This session is designed to guide and support faculty and staff responsible for maintaining and updating SUNY Transfer Path information on their campuses. It covers best practices, effective strategies, timelines, and expectations for managing core course listings and ways to promote on-campus review.
Past Sessions
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Managing Transfer Paths
Offered on October 24th, 2025
Upcoming Sessions
No sesions scheduled. View the calendar.
Relevant Links
Access the Login Request Form
Access this form if you need to request an account to gain access to transfer path and core course editing.
Access the Login Page
Use this link to login to the administrative area of the site to edit transfer paths.
Transfer Path Dashboard
Use the Transfer Path Dashboard to review transfer path core courses and transfer path requirements.
Transfer Paths Knowledge Base
This resource offers essential information and guidance to campus faculty and staff responsible for maintaining academic pathways, both within the system and on campus.
SUNY Transfer Paths Home
Access the main landing page for the SUNY Transfer Paths.
Faculty & Staff SUNY Transfer Paths Guide
Access the page developed to orient faculty and staff to the basics of SUNY Transfer Paths.
Q&A Responses
Generally, when a transfer course is deemed equivalent, its classification as lower- or upper-division is determined by the receiving campus based on its evaluation and the level of the originating course. Transfer Path Core Courses, however, are campus-approved, pre-identified courses that are guaranteed to transfer in the same category under the Seamless Transfer Policy.
Core courses are intended to be lower-division, foundational courses typically completed during the first two years of study (“Foundational courses enable lower-division students to establish a solid disciplinary base upon which to take upper-division courses with true junior status”).
Under the Seamless Transfer Policy, completion of a core course at one campus satisfies the same requirement at another campus. If a campus approves a 300- or 400-level course as a core course, that requirement will still be considered fulfilled—even if the transferring course is classified as lower-division.
If a discrepancy in course level arises, the receiving campus should review whether their 300- or 400-level core course is appropriate versus another 100- or 200-level course, and/or whether the course numbering accurately reflects upper-division learning outcomes.
In all cases, campuses are encouraged to review course content and learning outcomes to make informed decisions regarding course level and equivalency.
If a student believes they are entitled to upper-division credit that was not awarded, they may use the existing appeal process.
The following was included in the MTP FAQ for SUNY Transfer Paths:
“If a Transfer Path course is equivalent to, or replaces, a prerequisite course at a receiving campus, the course shall fulfill the local prerequisite, and the student can move into the higher-level course. For example, if a Transfer Path requires Pre-Calculus, Calculus I, and Calculus II, an incoming student who has completed Calculus I should not be required to complete Pre-Calculus and should be allowed to move into the Calculus II course.[1]“
In many cases, the faculty intentionally included pre-requisites within the core course categories to make expectations clear (examples: Calculus I, General Chemistry II, Mathematics for Elementary School Teachers).
As a general rule, for the purposes of Transfer Path policies, campuses should evaluate whether the learning outcomes of Course A are essential to meet those of the subsequent Course B. In other words, does successful completion of Course B require the foundational knowledge and learning outcomes provided by Course A? If yes, students should not be required to enroll in Course A to receive credit for a successfully completed Course B, as it is should be assumed they possess the pre-requisite knowledge.
If the learning outcomes and requirements of Course A differ substantially from those of a pre-requisite course that would typically prepare students for success in Course B, the campus should carefully assess whether Course A is appropriate as a prerequisite.
In certain instances, courses are considered prerequisites for other reasons. Course sequences are often designed to accommodate class cohorts or facilitate course enrollment and scheduling. If Course A is not a genuine prerequisite, students may be eligible to receive credit for Course B while being obligated to complete Course A due to its distinct learning objectives. In these cases, a campus should explicitly delineate the requirement within the course description, catalog, and/or program materials to provide clarity about the course learning objectives.
For clarity, this guidance does not imply that a campus is required to grant credit for pre-requisite Course A if the course has not been completed. Rather, it emphasizes that comparable foundational learning should be acknowledged. Campuses may make appropriate decisions regarding course completion, waivers, or the substitution of alternative courses in alignment with institutional policies, student needs, and program requirements.
As always, given the complexity of certain cases, you are encouraged to contact your campus program reviewer and/or our office to assist in considering the specifics of a student case or policy.
[1] See: https://transfer.suny.edu/faculty-staff/faculty-path-guidance/faculty-path-faq/