Credit Transfer

Transfer of Credits into the Common Core

Students must apply through the Academic Registry to transfer credits into the Common Core Program. Credits can be transferred through course-credit transfer, where a transferred course is equivalent to a specific course in the HKUST course catalog, or credit-only transfer, where only credits are transferred. Transferred credits will not be included in the calculation of grade averages. For more information, please visit the Credit Transfer (Undergraduate Studies - UG) section of the Academic Registry webpage.

Credit Transfer on Entry

Students can receive credit transfers for studies completed prior to admission to HKUST, provided that they disclose their prior study in their applications for admission. Certain types of credits will be granted without an application, and students will be informed of the transfer by email in their first term of study.

Examination Results

For students admitted to HKUST based on the following examination attainments, 6 block credits in the Broadening group of the Common Core Program will be granted automatically. Application is NOT required for these credits.

  • International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB)
  • General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (GCEAL)
  • Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (HKALE)

Local Post-secondary Awards

For students admitted to HKUST based on local post-secondary awards, such as Local Associate Degrees or Local Higher Diplomas, 21 block credits will be granted automatically including 6 credits in the Broadening group of the Common Core Program and 15 unassigned free credits. Application is NOT required for these credits.

Assignment of 6 Block Credits Granted in Broadening Group

The 6 block credits granted in the Broadening group can be used to fulfill any common core areas that are not designated as home common core area(s) in the Broadening group of each major program. The sequence of common core areas in the Broadening group is listed in the order of Arts (A), Humanities (H), Science (S), Technology (T), and Social Analysis (SA). The SIS system will pre-assign the 6 block credits for the first two non-home common core areas in the Broadening group of each major program at the beginning. Please note that courses with pre-assigned common core areas can also be used to fulfill the common core requirement as long as the courses taken are aligned with the program-specific credit requirement. If students later take course(s) listed under common core area(s) with pre-assigned 6 block credits, the pre-assigned block credits may be moved to fulfill other eligible common core areas under the Broadening group. Once students have completed the remaining 6 credits of common core courses outside their home area(s) in the Broadening group, the Broadening group requirements will be considered fulfilled.

For example, students in any program in the School of Science (SSCI) with the home common core area in Science (S) who have been granted 6 block credits must complete the remaining 6 credits from any two different non-home areas from A, H, T, and SA. The 6 block credits will be pre-assigned to A and H areas at the beginning. If the SSCI student subsequently completed 3 credits in the A area and another 3 credits in the T area, the 6 block credits will count toward the H and SA areas (i.e., first two areas among the remaining areas).

Students can view the records at the Student Services Center in SIS, and the records will be finalized upon students’ graduation.

Credit Transfer in English Communication Area

For students admitted in 2022-23 or 2023-24

Students who have attained the required level of English language proficiency are eligible for 3 credit transfer in LANG 1402 English Language for University Studies (Previous code: CORE 1402) if the information has been presented to the University for admission purpose. The transfer of credits is automatic and application is NOT required. The records of credit transfer can be viewed at the Student Services Center in SIS. For further details and specific criteria, please view here.

For students admitted in 2024-25

Students are not allowed to transfer credits in the English Communication (E-Comm) area. For students who wish to submit English Language qualifications for course streaming for the E-Comm area under the Common Core Program, please bring the physical true copy of the public exam results to Academic Registry (Room 1381, 1/F, Academic Building, Lift 17-18).

Credit Transfer During Study

Students completing studies elsewhere during their study at HKUST may apply for credit transfer. Those who plan to take courses elsewhere which have not been approved before may apply for assessment for new course mappings before the actual study. Application procedures are published on Credit Transfer (Undergraduate Studies - UG) of the Academic Registry webpage.

Eligibilities of credit transfer for different common core groups (i.e., Foundations, Broadening, and Experiencing) are listed in the following sections:

Foundations Group

Students admitted in 2022-23 or 2023-24 are not allowed to transfer credits into the following courses in the Foundations group:

  • CTDL 1901 Cognitive Foundations of University Education: Critical Thinking and Data Literacy (CTDL) (Previous code: CORE 1901)
  • HMAW 1905 Behavioral Foundations of University Education: Habits, Mindsets, and Wellness (HMW) (Previous code: CORE 1905)
  • LANG 1401 Intensive English Language for University Studies (Previous code: CORE 1401)
  • LANG 1403 Academic English for University Studies (Previous code: CORE 1403)
  • LANG 1404 Advanced Academic English for University Studies (Previous code: CORE 1404)
  • Any common core courses in the Chinese Communication (C-Comm) Area

Students admitted in 2024-25 onwards are not allowed to transfer credits in the Foundations group.

Broadening Group

Students are allowed to grant a maximum of 6 credits in the common core areas in the Broadening group according to the program-specific credit requirements. However, if students have already received 6 Block credits in the Broadening group on entry, they will not be able to transfer any additional credits in this Broadening group. This means that the maximum of 6 credits for credit transfer in the Broadening group includes both block transfer on entry and exchange studies.

Experiencing Group

Students are not allowed to transfer credits in the Experiencing group.