Evaluations and Equivalencies

Western students planning to take a course(s) at another university (either on a Letter of Permission or on an Exchange) and students admitted to Western with transfer credits from another university/college, must follow certain steps/processes to have the courses evaluated for equivalency to Western courses.

The manner in which courses are evaluated is the same for both transfer students who need to have their background evaluated and Western students wishing to take courses elsewhere.  The course(s) must be evaluated by a counselor in the department at Western offering courses in the same subject area to determine how the course(s) fit into the student's  module/degree. To evaluate a course properly, the departmental counselor will need as much of the following information as possible:

  • list/sequence of lecture topics
  • text or texts used
  • laboratory content (yes/no and # of lab hours)
  • method of assessment (tests, exams, assignments, labs)
  • course weight at other institution (full or half course)
  • level of course, as it fits into the other institution's curriculum

Students who are participating in an international exchange should supply a link to the course description in the host university's academic calendar.

See the list of Departmental Contacts for the various Science and Basic Medical Science Departments for contact information.  After having courses evaluated by a departmental counsellor, the information must be submitted to the Academic Counselling Team in WSC 191 (exception:  BMSc students going out on an exchange).  See below for more details.

Letter of Permission

 Students wishing to take a course at another university who are registered in either a BMSc or a BSc degree, must see the Academic Counselling Team for Science/BMSc students (Western Science Centre, Rm 191) to request a Letter of Permission. Check out the steps on the Faculty of Science website under Letters of Permission

Exchange

Visting the Exchange webpage for the steps to follow when considering an international exchange.

Transfer from another university

After receiving acceptance to Western (admission decisions are made by the Admissions Office), transfer students will need to consult with an Academic Counsellor in Western Science Centre Rm 140 to begin the process of determining how the transfer credits fit into the module/degree at Western. Information about the transfer process is located on the Academic Counselling website.

Please note that transfer students are not permitted to register in the BMSc program during their first year at Western. Students must complete one year at Western before being considered for admission to the BMSc program.

Student Evaluations of Western Courses

During each course, students submit their evaluation of the course and the instructor.  Past evaluations can be helpful when choosing amongst courses and different sections of the same course. Go to the website to Student Questionnaires on Courses and Teaching to log in and search by instructor, course, etc.