Can I get Credit for AP, IB, or Transfer Courses?

Students often approach advisors to find out whether they can get credit for work done prior to matriculation. This includes advanced placement exams, international baccalaureate programs, and coursework completed at previous institutions. While advisors can help students explore this topic, it is ultimately the Registrar’s Office that decides whether to award AP, IB, and Transfer credit.

We offer some general guidelines here, but please check the Student Services pages below for the most up-to-date and accurate information.

General Guidelines for AP Credit

Stanford awards credit for certain AP exams, but not all of them. Check the External Test Credit Equivalency Charts to see whether you can get credit for your AP exam, and what score you need in order to get credit.
For certain AP language exams, a score of 4 will fulfill your Undergraduate Language Requirement, but will not award you any units of credit. A score of 5 will fulfill the language requirement and earn you 10 units of credit. See the AP Credit Chart above for more details.
If you take a Stanford class that duplicates the same material as an AP exam, you will earn units for the Stanford class but lose some or all of your AP units in that subject. Be sure to check the list of duplicating courses on the AP Credit Chart.
To request AP credit, contact the College Board to have your scores sent to Stanford. For incoming frosh, if your scores do not appear on your transcript by late September, submit a Help Ticket to alert the Registrar of your issue.
Check out this Student Services' "How Do I Add AP Credit to My Record?" webpage for more information about AP exam credit, including important updates on how the College Board delivers scores and how this might affect you.

General Guidelines for IB Credit

Stanford awards credit only for certain higher level (HL) IB exams with a score of 5 or higher. Check External Test Credit Equivalency Charts to see whether you can get credit for your IB exam.
A score of 5 or higher on the accepted IB language exams will also fulfill your Undergraduate Language Requirement.
If you take a Stanford class that duplicates the same material as your IB exam, you will earn units for the Stanford class but lose some or all of your IB units in that subject. Be sure to check the list of duplicating courses on the IB Credit Chart.
To request IB credit, contact the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) to request that your IB scores be sent to Stanford.

General Guidelines for International Advanced Placement Exams

Stanford awards credit for certain international advanced placement exams such as the Caribbean Advanced Placement Exam (CAPE), the General Certification of Education 'A' Levels, the German Abitur, the French Baccalaureate, the National Pan-Hellenic Exam, and the Singapore A Levels.
Only exams in certain subjects may receive credit. See the External Test Credit Equivalency Charts to see whether you can get credit for your exam.
If you take a Stanford class that duplicates the same material as your international advanced placement exam, you will earn units for the Stanford class but lose some or all of your international advanced placement exam units in that subject.
To request international advanced placement exam credit, send your original exam certificate to the Registrar's Office via a Help Ticket.

General Guidelines for Transfer Credit

In general, you may receive transfer credit for outside courses that meet the requirements outlined on the Undergraduate Transfer Credit webpage.
It is always a good idea to meet with your UAD before requesting transfer credit to understand the impacts it will have on your degree progress and the appropriate timing of your request.
When you are ready to start transferring courses, please first review the "How do I request transfer credit?" webpage to determine the category of transfer credit you would like to request. From there, submit the appropriate form or contact the Student Services Officer of your declared department(s) to start the transfer credit process.
Check out these Registrar pages below for more detailed information about the transfer credit process and instructions on how to submit a transfer credit request and your official transcripts.

Additional Considerations

Keep in mind that you are only allowed to count a maximum of 45 total units of AP, IB, and Transfer Credit towards the 180 units you need for graduation. (If you are a transfer student, your AP, IB, and Transfer Credit maximum is 90 units.) If you have more than the maximum number of AP, IB, and Transfer Credit units to report, consult with your Academic Advisor about how best to proceed, especially if you are trying to use some of these transfer units to fulfill major requirements.

If you are trying to use external test credit to fulfill a major requirement, getting the Registrar to place the exams on your record is a necessary first step, but it's not enough! In most cases, you will also have to request your department's permission to use these units to fulfill your major requirements. This may involve a separate petition process with its own paperwork; check in with your department's Student Services Officer for details.

Got Questions?

If you have questions about external test or transfer credit, you may visit the Student Services Center in person, or submit one of the following help requests to reach them electronically.

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