Letters of Permission, Senate Policy on

Topic:	Admissions, Transfer Credit, Fees
Approval Date:	February 27, 2020;
Effective Date:	May 1, 2020

Purpose
1. This policy sets out the eligibility and other rules regarding Letters of Permission for undergraduate students to undertake studies elsewhere for credit towards a degree and/or certificate program at York University.
Scope and Application
1. This policy applies to all undergraduate students enrolled in a degree and/or certificate program at York University.
2. Students in the BA programs in Jewish Studies and the Advanced Certificate in Hebrew and Jewish Studies, housed within the Department of Humanities, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, and the Jewish Teacher Education option within the BEd program, housed within the Faculty of Education, are exempt from this Policy.
Definitions
1. Applicable definitions are available in the Pan-University Academic Nomenclature.
Policy
1. Students in degree or certificate programs at York University may take courses at other universities for transfer credits provided the Faculty, department and/or program in which they are currently registered approves such courses in advance. The approval is subject to individual Faculty, department, and/or program regulations and is granted in the form of a Letter of Permission (LOP), issued by the Office of the University Registrar.
2. Eligibility
  1. Students must be enrolled in a York degree and/or certificate program, have completed 18 credits at York, and be in good academic standing at the University at the time they apply for an LOP. An LOP will not be issued to students who have completed fewer than 18 credits or who are not in good academic standing as defined by the Academic Sanctions legislation in a student’s Faculty, department and/or program. If a student’s status changes after an LOP is issued and they are no longer in good standing or are ineligible to proceed in their program, the LOP will be rescinded and they will no longer be eligible for transfer credit from the host institution regardless of the grade achieved there.
  2. Students may not take courses at the 3000 or 4000 levels or that meet their major or General Education requirements on an LOP, except in unique circumstances at the discretion of the Faculty, department and/or program.
  3. Students may not take a course credit exclusion (CCE) on an LOP for a course already completed at York, except in unique circumstances at the discretion of the Faculty, department and/or program. Should a course be repeated, the initial grade will be replaced with a notation of “NCR – No Credit Retained”.
  4. Individual programs may define further restrictions about the courses students may take on an LOP.
  5. An LOP will not be processed if there are outstanding debts on a student’s University account.
  6. Students may take no more than 18 credits on an LOP over the course of a degree program.
  7. Students enrolled in non-degree studies programs do not need to request an LOP and can apply directly to the host institution.
3. Important Notes
  1. Students must be registered at York while they are on an LOP at another institution.
  2. Results of “Pass” or “Credit Achieved” at the host will not be accepted for transfer credit to a York degree. A minimum of 60 percent or equivalent is required for credit.
  3. Transfer credit will be assessed based on the course work/requirements including in-class hours completed at the host institution and not on the course work/requirements of the York course credit exclusion or substitute.
  4. Courses completed at Canadian universities are normally assessed for credit at the year level offered by the host institution. For example, if a student successfully completes a 2000-level course at the host university, credits granted by York will be recognized at the 2000-level, regardless of whether York offers a similar course at a different year level. Year-level equivalencies for courses taken outside of Canada are subject to Faculty, department and/or program assessment.
  5. Courses and grades achieved at the host are not listed on the York transcript or included in the York grade point average (GPA).
Roles and Responsibilities
1. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that:
  1. Course(s) completed on an LOP meet their program requirements.
  2. They consult with their Faculty, department and/or program to obtain information about any additional restrictions on LOPs for programs subject to external accreditation or professional association requirements.
  3. Course(s) completed on an LOP are not considered to be course credit exclusions for a course already taken by the student at York.
  4. Should enrolment/registration circumstances change, that is, the course(s) the student is requesting on an LOP is/are not available, they immediately contact their Faculty, program or department in order to request approval for any replacement course(s).
  5. An official transcript is forwarded to the Office of the University Registrar at York University as soon as final grades are available from the host institution.
  6. They are registered at York University while they are on an LOP at another institution.
  7. Their application for an LOP is complete at the time of submission to the Office of the University Registrar.
2. It is the Faculty, department and/or program’s responsibility to:
  1. Review requests for LOPs in a timely manner, ensuring that sufficient information is available about the courses the student wishes to take on LOP and about the host institution.
Review
1. This policy shall be reviewed every five years.

Legislative History:	Revised and approved by Senate 20200227
Date of Next Review:	February 2025
Related Policies, Procedures and Guidelines:	Pan-University Academic Nomenclature Guidelines and Implementation Procedures for the Assessment of Transfer Credit