The Office of Global Education facilitates the transfer of credits and grades to each student’s BC transcript. At a minimum, credit earned abroad will count towards general elective credits needed to complete a BC degree. With careful planning, students can make progress in their major and minor concentrations while exploring new areas of interest and opportunities that may not be available in Chestnut Hill.
Academic Steps For BC Students Studying Abroad
1. Review carefully all of OGE’s academic policies. Meet with your academic advisor and discuss your course selection. Try to select courses that you would not be able to take at BC.
2. Review the policies and process for course approvals, and complete the online Study Abroad Course Evaluation Form for courses which you would like to count toward major, minor, or core credit.
3. Select your courses: remember to register for a full course load using the course and credits guidelines.
1. Declare any non-major, non-minor, or non-core courses you would like to take pass/fail by following the pass/fail instructions.
2. Keep copies of all syllabi, course materials, assignments, and emails with faculty for future reference.
3. Register online for BC courses for the semester following your return.
4. Check if your study abroad program requires a transcript release form before you leave.
It usually takes 3-5 months for your transcript to be sent by your host institution and processed by OGE and Student Services. Any questions contact Academic Operations at OGEregistrar@bc.edu.
Transcripts
The OGE can only accept transcripts directly from the host institution or program provider. We cannot accept transcripts from students. Students on external study abroad programs please request that your program transcript files be sent to: ogeregistrar@bc.edu.
Some institutions may require a transcript release form: be sure to check before you return home. Some institutions won’t release transcripts if you have a financial or disciplinary issue to resolve. It is your responsibility to attend to these matters before returning. If you need your own official transcript from your study abroad program, you will need to contact your host institution or provider directly. If you need an unofficial transcript, OGE can provide you with one.
Transcripts will be sent directly to the OGE by the host institution. All courses taken abroad are entered into a student's BC record as if they were regular BC courses. Your grades will be translated according to our grade translation scale, and credit will be assigned based on the course and credit guidelines.
ECTS Credits
The most common credit system used by BC abroad programs in Europe is the ECTS system (European Credit Transfer System). Our standard rule for ECTS credits is 2 ECTS credit equal 1 BC credit. Since Boston College does not allow half credits, a 5 ECTS credit course will transfer back as either 2 or 3 BC credits depending on student’s full course load of credits. A course must equate to 3 BC credits to fulfill a BC major, minor or core requirement.
10 ECTS = 5 BC
7.5 ECTS = 4 BC
6 ECTS = 3 BC
5 ECTS = 2 or 3 BC **
4 ECTS = 2 BC
** Courses worth 5 ECTS credits may not automatically fulfill a BC requirement. If you have any questions about credit translation, please send a list of your abroad courses with credit values to ogeregistrar@bc.edu.
“These courses really furthered my knowledge of the subjects and my professors pushed me to learn in different ways. It really opened my eyes to the different experiences people have around the world in terms of education. ”