Many Windward Community College students transfer to other colleges and universities to complete their studies. Each college or university sets its own rules concerning the credits that they will accept and the requirements for transferring students. Therefore, students should read the catalogs from prospective colleges carefully and consult with a counselor for full information.
Generally speaking, students earn 60 credits of courses with numbers of 100 and above before transferring to another institution. (Courses numbered below 100 are usually not accepted in transfer by four-year colleges.) The number of credits that you should take at the College depends on the rules of the institution that you want to transfer to, as well as the major field that you wish to study.
When to Apply for a Transfer
Students should plan to apply at least one semester before they plan to enroll at a new school. Some colleges have early deadlines; specific information can be found in college catalogs and websites. Deadline dates pertain to the admissions application form and require receipt of official transcripts from all colleges previously attended by that date.
Transferring Credits
The transfer school will evaluate transcripts and determine which credits will be accepted as part of the degree that you are seeking there. There is no physical transfer of actual credits; your permanent academic record at Windward Community College always remains here. Normally, courses numbered 100 and above are transferable if you are going to a four-year college, but not all of the courses 100 and above will meet the basic requirements (some will be electives).
Transferring to the UH Mānoa Campus
It’s important to observe deadlines when applying to UH Mānoa. Send for official transcripts from other colleges in plenty of time to reach UH Mānoa by the published application deadlines. UH Mānoa accepts credits that have been completed with a grade of D (not D–) or better.
Credit/No Credit grading options at Windward Community College need to be avoided if you expect to use the course in fulfillment of UH Mānoa core or major requirements. UH Mānoa will apply Credit/No Credit marks only to electives, but not to requirements (unless you had no choice because the course was offered for a mandatory Credit/No Credit grade).
UH Mānoa requires 60 or more credits of non-introductory courses for its bachelor's degrees. Non-introductory courses are courses numbered 300 and above (or any other courses with explicit college-level prerequisites published in the catalog).
See a counselor at Windward Community College for help in planning to meet the specific requirements for a bachelor’s degree at UH Mānoa. Students are encouraged to visit the UH Mānoa Advising Center for degree requirements and advising at UH Mānoa.
To enter the UH Mānoa campus as a transfer student, at least 24 credits of college-level work (courses numbered 100 and above), with a grade point average of 2.0 or better are required. Students may have more than 24 credits, but they still need to have a 2.0 or better grade point average. If a student wishes to enter the UH Mānoa campus with fewer than 24 credits, she or he will need to provide SAT (or ACT) test scores and their high school grades.
Ka‘ie‘ie Program Supporting Transfer to UH Mānoa
The Ka‘ie‘ie Transfer Program is a dual-admission, dual-enrollment program between Windward Community College and the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. This program is for students who plan to transfer to UH Mānoa to obtain a four-year degree, but choose to begin their degree at Windward CC. It is designed to facilitate a smooth and successful transfer experience from Windward CC to UH Mānoa. For more information, please contact the Ka‘ie‘ie counselor at 808-235-7464.
Transferring to Institutions Other than UH Mānoa
Students planning to transfer to a college outside the UH System are urged to review college catalogs and website information and to consult a counselor early in their college career so that a planned program can be arranged to meet the general education and admissions requirements of the college to which they plan to transfer. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain accurate information from any college or university that is being considered for transfer.
Auto Admission and Reverse Transfer
Automatic admission and reverse transfer are two University of Hawai‘i System initiatives designed to better serve students who transfer between the two-year and four-year campuses.
The admissions standards at UH remain unchanged, but these procedural changes will expedite a student’s ability to enroll and to finish a degree program. Automatic admission will admit a student that meets 97% of the graduation requirements from one of the seven community colleges to one of the three baccalaureate campuses in Hawai‘i.
For community college students who transferred to a four-year college before receiving a degree, reverse transfer will lead to a credit review to determine if they have earned their associate’s degree. See a counselor for more information.