Transferring Credits to Fulfill Liberal Arts Requirements
Berklee does not accept English courses taken at international institutions where English is not the official language. Students may transfer courses that are equivalent to LENG-111 and LENG-223 if the student meets the prerequisite for LENG-111, specifically LENG-106 (ESL-3) or native speaker.
| Berklee liberal arts requirements | Berklee Online | AP[1] test score of 3 (unless otherwise indicated) | CLEP score of 50 | Guidelines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
LENG-111 Introduction to College Writing (three credits) | OLART-111: Introduction to College Writing | English Language and Composition (score of 4) | College Composition | Most first-year composition or English composition courses will be accepted. Technical or business writing courses do not qualify. |
Berklee does not accept English courses taken at international institutions where English is not the official language. Students may transfer courses that are equivalent to LENG-111 and LENG-223 if the student meets the prerequisite for LENG-111, specifically LENG-106 (ESL-3) or native speaker.
| Berklee liberal arts requirements | Berklee Online | AP test score of 3 (unless otherwise indicated) | CLEP score of 50 | Guidelines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
LENG-223 Literature (three credits) | OLART-201: Creative Writing: Literature Studies for Musicians | English Literature and Composition (score of 4) |
| The course must provide an introduction to different genres of literature. |
Berklee does not accept English courses taken at international institutions where English is not the official language. Students may transfer courses that are equivalent to LENG-111 and LENG-223 if the student meets the prerequisite for LENG-111, specifically LENG-106 (ESL-3) or native speaker. If a student does not have transfer credit for LENG-111, AP or CLEP credit will be given for LENG-111 instead of LENG-223. | ||||
LVIS: Visual Studies (three credits) | OLART-231: Art History | Art History | Not currently available | Studio art and art appreciation courses cannot be used to fulfill this requirement. |
LMSC: Math or Science (three credits) | OLMSC-215: Acoustics |
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| Eligible math/science classes: - Astronomy - Biology - Physics |
Students majoring in music therapy are required to take anatomy and physiology. Students majoring in music business/management are required to take statistics. Students majoring in contemporary writing and production, electronic production and design, and music production and engineering are required to take acoustics. Students majoring in contemporary writing and production cannot use Berklee Online’s acoustics course for this requirement. | ||||
| Berklee liberal arts requirements | Berklee Online | AP test score of 3 (unless otherwise indicated) | CLEP score of 50 | Guidelines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
LSOC: Social Science (three credits) | OLSOC-226: New Media Economics |
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| Eligible courses:
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Students majoring in music education and music therapy are required to take General Psychology. Students majoring in music business/management are required to take Economics. | ||||
LHIS: History (three credits) | Not currently available |
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| This category encompasses traditional history courses, such as American history, history of Asia, and world history. Courses on art, dance, music, or theater history do not qualify. |
MHIS-20x: History of Music in the European Tradition (two credits) | Not currently available | Not currently available | Not currently available | Courses must cover the Middle Ages to the present and focus on the social and historical context in which the music was created. |
Composition and music education majors have different music history requirements. Only one MHIS course that does not have a prerequisite of musical knowledge will be accepted towards the MHIS requirements and music appreciation courses are not accepted as MHIS courses | ||||
| Berklee liberal arts requirements | Berklee Online | AP test score of 3 (unless otherwise indicated) | CLEP score of 50 | Guidelines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
MHIS-22x: Music of the African Diaspora in the U.S. (two credits) | Not currently available | Not currently available | Not currently available | Courses must cover precolonial Africa to present-day United States and focus on the social and historical context in which the music was created. |
MHIS-3xx: Music History Elective (two credits) | OLART-220: History of Film Music | Not currently available | Not currently available | Possibilities include History of Rock and History of Jazz. Courses must focus on the social and historical context in which the music was created. |
| Berklee liberal arts requirements | Berklee Online | AP test score of 3 (unless otherwise indicated) | CLEP score of 50 | Guidelines |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal arts electives: two are required (six credits total) |
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| Any three-credit liberal arts course (including Berklee Online, AP, or CLEP credit), with the exception of Music History, not already used to satisfy a requirement can satisfy a liberal arts elective. In addition to the liberal arts already listed, the following can be used to satisfy a liberal arts elective requirement:
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The following liberal arts requirements at Berklee are not eligible for transfer from an outside institution, but are available through Berklee Online.
| Berklee liberal arts requirements | Berklee Online equivalent course |
|---|---|
| LHUM-400: Professional Development Seminar (two credits) | OLART-400: Professional Development Seminar |
| LMAS: Music and Society (three credits) | OLSOC-210: Music, Self, and Society |
A full list of Berklee Online courses and their Berklee equivalents is available at berklee.edu/registrar/online-course-equivalencies.
[1] One passing score on an AP or CLEP test can only equal one transferred course at Berklee. This includes passing scores for foreign language CLEP tests.
[2] Both Physics 1: Algebra-Based and Physics 2: Algebra-Based are required for three transfer credits.
[3] Berklee does not accept foreign language courses or AP or CLEP exams when they are in one of the student’s primary languages or primary languages of instruction.
