Academic Credit

Semester and Academic Year IUP students

can choose to enroll to have their coursework at IUP recorded as transferable academic credit through Indiana University, Bloomington, which serves as IUP’s transcript School of Record. If you wish to enroll for credit, you must notify IUP within the first week of the semester. Enrolling for academic credit is optional, requires a separate fee paid to Indiana University, and coursework taken for credit must be assigned a letter grade. Students should choose this option only if they require academic credits to complete a degree or to obtain a deferral on their educational loan payments. The specific number of credit hours is determined at the end of each term.

Undergraduates can earn 12-16 credits per semester.

Graduate students can earn 8-12 credits per semester.

Summer IUP students

Indiana University will not award course credit or produce an academic transcript for the IUP Summer Program, but many students are able to earn credit through their home university. We are happy to help you to facilitate this.

If you wish to enroll for credit, you must notify IUP within the first week of the semester.

IUP will submit your basic personal and academic information to Indiana University so that you can be registered for credits. Students enroll by semester, and you may enroll for either one or two semesters.

Students who are currently enrolled in a graduate program may enroll as graduate students; all others enroll as undergraduates. Graduate students may receive undergraduate credit for undergraduate-level coursework; undergraduates may earn credit for graduate level coursework.

Fees

Indiana University charges $219 USD per semester to process academic credits for IUP courses.

Courses and Credits

All coursework taken at IUP may be assigned credits, up to the maximum amount per term, but some types of coursework are more likely than others to be treated as fully transferable by US institutions. The following table lists IUP courses on the left and the equivalents assigned by Indiana University as “East Asian Languages and Cultures” (EALC) credits:

IUP and Indiana University EALC Course Equivalents

IUP courses
Contact hours
Indiana University course equivalent
Primary credits
Excess credits

Second-Yr. I
120-160
C202
4
E496 2-4

Third-Yr. I
80-120
C301
4/3*
E496 0-2

Third-Yr. II
80-120
C302
4/3*
E496 0-2

Fourth-Yr. I
40
C402/501
4/3*
E496 2-4

Fourth-Yr. II
40
C307/507
4/3*
E496 0-2

Literary I
40
C307/507
2

Literary II
40
C307/507
2

Business I
40
C320
2

Business II
40
C320
2

Please note

*At graduate levels, Third-Year and Fourth-Year Chinese earn 3 graduate credits per course. C301/302 count for either undergraduate or graduate credit. For Fourth-Year and Literary courses, graduate students enroll under 500-level numbers. Second-Year and Business Chinese are undergraduate credit courses.

IUP Curriculum

In principle, one undergraduate credit hour is assigned for each 20 classroom contact hours.

In the case of IUP “core courses” (Second-Year, Third-Year, and Fourth-Year Chinese), students may participate in more contact hours than can be assigned to the primary course equivalent. In such cases, excess credit hours can be recorded under the E496 number, which is essentially undistributed credit. Institutions are less likely to transfer these hours as credits to fulfill specific degree requirements.

Specialized Reading Topics

Some IUP students take classes in specialized reading topics at advanced levels. These courses can be assigned a course equivalent of Indiana University EALC C505: Topics in Chinese Studies, which may be repeated twice under different topics:

IUP and Indiana University EALC Course Equivalents

IUP courses
Contact hours
Indiana University course equivalent
Primary credits

Second-Yr. I
40-80
C505
4

THE THOROUGH DETAILS

Any individualized coursework outside the standard IUP course list that does not meet IUP criteria for Topics courses at the graduate level may be recorded under the E496 number.
If the total amount of course hours taken during a term exceeds the number of hours that will be recorded, the credits and grades that are recorded are determined as follows:
1. “Core course” distributed credits and grades are recorded first.
2. Distributed credits and grades in other courses are recorded next.
3. Undistributed (E496) grades are recorded next.
In each case, hours completed during the first module are recorded prior to hours completed during the second module until the level of credits specified is reached.
Withdrawal and Refund

Indiana University does not permit withdrawal from enrollments in overseas programs, except in exceptional circumstances that entail withdrawal from the entire program for reasons beyond the control of students. Requests for withdrawal must be made at the recommendation of the IUP Chinese Center in Beijing and receive Indiana University’s approval. In such cases – and in such cases only – a grade of Incomplete may be assigned to courses, as specified by IUP. Fees cannot be refunded
to students except in cases that have arisen because of errors at Indiana University.
Indiana Academic Credit and Financial Aid / Loan Deferment

Indiana University will follow standard procedures to notify students’ home institutions that no financial aid is being offered through Indiana University. This will ensure that enrollment for credit through Indiana University will not disrupt loans and scholarships awarded elsewhere. Students should consult with offices of financial aid at their home institutions to clarify how enrollment for credit may bear on financial aid issues.
Reasons to Enroll for Academic Credit through Indiana University

IUP itself is not the type of institution that is authorized to grant US academic credit. Some US institutions, however, have internal arrangements that allow students to earn credit at their home schools for work done at IUP. You should check with your home institution to see if they offer academic credit for IUP courses before deciding to enroll for academic credit through Indiana University.

Because Indiana University is a credit-granting institution whose credits are transferable to other schools, having your IUP work recorded through Indiana University should allow your home institution to apply credits earned at IUP to your degree program. In many cases, this may fulfill specific degree requirements; in some cases, the credits may contribute only towards the minimum total hours required for a degree.

FURTHER QUESTIONS?

All contacts concerning this program should be with the Resident Director of the IUP Chinese Center in Beijing. Students should not contact Indiana University directly; the University is authorized to respond to queries and to act only through direct instructions from IUP.