Transferring Made Easier
Plan to graduate from a Minnesota State University?
Riverland Community College is a great place to start.
You can take your first two years of college with Riverland and transfer to a four-year college or university to complete your degree.
Transferring is a popular choice for many students in Minnesota. Each year, more than 40 percent of all new students at Minnesota State Universities are transfer students. In fact, two-thirds of all Riverland graduates who transfer choose a school in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System.
Since Minnesota State Colleges and Universities is a united system, the schools work together to make transferring easier by offering the Minnesota transfer curriculum, a set of courses that will transfer to any Minnesota State College or University. At Riverland, the Minnesota transfer curriculum is built into the Associate of Arts (AA) degree.
If you spend two years at Riverland completing the 60 credit AA degree, and transfer to a Minnesota State College or University, you will have satisfied the first two years of a four year degree program. Additionally, your two years at Riverland will cost approximately one third less than if you completed them at a four-year Minnesota State College or University. The transfer option is an economical choice for students.
Facts about Credit Transfer
The receiving college or university determines which credits transfer and whether those credits meet requirements of a specific degree. Riverland counselors can help select courses that will transfer.
Like transfers to like:
Institutions accept credits from courses and programs which are similar to ones they offer. They look for similarity in course goals, content and level. Baccalaureate degree programs usually count credits in three categories: general education, major/minor courses and prerequisites, and electives. The key question is whether your credits fulfill requirements of the degree or program you choose; a course may transfer but not count toward graduation.
Transfer Student Rights
Transfer Students have the right to:
- A clear, understandable statement of an institution's transfer policy.
- A fair credit review and an explanation of why credits were or were not accepted.
- A formal appeals process if unsatisfied with the transfer of credits.
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The appeals process involves:
- Completion of the Transfer Evaluation Appeal form.
- Documentation to support the appeal (course syllabus, textbook, course description, etc.).
- Review of documentation by Academic Dean and Registrar.
- The written outcome of the appeal will be sent to the Student within 21 days.
- Students who are not satisfied with the transfer appeal decision may appeal to the Senior Vice Chancellor of Academic and Student Affairs at the system level.
Transferring to Riverland
- Riverland Community College will consider acceptance of transfer credits from regionally or nationally accredited institutions. Transfer credit from nationally accredited schools recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) www.chea.org or the U.S. Department of Education www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred will be reviewed for transfer credit acceptance on a case by case basis. Institution accreditation can be viewed by going to: www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/accreditation_pg6.html
- To receive a degree from Riverland Community College, a minimum of 20 semester credits of college-level courses must be taken at Riverland. For students transferring from other Minnesota State Colleges and Universities institutions, this number is reduced to 12 credits.
- A Minnesota Transfer Curriculum (MnTC) course completed at another Minnesota State Colleges and Universities College will be transferred even if Riverland does not offer similar courses or disciplines.
- Riverland shall accept Minnesota Transfer Curriculum courses, goals and the entire Minnesota Transfer Curriculum with the passing grades earned at the sending system college or university. A 2.0 MnTC GPA is required for recognition of a students' completion of the entire Minnesota Transfer Curriculum with or without completing an associate degree.
- College courses that are not part of the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum, in which a student has received a grade of A, B, C, or P will be considered for transfer. if a student has a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher, D's will be considered for transfer on a course by course basis.
- Riverland shall accept in transfer as electives up to 16 semester credits of occupational and/or professional courses which are not comparable or not equivalent to specific courses. College-level courses accepted in transfer by Riverland that are determined to be not comparable or not equivalent to a specific course shall be accepted as electives.
- Transfer credit grades will not be used in computing the student's overall GPA at Riverland. Only earned credits (not grade point credits or grade points) will be recorded on the official Riverland transcript. However, transfer grades will be included to compute their MnTC grade point average to ensure the student has completed the MnTC with a minimum GPA of 2.0.
- Credits achieved through military training will be evaluated for transfer as specified in the Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Services. Students should bring in their DD 214 discharge paper, Certificates of Training and/or military transcripts for evaluation.
- Comparability: Courses approved for transfer must be comparable in nature, content and level and match at least 75 percent of the content and goals of the course for which the student is seeking equivalent credit.
- Credit Life: General education, some general studies and elective credits shall have no transfer time limit. Credits for technical programs have a five-year life span unless otherwise approved by the Academic Dean. Science courses required for Health Science programs have a five-year life span unless otherwise approved by the Academic Dean.
- Equivalency/Conversion: The number of transfer credits granted per course shall not exceed the number granted by the originating institution.
- Repeated Courses: When a student transfers in courses and later successfully repeats a transferred course at Riverland, only credit from Riverland will be granted.
