Types of Credit

Study away courses issuing Duke credit are designed to be as rigorous as a course on Duke’s campus. These courses are offered on Duke-Administered programs, which are organized and supervised by Duke University, either fully or in partnership with other institutions, and Duke faculty are typically directly involved.

In study away courses bearing Duke credit:

• You earn Duke grades that are factored into your GPA. Your grades are considered in determining your eligibility for academic honors and recognition such as Dean’s List. Courses count towards graduation, just like any Duke class.
• Courses count towards your major, minor, or certificate requirements, just like any Duke class.
• You can fulfill Areas of Knowledge (ALP, CZ, NS, QS, SS).
• You can fulfill Modes of Inquiry (CCI, STS, EI, W, R).
• You can fulfill the (FL) Mode of Inquiry requirement.

The courses you take on study away for transfer credit are added to your record upon your return, so long as you follow the instructions for getting a course approved and reconciling your transfer credit.

In study away courses approved for transfer credit:

• You must take the course for a grade. You cannot take a course Pass/Fail.
• Although you must take the course for a grade, grades are not factored into your Duke GPA and do not appear on your Duke transcript.
• You must earn the U.S. equivalent of a C-or higher. (Check with GEO to determine the C- equivalent grade for your host institution.)
• You must take courses that are equivalent to a minimum of 3 U.S. semester hours each.
• All courses must meet for a minimum of 4 weeks and 35 contact hours.
• No online or hybrid courses are allowed. All coursework must be 100% face-to-face learning.

Transfer no credit:

If you earn below a C- or fail to take a full course load, your course grade will be recorded on your Duke transcript as TNC (transfer no credit). TNC courses will not be factored into your GPA.

Fulfilling Curricular Requirement

Provided you earn the appropriate grade, transfer courses approved by academic departments at Duke:

• Will appear on your transcript in accordance with the type of approval granted for the course, either as the course's direct Duke equivalent or as a departmental elective.
• May count towards graduation.
• May be used to satisfy major, minor, and/or certificate requirements at your department's discretion.
• Can be used to satisfy Areas of Knowledge requirements (ALP, CZ, NS, QS, SS). A course may not be used to satisfy more than one Area of Knowledge, even if the course carries more than one Area of Knowledge code.
• Cannot satisfy the following Modes of Inquiry requirements: CCI, STS, EI, W, R.
• May be used to retroactively apply for the (FL) Mode of Inquiry if certain criteria are met, though approval is not guaranteed. See Trinity Policies on the FL Requirement.

A Mix of Duke Credit and Transfer Credit

Some Duke-Administered semester programs are designed with a hybrid credit structure. This means you will enroll in a mix of Duke courses and courses offered at a local university, and, as a result, you will earn a mix of Duke credit and transfer credit on the same program.

See sections above for the differences between Duke credit and transfer credit.

Which programs have a hybrid credit structure?

• Duke in Berlin
• Duke in France/EDUCO
• Duke in Glasgow
• Duke in Los Angeles
• Duke in Madrid
• Duke in Madrid–Intermediate Track
• Duke in New York Creative Industries

The Global Education Office does not oversee institutional transfer credit. Institutional transfer credit is earned when you enroll on your own at another four-year college or university in or outside of the United States, and as such, you are not engaged in a Duke-approved study away program. See: Trinity Policy on Institutional Transfer Credit