Credit by Exam or Departmental Assessment

Students who have participated in the Advanced Placement Program (AP) in high school and have received scores of 3, 4, or 5 will receive academic credit. Official transcripts of AP work must be submitted to the Admissions Office for evaluation to determine how academic credit will be awarded. UW-La Crosse's AP School Code is 1914. You can contact the AP Testing Center at: apcentral.collegeboard.com/home or by phone at (888) 225-5427.  Students may receive credit for passing the following AP exams:

***These courses satisfy UW-La Crosse's General Education Program

*Retroactive credits for 101, 102, and 201 (12 credits) would be granted upon completion of the appropriate 300-level course at UW-La Crosse with a grade of "B" or higher. Refer to Retroactive Credits for more information. 

ELECTIVE CREDITS are university electives that count toward the degree, but NOT as departmental electives toward the major.

The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse will accept all International Baccalaureate (IB) "HIGHER LEVEL" examinations with a score of 4 or greater. IB Standard Level (SL) examinations will receive credit if listed in the table below. Official IB transcripts should be submitted to the Admissions Office for evaluation. Students may receive credit for passing the following IB exams:

** Student's portfolio will need to be reviewed by the department.

The College Level Examination Program (CLEP) is a national program administered through the College Board. The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse will follow The American Council on Education (ACE) guidelines and recommendations for minimum scores for awarding credit in all subject examinations. Students should contact the Counseling and Testing Center 608.785.8073 for information about CLEP, and to order the exam. Students who have taken exams at other sites, may submit the results to the Admissions Office for evaluation to determine if academic credit will be awarded. Students may receive credit for passing the following CLEP subject level exams:

Students who enter the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse with advanced preparation in world languages and mathematics may receive credit for that preparation by passing an advanced-level UW-La Crosse course with a grade of "B" or better.

Retroactive Credit in the Department of Global Cultures and Languages

All students who plan to continue a language already studied in high school must take the UW System Placement Test in order to determine the appropriate class level. The UW-La Crosse Admissions Office will send Placement Test information to all accepted new freshmen.

A student may receive retroactive credit provided a grade of "B" or better is earned in the student's first university course above the 101 level in a particular language. 

Retroactive credit may be given in one or more languages. No retroactive credit is given for any phonetics course.

• Elementary Language II (102)
  earns 4 retroactive credits plus 4 course credits for a total of 8 credits
  Elementary French II (FRE 102) earns 3 retroactive credits plus 3 course credits for a total of 6 credits
• Intermediate Language I (201)
  earns 8 retroactive credits plus 4 course credits for a total of 12 credits
  Intermediate French 1 (FRE 201) earns 6 retroactive credits plus 3 course credits for a total of 9 credits
• Intermediate Language II (202)
  earns 12 retroactive credits plus 4 course credits for a total of 16 credits
  Intermediate French II (FRE 202) earns 9 retroactive credits plus 3 course credits for a total of 12 credits
• Any Advanced Course
  earns 12-16 retroactive credits plus 2-3 course credits for a total of 14-19 credits

Retroactive credit in the Department of Mathematics & Statistics:

Students taking MTH 207 Calculus I, MTH 208 Calculus II, or MTH 310 Calculus III: Multivariable Calculus, and earning a grade of "B" or better, will be given retroactive credit for MTH 151 Precalculus (4 cr.) provided that the student's transcript shows no record of prior or concurrent enrollment in MTH 151, MTH 207, MTH 208, or MTH 310.

For additional information about these opportunities, newly admitted students should contact the Admissions Office at 608.785.8939. Continuing students should contact the Dean of the college or school in which they are enrolled.

In many cases, students may receive advanced standing credit for some A-level exams. After a student has been admitted, the Admissions Office will perform an evaluation of credit for A-Level exam results. In order to grant the credit, we require an official copy of the A-Level exam certificate from the examination board. Credits will not be posted from Results Slips or internal school transcripts. Examinations not listed below will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis for advanced standing credit.

ELECTIVE CREDITS are university electives that count toward the degree, but NOT as departmental electives toward the major.

If an academic department provides for a UWL credit by examination for a course, the options are listed below. Interested students should check with the department and their Dean's office to make arrangements for taking the test on this campus. A small non-refundable fee will be charged for each examination and is payable to the Cashiers Office.