ITEM 127-102-R0505 FINAL AND APPROVED

MONTANA BOARD OF REGENTS OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Policy and Procedures Manual

SUBJECT:  ACADEMIC AFFAIRS
Policy 301.10 - General Education Block Transfer Policy
Revised May 19, 2005

Board policy:

1. The Montana University System is committed to facilitating the ease of undergraduate student transfer to its campuses, particularly in the area of general education. Therefore, all campuses of the Montana University System will recognize the integrity of general education programs and courses offered by units of the Montana University System, Montana's three publicly supported community colleges, the seven tribal colleges and regionally accredited independent colleges in the State of Montana.

2. To ensure adequate student preparation for transfer, campuses will exclude any courses from their general education program that are remedial or developmental in nature. Examples would include Introductory or Intermediate Algebra, Reading Improvement, Vocabulary Building, and so on.

3. The Montana Board of Regents has adopted four (4) important procedures to implement the intent of this policy. Those procedures are set out below.

Procedures:

1.      The Block Transfer Procedure. An undergraduate student who has completed the lower division coursework in an approved general education program at one of the institutions noted above, and who transfers to another of those institutions, will be deemed to have met the lower divisiongeneral education requirements of the campus to which the student transfers.

a)      The student may be required to take additional coursework at the upper division level that is part of an approved general education program at the new campus.

2.      The Montana University System Core. An undergraduate student who has completed courses identified as part of the Montana University System (MUS) Core courses will be governed by the following rules:

a)      If that student has completed less than 20 general education credits, that student will be required to complete the approved general education program at the campus to which he/she transfers. All general education transfer credits that are part of the MUS Core will be reviewed for possible application in the approved general education program at the campus.

b)      If that student has completed 20 or more MUS core credits, but does not satisfy the block transfer policy described in the preceding section, that student may choose to complete either the MUS core or the approved general education program at the campus to which he/she transfers. The student should make that decision in consultation with a faculty advisor.

c)      The student may be required to take additional coursework at the upper division level that is part of an approved general education program at the new campus.

d)      The MUS Core is set out as Appendix 1 of this policy.

3.      Other General Education Coursework. An undergraduate student, in the following situations, will have his/her classes analyzed on a course-by-course basis to determine how those classes might satisfy the general education program requirements of the student's new campus:

a)      a student who completes postsecondary coursework outside of the Montana University System;

b)      a student who completes postsecondary coursework in the Montana University System that does not fall within the MUS Core described in the previous two sections of this policy.

The guarantees set out in the "block transfer procedure" and the "MUS Core" do not apply to students in these situations. The institutions that make up the Montana University System are encouraged to assist those students as much as possible, however, so the intent of this policy applies to as many students and as many courses as possible.

4. Associate of Arts and Associate of Science Degrees. A student who has completed an Associate of Arts or an Associate of Science degree with an approved general education component package at another unit of the Montana University System, as defined under Regents policy 301.12, has satisfied the requirements of this policy.

a)      The student may be required to take additional coursework at the upper division level that is part of an approved general education program at the new campus.

5. Before the new institution will accept the courses, a student will have to earn a grade of "C-" or better in each of the classes described in the preceding sections.

6. The Montana University System will establish a General Education Council to oversee the provisions of this policy. The Council will have 12 members. A minimum of four (4) members will be selected from nominations submitted by the faculty governance councils on the campuses. Its responsibilities shall include:

a)      Periodically review and recommend possible revision of the Montana University System Core to the Board of Regents;

b)      Approve by January of each year a list of general education courses, from each of the institutions described in the first paragraph of this policy, that satisfy the Montana University System Core criteria on that campus;

c)      Periodically assess and recommend revision of this policy;

d)      Perform other responsibilities, as assigned by the Montana Board of Regents or the Commissioner of Higher Education.

7. Each campus of the Montana University System and the publicly supported community colleges will provide the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education its approved general education program and update that information whenever changes are made. The Commissioner of Higher Education will make this information available to all campuses of the Montana University System.

8. The tribal colleges and regionally accredited independent colleges in the State of Montana may elect to participate in this reciprocal recognition of general education integrity on the same terms as the campuses of the Montana University System. Those electing to do so will provide the appropriate information to the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education.

Appendix I

Montana University System General Education Core