Did you take a course at another university/college before coming to McGill?
You may be eligible for credits and/or exemptions if you completed university/college courses at another institution prior to coming to McGill. Please follow the steps below.
1) COMING SOON - Notify SOUSA and start the transfer credit process early
It is strongly recommended that you notify our team early so we can help you through the process of having your university/college coursework assessed. SOUSA will be making a form available for you to upload unofficial documents and begin this process over the summer. Check back in June for more information on this form.
NOTE: we will do our best to also provide preliminary guidance on how to plan for course registration, but it is not possible for McGill or SOUSA to confirm the specific credits or exemptions you can expect until after the start of the Fall term. You will need to register for courses BEFORE your credits and equivalencies are processed. Please review the information on this page and consult with a Degree advisor if you need guidance. Consult the timeline information in Step 5 for further details.
2) Submit your official transcript(s):
You must make arrangements to have your final, official transcript sent directly from the institution(s) to McGill. Documents uploaded by a student are considered unofficial.
McGill accepts electronic transcripts and proof of graduation sent through a recognized digital credential service provider or directly from the issuing institution(s) by email.
If your prior university studies are not accurately recorded on your Minerva application checklist, consult with Service Point to discuss any missing information.
3) Search for your course in our Course Equivalency System (CES)
All courses taken prior to coming to McGill must be assessed for equivalency.
Use the Course Equivalency System to determine if your course has already been assessed. A few tips:
- Tick off the box "Include Expired Decisions" in your search.
- Clicking on the course in the search results will provide more information on the equivalency status and when the course was last assessed.
Consult the Course Equivalency System (CES)
| NEXT STEPS BASED ON SEARCH RESULTS | |
|---|---|
| Equivalent | Your course is currently equivalent to a McGill course. Skip to Step 5. |
| Not Equivalent | Your course is not equivalent to this department. Click on the equivalency to get more information on this assessment as the course may belong to a different department at McGill. |
| Expired | The course may have already been approved, but has since expired. You will need to submit a request for reassessment (see Step 4). |
| Not found | If you cannot find your course in the CES, you will need to submit an equivalency request (see Step 4). |
Note that two types of equivalencies may be granted:
- Direct equivalency: A course can be deemed equivalent to an existing McGill course like for example ECON 208 or PSYC 100.
- Level equivalency (1XX, 2XX, 3XX etc.): If McGill doesn’t offer an exact equivalent course but the course meets McGill's course standards, a level equivalency can be granted. A PSYC 2XX course is considered to be a 200-level course Psychology course.
NOTE: You may not use 1XX equivalencies for the Math or Science components of the Foundation/Freshman program. For example, PSYC 1XX is not equivalent to PSYC 100 and cannot be counted as a foundational science.
4) Submit a request for equivalency or reassessment
IMPORTANT: To submit a request for equivalency/reassessment you will need a course syllabus from when you completed the course. Please note that these steps are only possible after you have accepted your offer of admission.
Submit a new request
- Login to the course equivalency system with your McGill email and password.
- Click on Home
- Click on Submit a New Request and follow the onscreen instructions.
- In the Comments section, you must indicate that you are submitting a syllabus for pre-admission transfer credit.
- Once submitted, you will receive a request number and email with your request details. Pay attention to your McGill email as additional information may be requested.
Submit a reassessment request
- Login to the course equivalency system with your McGill email and password
- Search for the host course that you wish to have re-evaluated and make sure you are including expired decisions.
- Click on the equivalency to open the equivalency details
- Click on Request Reassessment and upload the new course syllabus
- In the Comments section, you must indicate that you are submitting a syllabus for pre-admission transfer credit.
- Once submitted, you will receive a request number and email with your request details. Pay attention to your McGill email as additional information may be requested.
5) Verify that your credits and equivalencies appear on your student record (processing timeline)
NOTE: You will need to register for courses BEFORE your credits and equivalencies have been processed.
Once processed, your credit and equivalencies will be viewable in Minerva (Go to Minerva > Student Menu > Student Records Menu > View Your Unofficial Transcript).
Note the following timeline:
- Your official transcript will be received and processed by Enrolment Services, who will add your transfer credits as TRNS XXX (generic transfer credit). This first review takes place late in the summer and the generic transfer credit should appear on your transcript by October.
- The SOUSA team will then assess your course(s) for equivalency and update your Minerva transcript (this is referred to as "articulation"). Articulation takes place during the Fall semester. The table below shows how the credits/equivalencies look when initially processed (by ES) and after articulation (by SOUSA).
| When first processed | After articulation |
|---|---|
| Credits/Exemptions: From: Concordia University - 6 credits TRNS XXX 6 cr |
Credits/Exemptions: From: Concordia University - 6 credits MATH 133 3 cr PHIL 1XX 3 cr |
Need help?
If you can't find your previous institution on the course equivalency system or are having any other issues with the CES, please contact mary.gauthier [at] mcgill.ca (Mary Gauthier) in SOUSA and provide an explanation of the error you are encountering.