COURSE TRANSFER INFORMATION FOR OKLAHOMA STUDENTS

Bruce G. Stewart
Professor of Biology

Myths about transfer of college credit among Oklahoma Institutions of Higher Education abound. I have participated many years in the effort of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (OSRHE) effort to enhance transferability of courses across the state. Since 1996, I have had the privilege of serving as Chair or Co-Chair of the Biology Transfer Committee of OSRHE during all of the years it has met. Based on my experience and knowledge gained through this, I offer the following to clarify transfer issues:

  • All accredited college-level courses in the associate of science and associate of arts curricula at Murray State College transfer for elective credit, period! This does not mean, however, that they all necessarily apply to a specific degree program at the receiving institution. You should read on to find out which course will.
  • A two-year associates degree from Murray State College transfers to all state four-year institutions such that all general education requirements for a bachelors degree are satisfied at that receiving institution. This means that the receiving institution cannot require you to take additional general education courses in place of the ones you already have.
  • A major course transfers directly to any four-year institution and satisfies any requirement that institution may have for taking that particular course, provided that course is listed under OSHRE's category for that course. For example, the Murray State College General Zoology 1114 course transfers to the University of Oklahoma for their four-credit hour General Zoology and their one-hour lab course. You receive the four credit hours for our course, but you do not have to take either of their courses. Of course, you still must complete the overall number of hours required by their major.
  • You can visit the OSRHE website where you will find (among many other useful things) a link to the transfer course tables that include all approved courses that transfer among institutions with courses in the same categories.
  • Click on the OSRHE Logo to visit the OSRHE page for transfer students:

From the OSRHE transfer student page you can also find other helpful information for transfer students.

For those students who plan to transfer out-of-state or to private institutions in or out of the State of Oklahoma, you must contact that institution to determine how your prior coursework from Murray State College or any other institution will transfer. We are frequently contacted by such a receiving institution and asked to send a copy of the course syllabus or our catalog descriptions to help them determine course equivalency with their own offerings. It is very wise for you to know this in advance for the specific out-of-state or private institution if you already know where you plan to transfer after Murray State College. I will work with you to help plan a curriculum tailored specifically for the receiving institution under such circumstances.