College of Education and Human Development

School of Social Work

Transferring from another program

A “transfer applicant" is an applicant to the School's Master of Social Work Program who has been enrolled as an MSW-degree seeking student at another MSW program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) within three academic years of applying and accepting admission to the University of Minnesota's MSW Program.

  • A transfer applicant must follow the same application procedure as all other applicants to the MSW program.
  • A transfer applicant must include a letter from the Director of Graduate Studies of the program from which they are transferring that indicates the applicant is a student in good standing at the time of transfer.
  • Transfer students must complete at least 61% of their graduate course work at the University of Minnesota School of Social Work.
  • Students transferring to the full program may transfer up to 20 credits; students transferring to the advanced standing program may transfer up to 13 credits.
  • Transfer students may transfer field credits.
  • Transfer students must consult with the MSW Program Director to ensure transfer credits meet curriculum requirements of the School of Social Work.
  • A full-program transfer applicant must include the field-placement evaluation received at the first school. Admission may be contingent on review of the final field evaluation.
    Transferring credits from other programs

    Transferring credits from other programs

    1. A full program (53 credit) student may transfer a total of 8 semester credits into her/his MSW degree program. A student with advanced standing may transfer a total of 6 semester credits into her/his degree program. All transferred courses must have a grade of B (3.0) or higher. Transferred credits may be from the following sources (all credits expressed as semester credits):
      1. Up to 6 or 8 credits (depending on status as full program or advanced standing) of social work graduate level course work from non-degree-seeking student status at the University of Minnesota or from a related graduate program to which the student was admitted at another accredited college or university. These credits are generally completed before a student enrolls in the MSW program.
      2. Up to 3 graduate credits from another college or university’s graduate social work or related program, without admission to that program, with permission from the MSW program director. Courses transferred from another school of social work must offer material in a perspective not available through the curriculum offered by the University of Minnesota’s School of Social Work. These credits can be completed after a student has matriculated in the MSW program.
      3. The total of 6 or 8 semester credits can be from a single source or from different sources, as identified above, but may not exceed the limit of 6 or 8 credits, depending on the student’s status.
    2. Students in approved dual degree programs may count some credits toward curriculum requirements in both fields. Full program students pursuing the MSW/MPH dual degree can double count 12 credits; full program students pursuing the MSW/MPH or MSW/MURP dual degree can double count 21 credits; students with advanced standing who are pursuing the dual degree can double count 15 credits.
    3. In accordance with accreditation guidelines from the Council on Social Work Education, the School of Social Work does not give academic credit for life experiences, including field. (Standard 3.2.5—Student Professional Development in the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards.)
    4. While the school encourages MSW students to take courses in other graduate departments, students must receive approval of such courses from their academic adviser and from the MSW program director before registering for the class. Students should submit a syllabus and/or a course description in order to determine the appropriateness of the course in relation to the MSW curriculum.