MEPN course transfers and credit by examination

Guidelines aligned with California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN) Director Handbook: 8.0C Military Policy Suggestions 2020

Subject to University of California policies, students may request transfer credit or credit by examination for experience and/or course work taken elsewhere, provided the student can demonstrate to the program the equivalence of content and experience and if applicable, successfully complete the course challenge exam.

Students must meet the minimum requirements to advance to candidacy and graduate from the Master’s Entry Program in Nursing (MEPN) (under Plan II)

• 3.0 UC GPA 
• 36 units completed at UC Davis
• 3 quarters in residence

According to degree requirements, the MEPN requires a minimum of 89 units.

Note: Due to cohort-based fees, a student does not receive any financial benefit from transferring or challenge courses unless the student successfully earns transfer and/or credit by examination for all courses within a quarter.

The School of Nursing follows the UC Davis Graduate Studies course transfer policies (PDF).

Petition to Transfer Coursework form (PDF)

The School of Nursing only considers transfer courses completed in the last seven years.

Course transfer process
To request transfer credit for courses previously taken, follow these steps.

1. Review policies
   A student should review the relevant policies. 
2. Request for consideration
   The student should complete the header and Part I of the Petition to Transfer form and attach relevant transcripts and course syllabi. The student should send the form and attachments to hs-sonstudentservices@ucdavis.edu along with a clear explanation of which required MEPN courses are equivalent to the courses listed on the transfer form.
3. Review and recommendation
   Student services will forward the request to the MEPN program director and graduate advisor. These faculty will review the recommendation to determine the equivalency of courses. If courses are deemed equivalent, the request will be forwarded to the dean of Graduate Studies for review and final approval.

The School of Nursing follows the UC Davis policy for credit by examination.  

Petition to Credit by Examination (PDF)

Credit by examination process
To request credit by examination, follow these steps.

1. Review policies
   A student should review the relevant policies. Be aware that, according to UC policies, a letter grade will be assigned based on the challenge examination result.   
2. Request for School of Nursing consideration
   The MEPN courses eligible for credit by examination are listed below. If a student wishes to request credit by examination for one or more courses, the student should compile a clear description of experiences (work, military, etc.) and formal courses that describe in detail the ways all course objectives were met, as well as written documentation of knowledge, skills, and competencies that validate prior experience (e.g., military credits, badges, course evaluations, written work). The student should send the packet to hs-sonstudentservices@ucdavis.edu.
3. Review and recommendation
   Student services will forward the request to the MEPN program director and course instructors of record. These faculty will review the recommendation to determine the equivalency of experiences and courses. If experiences and courses are deemed equivalent, the instructor of record will approve the petition. The petition is then forwarded to the dean of Graduate Studies for final approval and then to the Office of the University Registrar for a Permit for Exam to be issued.
4. Challenge exam
   The petition must be approved by the dean of Graduate Studies and a Permit for Exam must be issued by the Office of the University Registrar before the examination takes place. Challenge exam details are outlined below for each eligible MEPN course.
5. Grade
   Once the exam results are available, the instructor of record will assign a grade. The student transcript is updated according to policies of the Office of the University Registrar.

Note: NRS 420 and 421 are ineligible for credit by examination due to University of California at Davis regulations.

Note: NRS 420, 421, 422, 423, 424, 425, 426, 427, 428, and 429A-F have prerequisite requirements where students must successfully pass each course in succession before progressing to the next course in the series.

This policy provides a pathway for individuals who present with relevant military education and experience equal to but not limited to Basic Medical Technician Corpsman (Navy HM or Air Force BMTCP), Army Health Care Specialist (68W Army Medic) or Air Force Independent Duty Medical Technician (IMDT 4N0X1C) to pursue advanced placement in a prelicensure nursing program, if that individual has prior relevant education and experience that meet the specific requirements of each course [CCR 1418, 1424, 1426, 1430].