Penn State Transfer Credit Tool: How to Transfer Courses to Penn State
Author: James Tierney, CEO & Founder
Read time: 4 minutes
This content was created with the assistance of AI. All content was reviewed and edited by Tierney Education for accuracy, clarity, and usefulness.
If you're a Penn State student thinking about taking a class somewhere else and transferring the credits back to Penn State, the first place you should probably start is the Penn State Transfer Credit Tool.
We help students with this all the time at Tierney Education. Maybe you want to knock out a Gen Ed over the summer, save some money by taking a class closer to home, or free up some room in a future semester. Whatever the reason, the important thing is making sure the course you're taking will actually count for what you need at Penn State.
Are you a Penn State student or parent looking for personalized help with course planning, managing a busy schedule, or making the most of your college experience? Tierney Education offers session-by-session academic coaching and consulting to help students make informed decisions and stay on track. Reach out today to learn more.
The good news is that Penn State has a tool that makes researching your options relatively straightforward—once you know how to use it.
This guide is primarily for students already enrolled at Penn State who want to take one or more courses elsewhere and transfer them back. If you're looking to transfer to Penn State as a full-time student, that's a different process, and we'll point you toward those resources below.
We'll walk through how the Penn State Transfer Credit Tool works, what you should check before enrolling in a course, and a few things we've learned from helping Penn State students navigate the process.
Why Take a Class Somewhere Else?
There are a few common (and smart) reasons students take summer classes at another school:
1. Cost Savings
For out-of-state students especially, Penn State tuition can be steep. Taking a course at a community college or in-state public university over the summer can significantly reduce the cost.
2. Strategic Course Planning
Not every course is equally important to a student's major. Taking a Gen Ed or elective somewhere else can sometimes make sense, especially if it creates more room during the regular semester for major courses, internships, or other priorities.
Some classes—particularly Gen Eds—don’t need to be rigorous to be useful. If the course isn’t foundational to the student’s major, it might make sense to take it somewhere that’s a bit more manageable (think language courses!).
3. Flexibility
Maybe the course isn’t offered during summer at Penn State. Or maybe it conflicts with another class or internship. Taking it elsewhere provides more control over timing and delivery.
When You Shouldn’t Transfer a Course
While transferring credits can be a great option, it’s not always the right move:
1. It’s a Key Major Course
If the class is a prerequisite for future, more advanced courses, think twice. You want to make sure the student gets the right foundation. Taking it at another institution with different expectations could lead to struggles later on.
2. Penn State Requires the Credits to Be Taken In-House
Some programs—especially in business, engineering, and health sciences—require students to take certain classes at Penn State for entrance-to-major eligibility. Always check with an academic adviser before enrolling elsewhere.
If you’re thinking, “This class is really tough at Penn State—maybe I’ll just take it somewhere easier,” and it’s a course that’s central to your major, it might be worth taking a step back. Sometimes, struggling with a key class is a sign to reflect on whether the major is truly the right fit. That’s not a failure—it’s a smart and mature academic decision.
How to Know if a Course Will Transfer
The best place to start is Penn State's Transfer Credit Tool. This lets you search for courses at other colleges and universities that Penn State has already evaluated and see how those courses will transfer back to Penn State.
You'll typically start by searching for the school where you're considering taking the course. From there, you can look for the specific course and see its Penn State equivalency.
Here's the important part: don't just check whether Penn State will give you credit. Make sure the course transfers as the specific Penn State course or requirement you actually need. Those aren't always the same thing.
If a course hasn't been evaluated yet, that doesn't necessarily mean it won't transfer. Penn State has a process for requesting a transfer course evaluation, which may require you to provide additional course information or a syllabus. Make sure you leave enough time to complete that process before enrolling in the course.
➡️ Want to see how it works? We walk through the Penn State Transfer Credit Tool step-by-step in the video below.
Important Things to Know
Here are a few more tips to keep in mind:
Grades Matter: Only courses with a grade of C (2.0) or higher will be considered for transfer.
Credits Transfer, Not Grades: The GPA from other schools doesn’t carry over—just the credits.
Processing Fee: There may be a processing fee. Penn State may charge a $25 processing fee for each transcript containing coursework completed elsewhere after you've enrolled at Penn State.
Credit = Tuition Impact: If the additional credits bump your student past 59.1 total credits, tuition may increase—so be mindful of the timing.
Are You Transferring to Penn State?
This guide is primarily for current Penn State students who want to take a course somewhere else and bring the credits back.
If you're currently attending another college or university and want to transfer to Penn State, that's a different process. Penn State has separate resources for prospective transfer students.
Penn State Transfer Student Info – https://www.psu.edu/resources/transfer-students
Need Help With Penn State Transfer Credits?
We help Penn State students with transfer credits all the time.
Sometimes it's as simple as figuring out whether a particular course will transfer. Other times, we help a student compare several options and think through how a transfer course fits into their larger academic plan.
If you're not sure where to start—or you've spent enough time clicking around the Transfer Credit Tool and would rather have someone help you work through it—Tierney Education can help.
Schedule a free consultation with Tierney Education →
Taking courses somewhere else can be a great way to save money, create flexibility in your schedule, or make progress toward graduation. Just make sure you're deciding strategically and know exactly how those credits will apply before you enroll.