Credit by Exam

Our students bring many academic backgrounds to the University. We cooperate with several major testing programs so you can receive college-level course credit for knowledge achieved through prior experience.

In addition to these programs, you may receive credit by satisfactorily completing certain departmental examinations, which are arranged directly with the department chairperson, normally before you enroll.


Credit by Exam Options

Advanced Placement (AP)

The AP program recognizes college-level work completed in high school. To determine the availability of the program at your high school, consult your guidance counselor. To receive credit and advanced placement for this program, have your test scores sent to the University of Dayton (College Board code: 1834).

Table containing AP Exams, Score Requirements, Hours Earned and Courses Credited
TEST SCORE SEMESTER CREDIT HOURS COURSES CREDITED
AP Research 3, 4, or 5 3 CAP Integrative (Crossing Boundaries)
AP Seminar N/A 0 Non-Transferable Credit
African American Studies 3, 4, or 5 3 RCE 3XX
Art History 3, 4 or 5 3 VAH 201
Biology 3 3 BIO 101
4 3, 1 BIO 151, 151L
5 3, 1 BIO 151, 151L
3, 1 BIO 152, 152L
Calculus A/B 3, 4 or 5 4 MTH 168
Calculus B/C1 3, 4 or 5 8 MTH 168, 169
Chemistry 3 3 CHM 200
4 4 CHM 123, 123L
5 8 CHM 123, 123L, 124, 124L
Chinese 3 3 CHI 101
4 6 CHI 101, 141
5 9 CHI 101, 141, 201
Computer Science A 3, 4 or 5 4 CPS 1502
Computer Science Principles 3, 4 or 5 3 CPS 149
Economics-Micro 3, 4 or 5 3 ECO 203
Economics-Macro 3, 4 or 5 3 ECO 204
English Language & Composition or English Literature & Composition 3 or 4 3 ENG 1HC3
5 6 ENG 1HC3, 200
Environmental Science 3, 4 or 5 3 GEO 208
European History 3, 4 or 5 3 HST 1HC3
French 3 3 FRN 101
4 6 FRN 101, 141
5 9 FRN 101, 141, 201
German 3 3 GER 101
4 6 GER 101, 141
5 9 GER 101, 141, 201
Government & Politics: U.S. 3, 4 or 5 3 POL 201
Government & Politics: Comparative 3, 4 or 5 3 POL 202
Human Geography 3, 4 or 5 3 GEO 103
Italian 3 3 ITA 101
4 6 ITA 101, 141
5 9 ITA 101, 141, 201
Japanese 3 3 LNG 101
4 6 LNG 101, 141
5 9 LNG 101, 141, 201
Latin 3 3 LAT 101
4 6 LAT 101, 141
5 9 LAT 101, 141, 201
Music Theory 4 2 General Music
5 4 General Music
Music Theory Aural Subscore 4 or 5 2 MUS 113
Music Theory Non-Aural Subscore 3 2 MUS 110
4 or 5 3 MUS 115
Physics 1 3, 4 or 5 3 PHY 201
Physics 2 3, 4 or 5 3 PHY 202
Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism 3, 4 or 5 3 PHY 207
Physics C: Mechanics 3, 4 or 5 3 PHY 206
Pre-Calculus 3, 4 or 5 3 MTH 116
Psychology 3, 4 or 5 3 PSY 101
Spanish 3 3 SPN 101
4 6 SPN 101, 141
5 9 SPN 101, 141, 201
Spanish Literature 4 9 SPN 202, 311, 2XX
5 12 SPN 201, 202, 311, 2XX
Statistics 3, 4 or 5 3 MTH 207
Studio Art: Drawing 3, 4 or 5 3 VAF 104
Studio Art: 2D Design 3, 4 or 5 3 VAF 112
Studio Art: 3D Design 3, 4 or 5 3 VAF 117
U.S. History 3, 4 or 5 3 HST 1003
World History 3, 4 or 5 3 HST 1HC

Students with a score of 3 on the BC exam who are planning to take MTH 169 (Analytical Geometry & Calculus II) are advised to take the course at the University of Dayton. If you earned a 3 or higher on the AB Subscore, you will be eligible to receive credit for MTH 168. 

2 Students with a score of 3 on the Computer Science A exam who are planning to take CPS 151 (Algorithms and Programming II) are advised to take CPS 150 (Algorithms and Programming I) at the University of Dayton.

3 Only 3 Credits in ENG 1HC, HST 100 or HST 1HC may be applied to Humanities Commons. Credits will still be accepted and may apply towards a different degree requirement or towards total number of credits required

Updated April 1, 2026

College Level Examination Program (CLEP)

College credit will be awarded for successfully completing the subject tests of the CLEP as listed below. Since not all examinations are acceptable and some subject examinations require an essay, please contact admission@udayton.edu for information.

No credit is given for general examinations. Students should visit College Board: Send Scores and Transcripts for instructions on how to send transcripts. When submitting a transcript request, please use school code 1834.

CLEP Credit
TEST SCORE SEMESTER CREDIT HOURS COURSE(S) CREDITED

American Government

63 3 POL 201
Biology 50 6 BIO 1XX, BIO 3XTR
Calculus 64 4 MTH 168
Chemistry 55 3 CHM 200
College Algebra 50 3 MTH 1XX
College Composition 50 6 ENG 1HC, ENG 200
College Math 50 3 MTH 1XX
English Literature 50 6 ENG 204, 2XX
Financial Accounting 50 3 ACC 2XX
French Language 50-58 6 FRN 101, 141
French Language 59+ 9 FRN 101, 141, 201
German Language 50-58 6 GER 101, 141
German Language 59 9 GER 101, 141, 201
History of the United States I1 61 3 HST 100
History of the United States II2 57 3 HST 252
Human Growth & Development 50 3 PSY 251
Humanities 50 3 HUM 1XX
Information Systems 50 3 CPS 111
Introductory Business Law 50 3 MGT 201
Introductory Sociology 56 3 SOC 101
Introductory Psychology 55 3 PSY 101
Natural Sciences 50 6 SCI 1XX, SCI 3XTR
Precalculus 61 4 MTH 116
Principles of Macroeconomics 56 3 ECO 204
Principles of Microeconomics 57 3 ECO 203
Spanish Language 50-58 6 SPN 101, 141
Spanish Language 59 9 SPN 101, 141, 201
Western Civilization I 55 3 HST 1HC
Western Civilization II 54 3 HST 103

Credit will fulfill the Humanities Commons-History requirement of the Common Academic Program and will serve as a prerequisite for any course that has HST 103 as a prerequisite. New award of credit applies to incoming 2024-2025 catalog students and after.

Credit will not fulfill CAP Requirements.

Updated April 16, 2024

General Certificate of Education A-Level Examinations

GCE A-Level examinations are based on a British secondary school program of college-level work and standardized examinations. To receive credit, submit your official test results to the dean's office. A-Level examinations with a grade of "E" or better will be considered for credit.

General Certificate of Education (A-Levels) Credit
TEST SEMESTER CREDIT HOURS COURSE(S) CREDITED
Accounting 6 ACC 201, 202
Afrikaans Language 3 LNG 1XX
Art and Design 6 VAF 104, 112
Biblical Studies 6 HUM 101, REL 1XX
Biology A Level 7 BIO 151, 151L, 152
Biology AS Level 4 BIO 101, 101L
Chemistry A Level 8 CHM 123, 123L, 124, 124L
Chemistry AS Level 4 CHM 123, 123L
Chinese Language and Lit 3 CHI 1XX
Chinese AS Level 15 CHI 101, 141, 201, 301, XTR3
Chinese A Level 21 CHI 101, 141, 201, 301, 313, 314, XTR3
Classical Studies 3 HST 220
Classical Studies AS Level 6 HUM 101, TRN XTR1
Computer Science 3 CPS 1XX
Design and Technology 3 VAD 220
Digital Media and Design 3 VAD 3XX
Drama 3 THR 310
Economics 6 ECO 203, 204
Geography 3 GEO 103
Hinduism 3 REL 304
History 3 HST 1HC
Islamic Studies 3 REL 208
Literature in English 6 ENG 1HC, ENG 151
Mathematics 3 MTH 207
Music 3 MUS 115
Physics 6 PHY 201, 202
Sociology 3 SOC 101
Travel and Tourism 3 ANT 350
US History to 1877 3 HST 251
US History Since 1877 3 HST 252

International Baccalaureate (IB)

The IB Program is a rigorous pre-university course of studies leading to examinations. At the University of Dayton, you will be eligible to receive credit based on the results of your IB examinations. Note that the majority of credit is awarded for higher level examinations, but credit can be awarded for standard level examinations in computer science and philosophy. 

International Baccalaureate Credit Chart
TEST SCORE SEMESTER CREDIT HOURS COURSES CREDITED
Biology HL 5 or 6 4 BIO 151, 151L
7 8

BIO 151, 151L

BIO 152, 152L

Biology HL/SL 4 4 BIO 101, BIO 101L
Business Management SL 4 3 BIZ 1XX
Business Management HL 6 3 BIZ 2XX
Chemistry HL 6 or higher 8 CHM 123, 123L, 124, 124L
Chemistry SL 4 4 CHM 101, 101L
Computer Science HL 4, 5, 6 or 7 3 CPS 149
Computer Science SL 5, 6 or 7 3 CPS 149
Economics HL 5, 6 or 7 6 ECO 203, 204
Economics SL 4 3 ECO 203
English A: Language and Literature HL 5 3 ENG 100
6 or 7 6 ENG 100, 200
English A: Literature HL 5, 6, or 7 3 ENG 151

Foreign Languages HL1

(Chinese, French, German, Spanish)

5 4 101 level
6 or 7 8 101, 141 levels
Global Politics HL/SL 4 3 POL 1XX
History HL/SL 4 3 HST 1HC
Mathematics Analysis and Approaches SL 4 3 MTH 116
Mathematics Analysis and Approaches HL 5 3 MHT 168
Mathematics Applications and Interpretations SL 4 3 MTH 114
Mathematics Applications and Interpretations HL 5 3 MTH 207
Philosophy HL/SL 4 3 PHL 1HC
Philosophy SL 6 or 7 3 PHL 103
Physics SL 4 3 PHY 1XX
Physics HL 5 6 PHY 201, 201L, 202, 202L
Psychology HL 5, 6 or 7 3 PSY 101
Social & Cultural Anthropology HL 5, 6 or 7 3 ANT 150
Sports Exercise and Health Science HL/SL 4 3 HSS 1XX
Visual Arts SL/HL 4 3 VAR 1XX

Based upon review by the department, other languages may be eligible for credit.

Updated Nov. 7, 2025