Transfer Courses
Supplemental coursework may include transfer courses taken at an outside institution. Use of transfer courses requires approval by the Academic Advisor, the Research Mentor, and the Executive Committee. If you plan to take a transfer course, you must register for IHP transfer credits for the semester in which the course will be taken and complete a PhD Transfer Course Request Form for Director/Associate Director approval. The PhD Transfer Course Request Form requires a recent syllabus to be uploaded. Transfer courses may be taken for a letter grade or as Pass/Fail. At the completion of the coursework, you must have the grade sent directly to the IHP Registrar for recording on your official transcript. Transfer courses are distinct from Independent Study courses (see section on Independent Study Courses). The IHP Rehabilitation Sciences PhD Program has formal course sharing agreements with the Harvard School of Public Health (Fall and Spring terms) and the Harvard Graduate School of Education which enable IHP PhD RS students to take pre-approved courses at these institutions without paying tuition. Professional Education courses are not included in tuition-waived programs. Please refer to the PhD RS Teams page for additional instructions about registration.
Upon completion of a transfer course, students must communicate with the outside institution at which the course was taken to ensure a formal transcript or grade report is delivered to the IHP Registrar. For courses taken at the Harvard School of Public Health, their registrar will send grades directly to the IHP Registrar (as they do not provide transcripts to cross-registrants). In this case, students must follow up with the IHP Registrar to confirm the grade has been received and share this information with the Academic Advisor.
Students may petition that up to 6 credits of previously completed, relevant coursework be transferred in as supplemental coursework, provided: 1) the coursework did not count toward another degree; and 2) the coursework was completed within the preceding 5 years. The petition for transfer credit must first be approved by the Program’s Executive Committee and then filed through the Registrar’s Office - it must include a transcript showing the completed course(s) with a grade of “Pass” or B or higher. Submit a Course Replacement Form to transfer in course credits as supplemental coursework or to replace core curriculum.