Articulation and Transfer Credit

Oconee Fall Line Technical College may recognize course credits for courses not earned through instruction at OFTC. The following general provisions regarding articulation and transfer credits will apply:

Residency Requirements for Degree/Diploma - Each technical college shall require that a minimum of twenty-five percent (25%) of the course work of a particular program of study be completed at the technical college granting the award. Students in certain allied health programs which require licensure or certification examinations must complete at least fifty percent (50%) of the credit hours of the required curriculum for graduation in residency at OFTC.
Prior Learning Assessment - Colleges will engage in a prior learning assessment for awarding of credit for non-credit work-related experiences and/or training.
Transferability of Credit - Technical colleges must honor local secondary and post-secondary articulation agreements statewide when students move from one area of the state to another. Each technical college can determine its preferred method of competency validation.
Designation of Credit - Technical colleges within the system should indicate exemption credit awarded by use of the letters “EX” on transcript/permanent records. Transfer credit awarded should be indicated on transcript/permanent records by the use of the letters “TR.”, “TRA”, “TRB”, or “TRC.” The third letter indicates the grade earned in the course; however, this grade will not be counted in the cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA). Articulated credit awarded should be indicated on transcript/permanent records by use of the letters “AC.” Students may receive credit for course work at Oconee Fall Line Technical College (OFTC) through Institutional Exemption Exams, Standardized Exam Credit, Professional Certifications and Licensures, Military Training, and Non-Transferable Credit.

Transfer Credit

Oconee Fall Line Technical College recognizes previous postsecondary coursework by accepting credits earned from other regionally or nationally accredited institutions that are applicable to the student’s program of study. A student who presents credit for evaluation and transfer must be aware that the awarding of credit does not guarantee that institutions subsequently attended by the student will accept those credits.

Credit for courses at an institution accredited by an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and TCSG and whose entrance requirements and curriculum are equivalent to or greater than Oconee Fall Line Technical College will be considered for award of transfer of credit. Credit may be granted for formal military schools, training and correspondence courses in accordance with American Council on Education.

Oconee Fall Line Technical College distinguishes between the acceptance of credit and the applicability toward program requirements. Applicability of credit toward a credential refers to the prerogative of the academic divisions to count specific credit toward the fulfillment of graduation requirements.

The registrar, in conjunction with the program faculty members, deans of academic affairs, or vice president of academic affairs, determines the transferability of courses taken at other postsecondary institutions by considering the educational quality of the learning experience for which the student seeks transfer credit; the comparability of the nature, content, and level of the learning experiences to the courses offered at Oconee Fall Line Technical College; and the appropriateness and applicability of the learning experiences to the programs offered at Oconee Fall Line Technical College and how recently they occurred. The college established the following procedures to guide the registrar in awarding transfer of credit:

In order for the registrar to evaluate credit, students must submit official transcripts from all colleges. All official transcripts must include final grades.
Courses to be transferred must have the same number of credit hours (or greater) as the course at Oconee Fall Line Technical College.
Students may receive transfer credit for courses for which they earned a “C” or better or other grades that denote successful completion. The registrar will not award transfer credit for courses with grades below a “C,” including “D,” “F,” “I,” “IP,” “S,” “U,” “EXE,” “AC,” “W,” "WF", and “Z.”
Due to the rapid changes in technology and technical information, program specific technical courses will be considered for transfer of credit only if the coursework has been completed within the last 60 months. A student desiring consideration of credit for technical courses or experiences that are more than 60 months old can request transfer credit by exemption testing.
Transfer credit will be considered without restriction of completion dates for courses in academic disciplines - language arts and communication, social/behavioral sciences, natural sciences/mathematics, and humanities/fine arts.
Allied health programs may have more stringent transfer credit procedures. OFTC will accept the following courses within a three-year period of time: DMSO, IMSA, MAST, NAST, PHAR, PNSG, RADT, and RESP. OFTC will accept the following courses within five-year period of time: ALHS, BIOL, CHEM, and PHYS. If the student has been continuously enrolled at OFTC, the three-year and five-year period will not apply. Please check with the dean of academic affairs for allied health for these procedures.
The Commercial Truck Driving program will accept transfer credit for CTDL 1010 provided the applicant holds a valid unexpired Georgia Class A Commercial Learners Permit. The credit must be less than 2 years old. The applicant will still be subject to all other requirements for admission into the OFTC CTD program.
The registrar will not award transfer credit for learning support coursework taken at other colleges. Students transferring from another college or university are not required to retake learning support courses they have successfully completed, unless they undergo placement testing at OFTC which indicates they need to take learning support courses.
The registrar transfers all coursework under the semester system. If students are coming in from institutions on the quarter system, the registrar will convert the quarter hours to semester hours.
The transfer credit is recorded as “TR,” “TRA,” “TRB,” “TRC,” or “TRM” on the OFTC transcript and is not included in the calculation of the semester, cumulative, or graduation grade point averages. The third letter indicates the grade earned in the course. For competitive admissions programs, grades for credit earned as transfer credit will be evaluated for GPA and calculated in the GPA under consideration for program admission.
The registrar sends email notification regarding the award of transfer of credit. Students may also access their records online through the college website (BannerWeb) to verify the transfer credit awarded by the registrar.
If coursework is earned at a nationally-accredited college, OFTC reserves the right to evaluate instructor credentials applicable to the requested transfer coursework.
A student who has attended a previous college and is eligible for transfer of credit for English and math is not required to take the placement exam.

Students wishing to transfer from Oconee Fall Line Technical College to another college must contact that college directly to determine transfer of credit.

International Credit

Course credit may be awarded for courses completed with a “C” or better, or its equivalent, from an international college, university, or other postsecondary institution that is authorized and/or accredited by applicable government and/or accreditation agencies in its own country. Credit may be awarded for courses, subject to the receiving institution assuring that state standards and applicable accreditation criteria are met.

International Credit Evaluation

OFTC may choose to receive accurate evaluations of international credentials for comparability to US credits from private credential evaluation services. Students should refer to the US Network for Education Information (USNEI), a US Department of Education (ED) administered website and public-private partnership that provides a list of possible credential evaluation services.

International Articulation

TCSG may establish an Articulation Agreement or Joint Diploma/Degree Plan with an international college, university, or other postsecondary institution that is authorized and/or accredited by applicable government and/or accreditation agencies in its own country. Courses from an international institution must be evaluated to show that state standards and applicable accreditation criteria are met.

Secondary School Articulation

OFTC may establish articulation agreements with interested area high schools to ensure that students receive course credit when established competencies have been achieved. Any articulation agreement must be a formal written agreement between interested area high schools and the technical college.

OFTC shall bank credit after a secondary student successfully passes the exemption exam required to articulate subject credit. This credit shall be applied to the student’s record once he/she matriculates to the technical college. The secondary student must matriculate within two (2) years after high school graduation, unless dictated by programs standards. No fee shall be charged to students taking an exam to evaluate articulated credit from high school. Each technical college is responsible for the academic quality of any course work or credit recorded on the technical college’s transcript.

Institutional Exemption Exam

Oconee Fall Line Technical College provides students an opportunity to receive credit for courses by successfully exempting courses. The student must demonstrate thorough mastery of written and/or performance tests that have been developed locally to adequately demonstrate achievement of the necessary competency level.

A student may receive credit for courses by passing an exemption examination only if the student has never attempted the course or made a grade of “D” or “F” in an equivalent course at OFTC or another postsecondary institution. The vice president of academic affairs may waive this due to extenuating circumstances. Students wishing to pursue credit by examination must meet the following requirements:

Be admitted to OFTC.
Complete the Application for Credit by Exemption Examination form in the Admissions Office.
Pay a fee $80.00 per course prior to taking the exam(s).
Present photo ID to the test administrator.
Earn a score of at least an “80.”

A student cannot exempt more than 50% of program requirements. A grade of “EXE” will be entered on the permanent record if the exemption exam is successfully completed. The hours for the exempted grades will not be computed in the grade point average which may affect financial aid status and/or eligibility for the President’s or Dean’s List. Exemption exams may NOT be taken more than once. If a student takes an exemption exam and does not make the required score, the student is required to take the course to receive course credit. A student competing for admission to a competitive program may only exempt two courses.

Standardized Exam Credit

OFTC will award credit based on nationally normed exams including:

CLEP - Credit will be awarded for successful completion of any appropriate CLEP (College Level Examination Program) subject area examination. Credit will be awardedif the student scores a 50 or more on the CLEP exam. Student may register to take the exam on the College Board website: https://clep.collegeboard.org/?navId=www-clep.
International Baccalaureate Credit - Credit will be awarded to students who have taken appropriate courses (determined equivalent to courses offered at a Technical College) in high school and achieve a score of 3 or more on the International Baccalaureate Examination. The IB Examinations are offered by the International Baccalaureate Examination Board.
Advanced Placement Examinations - Credit will be awarded to students who have taken appropriate courses (determined equivalent to courses offered at a Technical College) in high school and achieved a score of 3 or more on the Advanced Placement Examination. The Advanced Placement Examinations are offered by the College Entrance Examination Board.
DANTES DSST (DANTES Subjects Standardized Test) - Credit will be awarded to students who score 400 or higher.
Credit earned through a nationally-standardized exam will be entered on a student’s record as “TR.”

Military Training Credit

OFTC is committed to ensuring military service members and Veterans receive credit for college-level knowledge gained through service to our country. American Council on Education (ACE) recommendations are used to evaluate military training experiences for college credit. Credit will be given when training experience meets the required competencies of the courses offered at the college. PLA processing fees will be waived for evaluation of military training experiences for college credit.

Prior Learning Assessment (PLA)

OFTC may award college credit for on the job learning, corporate training, independent study, military service, industry certification/credential, or volunteer service that is consistent with TCSG’s mission and ensures that course work and learning outcomes are at the collegiate level and comparable to the institution’s own academic programs. The college must engage in a process for evaluating the knowledge and skills acquired in order to award college credit. Each college assumes responsibility for the academic quality of any course work or credit recorded on the institution’s transcript.

Non-Transferable Credit

Oconee Fall Line Technical College recognizes credit from other institutions if the institution has met the accrediting standards of the appropriate institutional accrediting association. OFTC adheres to TCSG policy 5.1.8 for accepting transfer credit from postsecondary institutions accredited by an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. The policy is available on the TCSG and OFTC websites. A list of recognized accrediting agencies is available on the OFTC PLA webpage on the Regionally and Nationally Recognized Accreditation Agencies Tables. Coursework completed at postsecondary institutions accredited by agencies not recognized by TCSG under policy 5.1.8 may be eligible for course exemption credit.

Residency Requirement

OFTC will award degrees, diplomas, and certificates only to those students who have earned at least 25% of the work through instruction offered at OFTC. Due to the rapid changes in technology and technical information, program specific technical courses will be considered valid if coursework has been completed at OFTC or the former Heart of Georgia Technical College or Sandersville Technical College within the last 10 years. A student desiring consideration of credit for technical courses or experiences that are more than 10 years old can request transfer credit by applying for Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) credit.

Students in certain allied health programs which require licensure or certification examinations must complete at least fifty percent (50%) of the credit hours of the required curriculum for graduation in residency at OFTC.

U.S. and Georgia Constitution and History Requirement

A Georgia law requires that all candidates for a degree from an institution supported by public funds shall pass an examination “of the History of the United States and the History of Georgia” and an examination “upon the provisions and principles of the United States Constitution and the Constitution of Georgia.” The requirements for instruction in the above areas can be met by passing a test in each of the four areas by satisfactorily completing one of the following courses at either OFTC or another college in the Technical College System of Georgia or a university in the University System of Georgia: HIST 2111, HIST 2112, or POLS 1101.

If a student transferred in one or more of these courses into OFTC from a private or out-of-state institution, the student will have to take an exam to meet the mandated requirements. See the following exam options.

If a student received AP or CLEP credit for POLS 1101, the student needs to take the Georgia Constitution exam.
If a student received AP or CLEP credit for HIST 2111 or HIST 2112, the student needs to take the Georgia History exam.
If a student transferred from another state or from a private institution and has taken POLS 1101, the student needs to take the Georgia Constitution exam.
If a student transferred from another state or from a private institution and has taken HIST 2111 and/or HIST 2112, the student needs to take the Georgia History exam.

Students who fall into this category will receive a letter from the Registrar’s Office and an email from the vice president of academic affairs with further directions.

OFTC Diploma Graduates to Degree Programs