Pre-College Credit

CIA’s annual Summer Pre-College Program is open to all students who will be entering their sophomore, junior, or senior year of high school. These two-week-long residential programs are designed to reflect the life of an art student attending a college of art and design. Students who successfully complete this program earn three undergraduate credits per course from the Cleveland Institute of Art. For more information, visit cia.edu/precollege.

Transfer Credit for New Students

Credit for college courses taken before enrollment at CIA is evaluated at the time of admission to CIA, and accepted credits become part of the CIA academic record. Transferable courses must be credit-bearing and earned from a historically regionally accredited institution in the United States or at an officially recognized institution in a foreign country.

• College Board Advanced Placement (AP) credit will be awarded as follows:
• Liberal Arts Credit: A minimum score of 3 is required for three Liberal Arts credits.
• Studio credit: A minimum score of 4 on the AP examination is required for three studio credits. Credits are applied toward one studio elective or a CORE course requirement based on the specific examination.

International Baccalaureate (IB) credit will be awarded as follows:

• Credit will be considered only for subjects taken at the higher level.
• Liberal Arts credit: A minimum score of 4 is required for three Liberal Arts credits.
• Studio credit: A minimum score of 6 is required for three studio credits. Credits are applied toward one studio elective. IB studio credits are never applied toward first-year CO/RE requirements.

Courses taken at another college or university will be awarded as follows:

• The course and grade achieved must appear on an official college transcript. Credit will not be issued with only the high school transcript. The official college transcript must be provided to Admissions during the application process, with all final grades listed.
• Liberal Arts credit: A final grade of “C” or higher must be achieved in an appropriate Liberal Arts-related course that correlates to a degree requirement. Coursework taken Pass/Fail is not transferable to CIA.
• Studio credit: Credit will be reviewed for major specific requirements, CO/RE, or elective credit. A final grade of “C” or higher must be achieved. Coursework taken Pass/Fail is not transferable to CIA.

Approved transfer credit will appear on the student’s academic record with a grade of “TR”. This grade is not used in the GPA calculation, but the credit does count toward degree requirements. Preparatory or remedial-level coursework is not accepted for transfer credit.

Transfer Credit for Current Students

Students who are currently enrolled at CIA and wish to take a course at another college for transfer credit must obtain approval from CIA before registering at another institution. The approval process begins in the Registrar’s Office.

The student must request the Transient Student Form from the Registrar’s Office, which will indicate approval of the course by CIA and can be presented to the College where they take the course. If the course must be reviewed by CIA faculty before it can be approved, the student may be required to obtain a syllabus or other information about the course for faculty review. Once the approval is made, the student will obtain the Transient Student Form and use it at the host institution for registration. The Registrar’s Office will seek approval from Division Chairs for transfer course equivalencies where needed.

Official transcripts with the final grade will need to be provided to the Registrar’s Office upon completion of the course. Actual evaluation of transfer credit requires that an official transcript be received from the College where the course was taken, and that the letter grade achieved is a “C” (2.0 on a 4-point scale) or better. The Registrar is responsible for determining if the transcript is official and for recording the credit toward the degree requirements. An inventory of approved courses is maintained in the Registrar’s Office. Coursework taken Pass/Fail is not transferable to CIA.

For currently enrolled students, CIA will consider transfer credit toward Liberal Arts courses from any regionally accredited institution in the U.S. that has been passed with a letter grade of “C” or better (“Pass” or “Satisfactory” grades will not transfer) and fulfills a degree requirement at CIA. Current students may gain studio or Liberal Arts credit for courses taken at a regionally accredited institution in the U.S. or at an officially recognized institution in a foreign country if the grade is a “C” or better and the course is pre-approved and fulfills a degree requirement at CIA. Approved transfer credit will appear on your academic record with a grade of “TR”. This grade is not used in the GPA calculation, but the credit does count toward degree requirements. Preparatory or remedial level coursework is not accepted for transfer credit.

Official transcripts for all courses taken external to CIA must be sent directly to the Registrar’s Office before transfer credit can be applied to your record.

Block Transfer for Prior Degree

Students who have previously earned an Associate or Baccalaureate degree, either from CIA or another regionally accredited institution, must submit official transcripts that indicate the degree, major, and award date. CIA reserves the right to request proof of diplomas as needed. Only degrees earned at regionally accredited colleges or universities will be considered for block transfer credit. A maximum of 60 credits may transfer to CIA. Only transfer courses with a minimum grade of “C” or higher from regionally accredited institutions are considered.

Liberal Arts Block Transfer

Students who have earned an Associate or Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in an Art or Design related major will have Liberal Arts requirements satisfied through block transfer credit, excluding PPEL 398 Professional Practices.

Students who have earned an Associate/Bachelor of Fine Arts or other Associate/Bachelor degrees in a major outside of Art and Design will have Liberal Arts requirements satisfied through block transfer credit, excluding AH 150, AH 250, Art History (6 credits), and PPEL 398.

Liberal Arts requirements for specific majors will not be satisfied with block transfer credit as specific courses are required. All other degree requirements are required.

CO/RE Curriculum Block Transfer

Students who have earned an Associate or Bachelor of Fine Arts in an Art or Design related major will receive block transfer credit for the first year CO/RE curriculum for a total of 15 credits. CORE 200 and 300 will be reviewed on a course-to-course basis. Students will be required to complete CORE 125T Field Guide Transfer.

Students who earned a minimum of 5 studio art or design courses (15 semester credits) will receive block transfer credit for the first year CO/RE curriculum for a total of 15 credits. CORE 200 and 300 will be reviewed on a course-to-course basis. Students will be required to complete CORE 125T Field Guide Transfer.

Students with a prior degree not in an Art or Design related field or who have less than 5 studio art or design courses in transfer will have CO/RE credit reviewed on a course-by-course basis.