Curriculum Prerequisites
The purpose of a prerequisite and/or a co-requisite is to insure student success in subsequent coursework. State prerequisites and co-requisites may not be waived. Local prerequisites or co-requisites may be waived with appropriate approvals and permission of the Vice President of Academic Affairs and Workforce Development. Documentation of the approved waiver will be maintained on file.
Prerequisites or co-requisites may be met or waived with appropriate approvals and/or permission of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs & Workforce Development (“Vice President”). The college recognizes the following ways for awarding credits to meet prerequisite or co-requisite requirements:
Credit by Examination
A student may petition the course instructor by written application for permission to seek course credit by examination. No more than 75 percent of the specified number of hours required for the degree or diploma may be earned through proficiency examination. To obtain permission to take a credit by examination test, students should follow these steps:
- The student must contact the Coordinator or Department Chair to request for a credit by examination.
- Approval must be granted from the Coordinator or Department chair.
- The Coordinator or Department chair will arrange a time for the test to be given no later than two weeks after receiving the student’s request.
- If the student passes the proficiency exam, a grade of “NC” is assigned. If the student does not pass the proficiency exam, the student must complete the course with a passing grade to earn credit.
Credit hours will be recorded in the Total Hours Earned and will count towards hours for graduation; however, there will be no Quality Points assigned, the grade will not affect the student’s GPA and Financial Aid or Veteran’s Benefits shall pay for courses in which a grade of “NC” is earned.
Joint Services Transcript Evaluation
Joint Services Transcript (“JST”) is an academically accepted document approved by the American Council on Education (“ACE”) to validate a service member's military occupational experience and training along with the corresponding ACE college credit recommendations. When the College receives an official copy of a JST, the Director of Records and Registration will review and apply appropriate course credit. The Vice President will be consulted if there is need for further discussion regarding proposed course credit.
College Board Advance Placement Program (“AP”)
Students wishing to receive credit for advanced placement tests must submit an official AP score report to the Office of Records and Registration. Students achieving a minimum score of three on an AP test of the College Board will be given credit for the course covered by the test. Scores of four or five may receive advanced credit.
College-Level Examination Program (“CLEP”)
Students wishing to receive credit for CLEP tests must submit an official CLEP transcript to the Office of Records and Registration. Students achieving a score at or above the minimum score set by the American Council on Education will receive the appropriate credit for the subject covered by the test.
Course Placement
Western Piedmont Community College uses multiple methods - such as high school grade point average, ACT and SAT scores, GED, and HiSET exam scores, placement test scores and/or transfer course credit - to determine whether students need additional preparation before attempting college-level math and English courses. Credit will be given based on exam scores as determined by the Office of Records & Registration.
Postsecondary Institution Transfer Credit (Amended 6/6/23)
Course work transferred or accepted for credit must represent collegiate course work with course content and level of instruction resulting in student competencies at least equivalent to those of students enrolled in the course offered at the College.
Courses taken more than seven (7) years ago may not be applicable to a student’s current program or major. No technical or vocational courses that were completed more than seven years ago will satisfy prerequisite or corequisite requirements.
Any such earned credit must meet the minimum College academic standards of a grade of “C” or better and must parallel the content of similar courses offered. Transfer credit may be awarded at the 100 level or above. Grades and quality points do not transfer. The maximum amount of credit allowed to be transferred or accepted is seventy-five percent (75%) of the total semester hours credit listed in the Core or Required Major Hours category of the College’s program of study;
For all others, the following criteria will be considered in determining the acceptability of the transfer course work:
- Accreditation of the school by a regional accrediting body recognized by the United States Department of Education. Accreditation does not guarantee acceptance of transfer credit.
- Equivalency of course descriptions, outcomes and analysis of course level, content, quality and comparability. It shall be the student’s responsibility to provide documentation of this equivalency, which may include, but is not limited to, syllabi, course catalogs, course outcomes, etc.
- If the school was not accredited by a regional accrediting body recognized by the United States Department of Education at the time the course was taken, additional documentation will be required. It shall be the student’s responsibility to provide any additional documentation requested. Transcripts written in a language other than English must be translated by an evaluation service recognized by the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES). A certified copy of the English translation and evaluation should be submitted with the transcript. The College does not provide translation services.
The responsibility for determining transfer credit from other colleges and universities rests with the Records and Registration department. When there is doubt about the appropriateness of transfer credit or when a student wishes to appeal a transfer credit decision, the transcript will be referred to the appropriate faculty member(s) and Dean, whose decision will be final. In such cases, the Dean will notify Records and Registration who will note the decision in the student's academic file. Time limits may be imposed in certain situations, such as for allied health program courses.