Articulation Agreement Development Guidelines

Articulation agreements are formal inter-institutional agreements that allow students to complete part of their degree requirements at a one institution and transfer those credits to a separate institution where they complete their degree.

Common Types of Undergraduate Articulations Agreements

1+3 Model

  • Allows students to transfer academic credits equivalent to one year of a four-year program.
  • Students then pursue the remaining three years of the four-year program at the receiving institution.

2+2 Model

  • Allows students to transfer academic credits equivalent to two years of a four-year program.
  • Students then pursue the remaining two years of the four-year program at the receiving institution.

Common Mechanisms for Credit Transfer

Course by Course Transfer

  • The receiving institution approves selected courses it will transfer from the sending institution.

Block Transfer

  • The receiving institution grants a pre-determined number of credits to students who have completed an equivalent number of credits and required courses at the sending institution.
  • The courses taken at the sending institution may have a different syllabus and structure to those at the receiving institution.

Curriculum Alignment

  • The sending institution aligns its curriculum with that of the receiving institution.
  • The contents and sequencing of courses are the same at both institutions. Differences in faculty qualifications and pedagogy are allowed.

Curriculum Adoption

  • The sending institution adopts the curriculum of the receiving institution.
  • The receiving institution generally has input into the choice of teaching staff and pedagogy used. The receiving institution may take responsibility for grading assessments to ensure equivalency of academic standards.

Principles for Developing New Articulation Programs

Articulation programs should:

  • Be strategic and consistent with UAlberta’s academic vision and mission;
  • Support UAlberta’s internationalization goals while addressing the specific recruitment and enrolment management needs of individual programs;
  • Be high-quality programs that advance the reputation of UAlberta;
  • Be consistent UAlberta’s profile and stature;
  • Address the unique aspects of various countries and/or regions while clearly defining each partner’s roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities; and
  • Ease the transfer of participating students to UAlberta where students must meet all of UAlberta’s admission and degree requirements to be granted a UAlberta degree.

Steps to Establishing New Articulation Programs

An articulation agreement goes through several additional steps than outlined in the Agreement Development Process.

Step 1: Extended Partner Review

University of Alberta International (UAI), the proposing faculty(ies), and the Registrar’s Office (RO) consult to determine whether the proposed partner meets UAlberta’s quality, reputation, and stature standards.

Contact the relevant Regional Manager in UAI to begin evaluation.

Step 2: Course Equivalency Evaluation

The faculty and the RO review the partner institution’s course descriptions and grading scales to determine which courses are eligible for transfer credit.

Step 3: Negotiation

UAI, the RO, and the faculty work with the partner institution to develop an agreement that is acceptable to both institutions.

Step 4: Additional Approvals

It is recommended that articulation agreements go to Faculty Council for approval. Approval and signing steps laid out Detailed Agreement Development Process must also be followed.

Step 5: Course Mapping

The faculty and the RO create course mapping and admission processes on Campus Solutions.

Step 6: Implementation and Monitoring

The faculty is responsible for implementing and monitoring the agreement.