Additional Academic Programs and Outside Learning Opportunities

Alternative Credit Programs

Belhaven University does recognize Advanced Placement (AP) and College-Level Examination Program (CLEP). Official score reports must be sent directly to Belhaven University from the Educational Testing Service. High school transcripts with scores are not considered official notification of scores. Credit will be awarded once the office of the registrar has received the official qualifying scores and the student has met with the department chair to determine how the credit will be allocated. Students planning to enter professional school should verify that AP credit is accepted by the professional school they plan to attend. (All alternative credit must not exceed 30 credit hours toward the undergraduate degree.)

Advanced Placement

A score of 3, 4, or 5 is required on an Advanced Placement exam. Students with scores of 3, 4, or 5 on the AP Test of the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) will have earned, upon admission, up to eight semester hours credit granted in any one field.

Credits granted carry no grade and are not used in computing a quality point index but may be used toward a major or minor. Elective credit may also be given.

College Level Examination Program (CLEP)
Advanced placement and credit may be awarded to students who earn at least the minimum scores recommended by the American Council on Education (ACE) on the subject examinations (not the general examinations). Once the office of the registrar has received the official qualifying scores and the student has met with the department chair, credit will be awarded. Any student wishing to be exempt from certain degree requirements should take the appropriate advanced placement test of the CEEB.

Foreign Language Proficiency Exams
Students proving proficiency in a native language other than English will be considered to have met Goal III. Foreign students may not register for credit in their native language. Students may earn college credit for Spanish, French, or German only by taking the CLEP examination at the elementary or intermediate levels. Students may earn up to the required number of credit hours in the general education core for their major in a single language through completion of the CLEP examination with a minimum score of 50 or above or through proficiency credit. The CLEP standardized examination will preclude the use of departmental examinations except in those areas where CLEP examinations are not available.

The method of testing and the number of credit hours to be awarded for languages other than Spanish, French, or German will be determined by the chair of the foreign language department or her designee. For testing other than CLEP, a $100 fee is charged for administering a proficiency exam; an additional fee of $100 is charged if the exam is completed and credit is to be awarded.

Use this link to the Educational Program section of the Catalogue if you have questions about the courses or tests.

Correspondence or Online Work
A student may apply a maximum of six semester hours of correspondence or online credit to satisfy degree requirements. The registrar must approve correspondence work in advance. Credit in major courses or core courses for degrees may not be earned by correspondence or online.

Summer Programs

Miniterms
Two-week miniterms are offered twice each year at Belhaven University: one in the spring, and one between fall and spring semesters when allowed by the calendar. These are concentrated courses that make three hours of credit available to students attending 10 class meetings (four hours each); two weekends of reflection time are incorporated in each time frame. A student may enroll in one class only. Residence halls are not open during miniterms.

Summer Session
The summer session of Belhaven University provides an opportunity for students to continue their work leading to a degree and for students from other institutions to earn credits that may be transferred to their own schools. A maximum of 15 hours may be earned during the summer session at Belhaven.

Summer Enrichment Program
A precollege summer enrichment program is available to advanced students who have completed the junior year of high school. Students admitted to the program may earn up to 15 semester hours in regular summer session courses. Full college credit is granted after a student has been accepted on a full-time basis and has satisfactorily completed one semester (at least 12 semester hours) of course work at Belhaven University. For further information contact the director of admission.

Gulf Coast Research Laboratory

Belhaven University students may receive credit for certain courses offered at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Consult the chairman of the department of biology concerning course offerings.

Study-Travel Program

The Belhaven University study travel program provides students with an opportunity to earn academic credit in courses specifically structured to include off-campus travel, domestic or foreign.

Members of the Belhaven University faculty plan the courses, arrange for and conduct the travel portion, and offer detailed instruction on campus before departure and during the time of travel itself.

The content of courses offered in the study travel program is variable. In one case, the emphasis may be on one city, region, or country exclusively, while in another it may cut across geographical boundaries to include historical, literary, artistic, or scientific aspects of several regions or countries.

Each course requires the consent of the instructor and carries three hours of academic credit and a pass/fail grade. There is no limit to the number of credits a student may earn in the program, but each course pursued must have a different emphasis. In some instances, credits may be applied toward the departmental major.

Advanced Course Placement:

Placement in Advanced English
Each year, the department of English selects a limited number of freshmen for placement in Advanced Freshmen English on the basis of scores on the ACT, the English Placement Test of the CEEB, and the Belhaven English Placement Test. Credit by exemption for ENG 101 (CR only, no semester hours, no grade or quality points) will be awarded upon completion of the three-hour course Advanced Freshman English (ENG 121) (with a grade not lower than a C) during the first semester.

Placement in Advanced Language*
Students who wish to continue at Belhaven University a language begun in high school should take a language proficiency test to determine the college-level course most consistent with their previous training. Students who have credit for two or more units of a foreign language in high school may receive college credit, though not college hours, for the 101-102 courses in the same language after receiving a C (2.0) or better in 201-202 at Belhaven University. A waiver of language courses, especially 101 and 102, may be granted upon the Language Department's avowal of a student's proficiency. No semester hours, grades or quality points will be awarded. Students seeking academic credit for language proficiency should schedule appropriate testing with the Foreign Language Department.

Placement in Advanced Mathematics*
Students who have had extensive training in mathematics in high school and who wish to continue their study in this area at Belhaven University may enroll in MAT 207 and 208 with the permission of the chairperson of the department of mathematics rather than in a lower level course.

*Students who enter advanced courses in foreign languages and mathematics are eligible in certain instances to receive credit by exemption for lower level courses in these areas. See below:

Those students who are eligible to enter a foreign language course at the 390 level and complete six hours at this level may then elect to take examinations in the intermediate course (201-202) to receive six hours of credit. Students who are eligible to enter the course in calculus (MAT 207 and 208) and complete six hours at this level may then elect to take examinations in algebra and trigonometry (MAT 101 and 102) to receive six hours of credit. If a passing grade is achieved on the examination, the credit hours are recorded and a grade of ES (Examination Satisfactory) is assigned. In the event of an unsatisfactory grade, no grade is recorded or credit given. The grade of ES carries credit hours, but no quality points, toward degree requirements.