Credit by examination (graduation credits earned by demonstrating knowledge of course subject material but without enrolling in the course) may be obtained in a number of ways, as described below. Entering students most often obtain Credit by Examination through National Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate examinations or by taking Placement Examinations offered by the various departments at Rose-Hulman. Students already in attendance may use Course Examination and By-Passing.
A student who receives Credit by Examination for a course may use it to satisfy graduation requirements and may enroll in more advanced courses. Note that Credit by Examination does not carry a grade and hence does not influence the student's GPA.
Credit by Examination Options:
Advanced Placement (AP)
Cambridge Exams
International Baccalaureate (IB)
CLEP Exams
RHIT Dept. Exams
Course Examination
Course By-Passing
National Advanced Placement Examinations (AP)
Students who receive a score of 4 or 5 on a national AP examination will receive credit by examination as described below. The decision whether or not to grant credit for courses other than those listed will be made by the appropriate Department Head.
AP Exam Conversions for RHIT Credit
|
AP Score |
RHIT Credit Hours | RHIT Course Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES | 4 | HUM H000 |
| ART HISTORY | 4 | ARTS H442 |
| BIOLOGY | 4 | Score 4=BIO101; Score 5=BIO110 |
| CALCULUS AB | 5 | MA111 |
| CALCULUS BC | 10 | MA111 & MA 112 |
| CHEMISTRY | ** | Score 4=8 cr hrs for CHEM 111, 113; Score 5=12 cr hrs for CHEM 111, 113, 115 |
| CHINESE LANG & CULTURE | ** | Score 4=8 cr hrs of foreign lang; Score 5=12 cr hrs of foreign lang |
| COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES | 4 | 4 cr hrs 200-level CSSE elective |
| COMPUTER SCIENCE A | 8 | Eligible for CSSE 220. Upon successful completion of CSSE 220, student is awarded 4 credits for CSSE 120 and 4 credits for CSSE 220. |
| ECON - MAC | 4 | ECON S152 |
| ECON - MIC | 4 | ECON S151 |
| ENG LANG/COMP | 4 | ENGL H100 |
| ENG LIT/COMP | 4 | ENGL H000 |
| ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE | 4 | BIO 107 |
| EUROPEAN HISTORY | 4 | HIST H000 |
| FRENCH LANG & CULTURE | ** | Score 4=8 cr hrs of foreign lang; Score 5=12 cr hrs of foreign lang |
| GERMAN LANG & CULTURE | ** | Score 4=GE 111 & GE 112 (8cr hrs); Score 5=GE 111, GE 112, & GE 113 (12cr hrs) |
| GOV & POL COMP | 4 | POLS S103 |
| GOV & POL US | 4 | POLS S101 |
| HUMAN GEOGRAPHY | 4 | GEOG S110 |
| ITALIAN LANG & CULTURE | ** | Score 4=8 cr hrs of foreign lang; Score 5=12 cr hrs of foreign lang |
| JAPANESE LANG & CULTURE | ** | Score 4=8 hours of foreign language; Score 5=12 hours of foreign language |
| LATIN - VERGIL | 4 | 4 additional hours of foreign language |
| MUSIC THEORY | 4 | MUSI H101 |
| PHYSICS B, or 1 and 2 | 0 | No credit |
| PHYSICS C - E&M | 4 | PH112 |
| PHYSICS C - MECH | 4 | PH111 |
| PHYSICS C – E&M and PHYSICS C – MECH | 4 | PH113 |
| PSYCHOLOGY | 4 | PSYC S100 |
| RESEARCH | 4 | ENGL H100 |
| SPANISH LANG & CULTURE | ** | Score 4=SPAN L111 & SPAN L112 (8cr hrs); Score 5=SPAN L111, SPAN L112, & SPAN L113 (12 cr hrs) |
| SPANISH LIT | 4 | 4 additional hours of foreign language |
| STATISTICS | 4 | MA100-Level Free Elective |
| STUDIO ART: DRAWING | 4 | ARTS H142 |
| STUDIO ART:2D DESIGN | 4 | No credit |
| STUDIO ART:3D DESIGN | 4 | No credit |
| US HISTORY | 4 | HIST H000 |
| WORLD HISTORY | 4 | HIST H223 |
Cambridge Exams
In general, a student who receives an A or B on the A-level Cambridge exam will receive Credit by Examination for the corresponding course at Rose-Hulman. Credit is not granted for AS-level exams.
|
CAMBRIDGE SCORE/GRADE OF A OR B |
RHIT Credits |
RHIT Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
|
Art & Design |
4 |
ARTS H244 |
|
Economics |
4 |
ECON S151 & ECON S152 |
|
History |
4 |
HIST 1XX |
|
Psychology |
4 |
PSYC S100 |
International Baccalaureate Exams (IB)
In general, a student who receives a score of 5 or better on a higher level examination in the IB program will receive Credit by Examination for the corresponding course at Rose-Hulman.
International Baccalaureate Conversions for RHIT Credit - Group 1 (first language)
|
IB score of 5 or better |
RHIT Credits |
RHIT Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
|
English A: Literature |
4 |
ENGL H000 |
|
English A: Language & Literature |
4 |
ENGL H000 |
International Baccalaureate Conversions for RHIT Credit - Group 2 (second language, incl. Latin and ancient Greek)
|
IB score of 5 or better |
RHIT Credits |
RHIT Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
|
Language A2 |
0 |
Must take placement exam and receive "C" or better for credit |
|
Language B |
4 |
FL L000 |
|
Language ab |
0 |
Must take placement exam and receive "C" or better for credit |
International Baccalaureate Conversions for RHIT Credit - Group 3 (Individuals & Society)
|
IB score of 5 or better |
RHIT Credits |
RHIT Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
|
Business & Management |
4 |
Free Elective |
|
Economics |
4 |
ECON S151 & ECON S152 |
|
Geography |
4 |
GEOG S110 |
|
Global Politics |
4 |
POLS S102 |
|
History |
4 |
HIST H000 |
|
History: Americas |
4 |
HIST H000 |
|
History: Europe |
4 |
HIST H000 |
|
History: Islamic World |
4 |
HIST H000 |
|
Info Tech in a Global Society |
** |
see Dept. head |
|
Philosophy |
4 |
PHIL H101 |
|
Social & Cultural Anthropology |
4 |
ANTH S101 |
|
Psychology |
4 |
PSYC S100 |
International Baccalaureate Conversions for RHIT Credit - Group 4 (Experimental Sciences)
|
IB score of 5 or better |
RHIT Credits |
RHIT Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
|
Biology |
4 |
BIO110 |
|
Chemistry |
0 |
A score of 5 or better is placed in Honors Chemistry |
|
Design Technology |
** |
see Dept. head |
|
Environmental Systems |
** |
see Dept. head |
|
Physics |
** |
see Dept. head (student may wish to take placement exam) |
International Baccalaureate Conversions for RHIT Credit - Group 5 (Mathematics)
|
IB score of 5 or better |
RHIT Credits |
RHIT Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
|
Mathematics Methods |
** |
see Dept. head |
|
Further Mathematics |
** |
see Dept. head |
|
Mathematics Higher Level |
5 |
MA111 |
|
Mathematics Studies |
** |
see Dept. head |
|
Computer Science |
4 |
Eligible for CSSE 220. Upon successful completion of CSSE 220, student is awarded 4 credits for CSSE 120. |
|
Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches HL |
5 |
MA111 |
International Baccalaureate Conversions for RHIT Credit - Group 6 (The Arts)
|
IB score of 5 or better |
RHIT Credits |
RHIT Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
|
The Arts: Film |
4 |
ENGL H241 |
|
Visual Arts |
4 |
ARTS H242 |
|
Music |
4 |
MUSI H000 |
|
Theater Arts |
4 |
ENGL H000 |
CLEP Examination
Some institutions offer credit for successful performance on the CLEP (College Level Examination Program) given by the College Examination Board. This exam tests for college level experience obtained primarily by non-traditional means, such as correspondence courses, courses taken at non-accredited institutions or in the armed services or in industry or by independent study.
However, due to the strict accreditation requirements for the science and engineering curricula, these exams are not applicable at Rose-Hulman. The Institute will set its own examinations for entering students who feel that their previous experience would enable them to bypass certain courses. (See below under "Course By-Passing.") The decision whether or not to grant credit for such exams is made by the appropriate Department Head.
Rose-Hulman Departmental Placement Examinations
An entering student who takes a departmental placement examination may receive Credit by Examination and be placed in more advanced courses in the following areas:
Chemistry: Students (except those exempted on the basis of AP or IB credit) may take the online chemistry placement examination prior to enrollment. A student with a sufficiently high score on the departmental examination will be given the option of enrolling in CHEM112, General Chemistry Honors, which carries 5 hours of credit. The student will then be exempted from the required chemistry sequence--CHEM111 and CHEM113, General Chemistry I and II--which carries 8 hours of total credit. Upon completion of CHEM112 with a passing grade, the student will also be granted 3 additional hours of Credit by Examination, (so that the total of 8 credits represents the 8 credits normally earned in CHEM111 and CHEM113).
Computer Science: Students with computer science experience not assessed by an AP exam may take the online computer science placement examination prior to enrollment. A student with a sufficiently high score on the placement examination will be given the option of enrolling in CSSE220 or CSSE230, depending on their score. Upon successful completion of that course with a C or better, the student will also receive Credit by Examination for the course or courses bypassed. Additionally, if a student has already placed into CSSE220 due to the AP exam, they may use the placement examination to try to place into CSSE230.
Foreign Language: A student who qualifies through the foreign language examination will be permitted to enroll in the appropriate level of German, Spanish, or Japanese as determined by the foreign language faculty. Upon successful completion a quarter of more advanced language at Rose-Hulman with a grade of C or better, the student will be granted 4 hours of Credit by Examination for each quarter of language by-passed. (Note: a minimum of two terms of college language must be completed in order to receive Humanities credit.) Students may take the online foreign language placement examination prior to enrollment.
Mathematics: A student may elect to take a Calculus Credit Exam for one or more of the freshmen calculus sequence courses: MA111, MA112, and MA113. The exam will be administered during Freshmen Orientation week, and registration information will be sent to students prior to their arrival on campus.
Military Science/Air Science: A U.S. veteran with one year's service and members of a reserve component of the U.S. armed forces may be given Credit by Examination for Basic Military/Air Science. Also, see Military/Air Science.
Physics: A student who qualifies through the physics placement examination administered during Freshman Orientation Week will be given 4 hours of Credit by Examination for PH111, Physics I.
Course Examination
A student may receive Credit by Examination through successful performance on a comprehensive examination covering the material of a course. The student must apply to the head of the appropriate department for such an exam and it is subject to the following limitations.
- The granting of Credit by Examination is normally limited to courses or areas available at Rose-Hulman or compatible with the curricula offered at Rose-Hulman.
- Credit by Examination cannot be used to make up a course failure (F or WF).
- Credit by Examination carries no grade and does not affect the student's GPA.
- Evaluation of special examinations will be made by the head of the department to determine whether a sufficient demonstration of knowledge of the particular course has been made to warrant Credit by Examination.
Course By-Passing
A student might, by reason of previous experience, be challenged little by a particular course. In such a case, the student may, with the approval of the advisor, the head of the department in which the course is offered, and the instructor concerned, enroll in the succeeding course in the same subject and, on completing that course with a grade of C or better, be granted Credit by Examination for the course(s) by-passed.
Exceptions & Questions: Contact Head of the appropriate department with questions. Exceptions must be applied for through the Curriculum Committee.