The Indiana College Core ensures that your 30 hours of general education credit transfers between Indiana public colleges and universities. Whether you’ve just started college or have completed your 30 hours of general education credits, the following resources can help you with the next steps.
Indiana College Core Printable One-Pager
30 credit hours guaranteed to transferThe Indiana College Core consists of 30 semester hours of credit, the completion of which at one public institution means it can transfer as a block and count as satisfying the Indiana College Core equivalent at the receiving institution.
The Indiana College Core is based on competencies and learning outcomes in six areas:
Foundational Intellectual Skills
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Speaking and Listening
- Written Communication
Ways of Knowing
- Humanistic and Artistic
- Scientific
- Social and Behavioral
1. What is the Indiana College Core?
The Indiana College Core was developed by the public institutions in Indiana in response to Senate Enrolled Act 182 2012. It allows a student who satisfactorily completes an approved program of general education at any public institution to transfer that coursework to another public institution as a block of 30 credit hours towards the general education core requirements.
2. Does the Indiana College Core apply to me?
The Indiana College Core applies to all students enrolling at a public institution in Indiana in the fall of 2013 and after. Degree requirements change over time, and so the date at which you first enter a school determines the requirements that apply to you (this is sometimes known as catalog year, or degree requirement term). Depending on the policies of the individual institution, you may be able to change your degree requirement term to be eligible for the Indiana College Core.
3. What is meant to satisfactorily complete the Indiana College Core?
Requirements for completion of the Indiana College Core vary by campus and institution. A student must fulfill the Indiana College Core requirements of the school at which a student is enrolled, with a minimum of 30 credit hours, and with an Indiana College Core grade point average (GPA) no lower than 2.0. Each state public institution has specified how their program meets the competencies described within the Indiana College Core framework.
4. I have satisfactorily completed the Indiana College Core. Can I transfer to any state educational institution?
Yes, you must apply for admission as a transfer student in the usual way. Once admitted into your new institution, the 30 credit hours of general education (Indiana College Core) coursework you have completed will transfer in accordance with appropriate transfer policies.
5. What are the Indiana College Core competencies?
The Indiana College Core competencies, which were agreed upon by faculty across public institutions, are the skills and knowledge associated with the coursework considered foundational for further study in higher education and introduce students to a range of skills and disciplines. Within the Indiana College Core framework, the competencies are categorized as either Foundational Skills or Ways of Knowing. The competencies can be viewed here.
6. Do Advanced Placement (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), dual credit, International Baccalaureate (IB) coursework or exams count towards the Indiana College Core requirements?
In accordance with institutional polices, Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB) CLEP, and dual credit may count towards fulfillment of the Indiana College Core requirements at public institutions. Students who transfer to another institution should be aware that test credit will be reevaluated upon transfer in accordance with the receiving institutions’ articulation policies. Institutions may accept other forms of credit according to their own existing policies, but these hours will not count towards the requirements of the Indiana College Core.
7. Does equivalent out-of-state credit count towards the Indiana College Core requirements?
Yes, transfer credit from a regionally accredited institution (whether in-state or out of state) may apply toward fulfillment of an Indiana public institution’s Indiana College Core requirements, in accordance with that institution’s transfer credit policy. If the student earns the Indiana College Core milestone and then subsequently transfers to another Indiana state institution, the receiving institution will recognize the Indiana College Core milestone, and the student’s transfer credit will apply toward fulfillment of other requirements at the receiving institution in accordance with that institution’s transfer credit policy.
8. What if I want to transfer before I have completed the Indiana College Core?
Your coursework will be articulated on a course-by-course basis by the institution to which you transfer.
9. What is the relationship between the Core Transfer Library (CTL) and the Indiana College Core?
The courses in the CTL represent commonly taken and transferred courses, and many of the courses on the CTL satisfy general education requirements. The Indiana College Core is met by following a program of general education at the public institution at which you are enrolled, and courses in the CTL represent just a fraction of those available to you at public institutions in Indiana.
10. How do I know that I have completed the Indiana College Core?
Once you have completed the Indiana College Core requirements at the public institution where you are enrolled, that institution will certify Indiana College Core completion on your transcript. If you are subsequently admitted as a transfer student to another public institution, that institution will recognize the completed Indiana College Core, apply 30 credit hours of general education to your academic record, and indicate on your academic transcript that you have completed the Indiana College Core.
11. Does the Indiana College Core satisfy all general education requirements at the receiving institution?
Almost all public institutions will require additional general education coursework (i.e. additional competencies, and more than 30 hours), and some degree programs require that specific coursework be completed for admission to a particular program, or completion of degree objectives. You must work closely with an academic advisor to ensure that you will meet as many program-specific requirements as possible while completing your general education coursework and the Indiana College Core.
12. Does the Indiana College Core affect other degree requirements?
The Indiana College Core does not change any requirements for a major or other degree objective. If any course within the Indiana College Core is a requirement for a major or other degree objective at the receiving institution, and if you do not meet the grade requirement for that objective, then the receiving institution may require you to repeat the course. It is absolutely critical that you work closely with your academic advisor to determine what relationship, if any, exists between requirements for general education and requirements for a specific major and/or other degree objective. You may exceed 60 credit hours (for an associate degree) or 120 credit hours (for a baccalaureate degree) required for your degree.
13. I am studying at an independent (private) college or university in Indiana. Does the Indiana College Core apply to me?
Independent or private institutions in Indiana are not subject to SEA 182 (2012) and are not, therefore, required to participate in the Indiana College Core. Transfer credits are evaluated on a course-by-course basis
14. Is there a list of courses that are included in the Indiana College Core?
Specific Indiana College Core requirements, and the courses that meet those requirements, vary by campus and institutions. Most institutions provide a list of courses that apply to their own Indiana College Core requirements but they are not required to do so.
15. As I choose courses to complete the Indiana College, why is working with an advisor so important?
You need to choose courses that are required and as program-specific as possible. If not, you may need to take more credit hours than normally required for your degree program. Your advisor can help you in making the best choices for your degree program.
Two-Year Institutions
Four-Year Institutions
Indiana University – Bloomington
Indiana University – Northwest
Indiana University – South Bend
Indiana University – Southeast
Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis
Purdue University – Fort Wayne
Purdue University – West Lafayette
University of Southern Indiana
Each high school designated as a delivery site for the Indiana College Core needs to meet certain criteria established by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education. To find out if your school offers the Indiana College Core, use our high school Map or check with your high school counselor.
Note: more high schools are continuously being added to this list in academic year cohorts.
