Specific requirements for your intended major and program can be found in the Major Grids.

Students may complete their general electives on campus or through Berklee Online. Students may also fulfill their general elective credits through AP [PDF] or CLEP [PDF] exams or by transferring courses from another institution.

Berklee currently does not accept the following for transfer credit:

• Music/performance courses, with the exception of music history;
• Any applied arts course (i.e., painting, sculpture, drawing, graphic design, studio arts), art appreciation, music appreciation, first-year seminars, first-year experience, skills courses (reading, writing, math), law courses, and physical education;
• English courses taken at international institutions where English is not the primary language, or English as a Second Language (ESL) courses;
• Foreign language courses or Advanced Placement (AP) or College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams when they are in a student’s primary language and/or the primary language of instruction;
• International Baccalaureate (IB) courses taken at the standard level;
• General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE);
• AS-levels;
• High-school level courses;
• AP, IB, and A-Level exams and dual enrollment (DE) courses that are listed on high school transcripts; and
• Courses tailored for a specific vocation, such as auto mechanics, law, nursing, or optometry.

Students can receive transfer credit through Advanced Placement (AP), College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and A-level exams. Dual enrollment (DE) courses may also be eligible for transfer credit.

AP Exams
View a list of AP exams eligible for transfer [PDF] and their corresponding minimum score requirements.

CLEP Exams
Students must achieve a score of 50 or higher on their CLEP exam to receive transfer credit. View a list of eligible CLEP exams [PDF].

IB Exams
Many courses taken through the International Baccalaureate program are eligible for transfer credit. The courses must be taken at the Higher Level (HL) and have a minimum exam score of 4. For more information, visit ibo.org.

A-level Exams
To receive transfer credit, a minimum grade of “C” is required for eligible liberal arts course subjects. Contact the exam board you took your exams with (e.g., AQA, Pearson, Cambridge) to request that your exam results be emailed to Berklee.

Dual Enrollment (DE)
Dual enrollment courses in eligible liberal arts subjects with a minimum grade of “C” may be eligible for transfer credit. Students must request that an official transcript be emailed to Berklee from the educational institution where they completed the courses.

Berklee will not accept AP, IB, and A-level exam scores or dual enrollment (DE) courses listed on high school transcripts.

Some Berklee program requirements can be fulfilled with Berklee Online courses, which are considered institutional courses rather than transfer credits. All courses taken through Berklee Online, for which a student has received a grade, will count toward their GPA and cannot be removed from their transcript.

Any course taken through Berklee Online that does not have a course equivalency will be considered as a general elective only.

View the list of Berklee course equivalencies offered through Berklee Online.

Official Transcripts

A transcript is considered official only if it is sent directly from an accredited college or university through an official and secure electronic transcript service such as Parchment or the National Student Clearinghouse. Grade reports are not accepted for transfer credit. Official transcripts should be sent to transfercredits@berklee.edu.

International Transcripts

Transcripts from all international institutions, except those from Canada, require an official course-by-course translation into English and evaluation to American college standards by a certified credential evaluation service. The official translation must be electronically delivered to transfercredits@berklee.edu. Berklee recommends the following providers of translation and evaluation services:

• Education Credential Evaluators (ECE)
• The Evaluation Company (TEC)
• World Education Services (WES)

Important note: Be sure to remind any translation service that the translated transcript must include course names, the course credit values, and grades.

How do I have my credits transferred to Berklee?

Prospective/entering students are required to send an official academic transcript listing all completed courses to Admissions upon application. Once the official transcript is received, evaluation of the student’s transfer credits will begin. Refer to the "Submitting Transcripts for Transferring Credits" tab for additional information.

What is a transfer credit evaluation?

A transfer credit evaluation is a document that records all of the courses a student has taken at other institutions and the equivalencies for which the student will receive credit at Berklee. Once the transfer credit evaluation is completed, it will be sent to the student by their enrollment officer in Admissions.

What type of credit can be transferred?

Berklee currently accepts transfer credit from courses taken at accredited colleges and universities, as well as AP, CLEP, IB, A-levels, and dual enrollment credits. All transcripts and exam documentation should be requested from the institutions and/or testing agencies and sent to Admissions prior to arrival on campus.

How many credits can I transfer?

Students may transfer a maximum of 34 credits towards liberal arts and general elective requirements.

Can I transfer music courses?

Berklee does not accept music/performance courses with the exception of music history courses. Students may receive credit for existing musical knowledge based upon the results of the Entering Student Proficiency Assessments (ESPA) and/or Credit by Exam (CBX) [login required] taken upon arrival at Berklee.

Do I need to submit official documentation for AP, IB, CLEP, A-Level exams, or dual enrollment courses if they are already listed on my high school transcript?

Yes. Official exam scores must be submitted directly to Admissions from the testing agency. Dual enrollment courses require official transcripts from the educational institution in which you are enrolled.

What if I do not see transfer credit listed from an institution I attended or from exams I completed on my transfer credit evaluation?

• Contact Admissions to confirm they have received all your documentation.
• If the missing transfer credit is for courses that were in progress when you first submitted your documentation, but are now completed, you must submit an updated transcript to Admissions.
• Berklee cannot evaluate international transcripts. Transcripts from international institutions require an official evaluation by a certified credentialing agency.

Students may transfer a maximum of 34 credits towards liberal arts and general elective requirements. The number of liberal arts and general electives required for each major varies. Please refer to the Major Grids for specific requirements for your intended major and program.

You may use Berklee Online to fulfill requirements prior to your arrival at Berklee. However, online courses cannot be taken in place of any part of your required first-semester core music curriculum. View the list of Berklee course equivalencies offered through Berklee Online.

Transferring Credits to Fulfill Liberal Arts Requirements

Not all liberal arts courses are eligible for transfer credit. The list below will help you determine which courses are acceptable for fulfilling your liberal arts requirements at Berklee.

English

College Writing: LENG-111 (1 course required)

• Eligible courses are College Composition and College Writing.
• Ineligible courses are first-year reading or writing seminars.

Literature: LENG-223 (1 course required)

• Eligible courses are College Writing 2, Composition 2, literature topics, and Creative Writing.

Social Science

Social Science: LSOC-200 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the social science topics to fulfill Berklee's LSOC-200 requirement.

• Eligible course topics include sociology, psychology, anthropology, cultural communication, gender studies, women’s studies, LGBTQ+ studies, microeconomics, macroeconomics, political science, government, international relations, political policy, public policy, and philosophy.

Mathematics/Natural Science: LMSC-200 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the mathematics/natural science topics to fulfill Berklee's LMSC-200 requirement.

• Eligible mathematics courses must be at a pre-calculus level or higher.
• Ineligible mathematics courses are college algebra, trigonometry, and geometry.
• Eligible natural science course topics include biology, chemistry, astronomy, environmental science, geology, oceanography, nutrition, physics, and statistics.

Art History

Art History: LVIS-223 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the art history topics to fulfill Berklee's LVIS-223 requirement.

• Eligible course topics focus on different and more narrowly defined themes, rather than a broad historical survey, such as the art of Egypt, the meeting of Eastern and Western art, and 20th-century American and European art.
• Ineligible course topics include art appreciation and any applied art courses, such as painting, sculpture, physical education, and photography.

History

History: LHIS-223 (1 course required)

Choose any course in the history topics to fulfill Berklee's LHIS-223 requirement.

• Eligible course topics include US history and Western civilization.

Music History: MHIS-201 or MHIS-300 

The number of courses required depends on the major.

• Eligible course topics focus on a specific period in music history, such as the history of jazz, the history of popular music, and the history of music in the European tradition (from the Middle Ages to the present).

Humanities: LHUM-200 (no requirements)

Extra courses that can fulfill liberal arts requirements or general electives include language courses, film/media, multimedia courses, introduction to AI, multicultural courses, pop culture, speech, public speaking, speech communication, oral communication, and oral presentation.

Transferring Credits to Fulfill General Electives

Additional courses that exceed liberal arts requirements may be used to fulfill general elective requirements. The number of general electives required for each major varies. Specific requirements for your intended major and program can be found in the Major Grids.

Students may complete their general electives on campus or through Berklee Online. Students may also fulfill their general elective credits through AP [PDF] or CLEP [PDF] exams or by transferring courses from another institution.

Berklee currently does not accept the following for transfer credit:

• Music/performance courses, with the exception of music history;
• Any applied arts course (i.e., painting, sculpture, drawing, graphic design, studio arts), art appreciation, music appreciation, first-year seminars, first-year experience, skills courses (reading, writing, math), law courses, and physical education;
• English courses taken at international institutions where English is not the primary language, or English as a Second Language (ESL) courses;
• Foreign language courses or Advanced Placement (AP) or College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams when they are in a student’s primary language and/or the primary language of instruction;
• International Baccalaureate (IB) courses taken at the standard level;
• General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE);
• AS-levels;
• High-school level courses;
• AP, IB, or A-level exams and dual enrollment (DE) courses that are listed on high school transcripts; and
• Courses tailored for a specific vocation, such as auto mechanics, law, nursing, or optometry.

A transfer credit evaluation is a document that lists all courses a student has taken at other institutions, along with all exams completed, and the equivalencies for which the student will receive credit at Berklee.

All official transcripts and completed exam documentation (AP, CLEP, IB, and A-levels) must be requested from the institutions and/or testing agencies and sent to Admissions prior to arrival on campus. Once the initial transfer credit evaluation is completed, it will be sent to the student by their enrollment officer in Admissions.

Students must submit a final transcript for courses designated as “IP” on the transfer credit evaluation before arriving on campus to be considered for potential transfer credit.

Any additional documentation, including final transcripts and official exam scores, must be submitted to Admissions by the end of the first week of classes to ensure timely evaluation and processing of transfer credits.

Note: Entering students will be ineligible to have first-semester schedules updated and may forfeit transfer credit due to transcripts received after the first week of classes.

See the "Transfer Credit FAQs" tab to learn more about the evaluation process.

Students can receive transfer credit through Advanced Placement (AP), College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and A-level exams. Dual enrollment (DE) courses may also be eligible for transfer credit.

AP Exams
View a list of AP exams eligible for transfer [PDF] and their corresponding minimum score requirements.

CLEP Exams
Students must achieve a score of 50 or higher on their CLEP exam to receive transfer credit. View a list of eligible CLEP exams [PDF].

IB Exams
Many courses taken through the International Baccalaureate program are eligible for transfer credit. The courses must be taken at the Higher Level (HL) and have a minimum exam score of 4. For more information, visit ibo.org.

A-level Exams
To receive transfer credit, a minimum grade of “C” is required for eligible liberal arts course subjects. Contact the exam board you took your exams with (e.g., AQA, Pearson, Cambridge) to request that your exam results be emailed to Berklee.

Dual Enrollment (DE)
Dual enrollment courses in eligible liberal arts subjects with a minimum grade of “C” may be eligible for transfer credit. Students must request that an official transcript be emailed to Berklee from the educational institution where they completed the courses.

Berklee will not accept AP, IB, and A-level exam scores or dual enrollment (DE) courses listed on high school transcripts.

Official Transcripts

A transcript is considered official only if it is sent directly from an accredited college or university through an official and secure electronic transcript service such as Parchment or the National Student Clearinghouse. Grade reports are not accepted for transfer credit. Official transcripts should be sent to Admissions.

Note: Entering students will be ineligible to have their first-semester schedules updated and may forfeit transfer credit if transcripts are received after the first week of classes. Additionally, entering students who submit transcripts for liberal arts courses and are placed into ESL courses in their first semester will not receive transfer credit until they have completed the ESL courses at Berklee.

International Transcripts

Transcripts from all international institutions, except those from Canada, require an official course-by-course translation into English and evaluation to American college standards by a certified credential evaluation service. The official translation must be electronically delivered to Admissions. Berklee recommends the following providers of translation and evaluation services:

• Education Credential Evaluators (ECE)
• The Evaluation Company (TEC)
• World Education Services (WES)

Important note: Be sure to remind any translation service that the translated transcript must include course names, the course credit values, and grades.