Start Here. Graduate There.
NIC students transfer seamlessly to other post-secondary institution in BC, across Canada or around the world. NIC has developed partnership agreements with other post-secondary institutions for both dual and guaranteed admission, along with other transfer pathways. Additionally, Educational Advisors can help you develop a personalized transfer plan.
Transfer is when one institution recognizes education completed at another. If you get admitted, and if the courses you’ve taken are a good match, you can use the credits you’ve already earned to fulfill some of the requirements for your credential.
Transfer NIC courses to another institution (sending courses)
Discover transfer options and make every credit count by planning ahead using the BC Transfer Guide. Learn about the BC Transfer System, how to successfully transfer, the different types of transfer credit, and understand how to move from another university or province.
Educational advisors can help you develop a personalized transfer plan. Talk to an NIC educational advisor to explore your options.
Transfer courses from another institution to NIC (receiving courses)
Credit for courses taken at other colleges or universities may be transferrable to NIC. The BC Transfer Guide allows you to check on the transferability of your courses either to or from NIC.
NIC students can transfer courses back to NIC, if necessary
Sometimes current NIC students need or want to transfer a course back to their NIC program from elsewhere. A student can check on the transferability of courses in the BC Transfer Guide, complete the course at the other institution, and apply to NIC transfer credit.
Alternatively, an NIC student can complete the Letter of Permission form and attach the detailed course description from the proposed course in order to have the course pre-approved by NIC for credit. NIC will send a letter to the receiving institution, confirming NIC’s acceptance of the course. There is a small fee to do this.
In either case, once the course is completed, the current NIC student will need to complete and submit the Application for Transfer Credit Form to have the credit applied to their student record, submitting detailed course descriptions will help to expedite the process. The evaluation of transfer credit may take six to eight weeks.
Unless otherwise stated in the program completion requirements, NIC requires a minimum of 50% of the program requirements to be completed at NIC with up to 50% met through transfer credit from other institutions.
Unless otherwise stated in the completion requirements, the college requires a minimum of 50% of the program requirements to be completed at North Island College with up to 50% met through transfer credit from other institutions.
International Baccalaureate (IB) and Advanced Placement (AP) as other transfer options
The International Baccalaureate Organization (IB) offers high-quality and challenging educational programs, focused on teaching students to think critically. Students may transfer individual courses or block transfer an IB diploma with higher level courses to NIC.
The Advanced Placement program makes college and university-level courses available to students still in high school. If students have completed AP courses in high school, they may be eligible for advanced credit at NIC.
Check the transferability of IB and AP courses through the BC Transfer Guide.
Visiting Students: transfer NIC courses back to another “home” institution
A student may be admitted to an NIC program as a visiting student (NIC Admission Policy #4-17). They must provide NIC with a Letter of Permission from the Office of the Registrar from an accredited post-secondary institution for the specific courses. This is their home institution and is the one that will issue their educational credential.
By providing a Letter of Permission from the Registrar’s Office, the student is determined to have met the pre-requisites for the specific program and for the courses identified in the letter.
Frequently Asked Questions
- To apply to most universities as a transfer student, you must complete between 24-60 transferable credits at NIC
- You must meet the university and faculty admission requirements for your receiving institution (where you plan to go after NIC).
- Your credits and program at NIC should be chosen based on the curriculum of the program you are applying to
- You must meet the required minimum competitive GPA for admission
- Some programs have additional admission criteria - make sure you review the program page on the university’s website.
- Application deadlines vary between universities and programs. Visit the institution’s website for admission criteria, program and course information
- An NIC Educational advisor can help you develop a personalized transfer plan for the university that you are interested in attending.
- Know the requirements/courses of the program you want to transfer to by reviewing the university's website regularly as they may change.
- Refer to the BC Transfer Guide to find equivalencies for courses at NIC and other institutions in BC
- Choose your courses at NIC based on the requirements of the university program and plan to complete prerequisite courses first
- If you are completing a program at NIC as well, ensure you meet the requirements
- Check your transfer university's websites and the BC Transfer Guide regularly for the most accurate and current information.
Some courses may not appear in the BC Transfer Guide, particularly if they are from outside BC. Talk with an Educational Advisor as they can review next steps with you.
An Associate Degree allows you to complete the first two years (60 credits) of a four-year bachelor’s degree at NIC before transferring to university. NIC offers Associate Degrees in both Arts and Science disciplines. Be sure to check that your credits will transfer to your chosen program for third year.
Use NIC’s Associate of Arts or Science Degree worksheets to plan and track your progress toward completion of an Associate Degree.
Block Transfer is when a group of courses, often in the form of a certificate, diploma, or associate degree, is recognized as a whole for transfer credit. For a complete list of options at NIC, please visit the BC Transfer Guide.
Students applying to NIC with the goal of a block transfer will select University Studies as their subject area and program on EducationPlannerBC.
It is possible for transfer credit to be denied, even if your courses are listed in the BC Transfer Guide. This can happen if:
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you took only one course where a two-course combination was required. e.g. COQU ACCT 101 (3) + ACCT 102 (3) = UNBC Commerce 210 (3)
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you failed the course
- you took the course outside the effective dates of the transfer agreement
- you took the course too long ago
- you took too many credits
- you took a course at another institution without approval or did not get a high enough grade. (See After You Transfer)
- you take two courses that are equivalent to the same course at a receiving institution, you will only receive credit once.
Have questions?
Educational advisors can you help you develop a personalized transfer plan. Talk to an NIC educational advisor to explore your options.
