Credit transfers (college/AP)

SpectacularDiver24

SpectacularDiver24

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If you have AP/college credits, how helpful would it be to transfer those to USNA?
I've been told that regardless of how many existing college credits you have, you still need to spend 4 years at the academy. So why transfer existing credits at all??

Thanks in advance for the responses.
 
You cannot transfer college or AP credits to USNA. You can, however, validate some courses, which will allow you more flexibility in scheduling courses over the next four years.

During plebe summer, you’ll be escorted into air-conditioned rooms — a blessing in itself — to take validation exams. Score well enough and you can skip certain plebe-level courses: calculus, chemistry, English, history and so forth. Now, that doesn’t mean you can take fewer classes in the next four years. It just means you can skip to the next course in the sequence — which may or may not be a blessing. Or if you validate the whole sequence, you can take electives in their place.

Example: DD validated Chemistry 1. Instead of jumping to Chemistry 2, she was told to leapfrog to Modern Chemistry. Ouch! Out of the frying pan and into the fire. She validated Calculus 1 and English 1 also, and jumped to Calculus 2 and English 2. The payoff came later, in freeing up her schedule to do a minor and to take a lighter load as a 2/C.
 
MidCakePa said:
You cannot transfer college or AP credits to USNA. You can, however, validate some courses, which will allow you more flexibility in scheduling courses over the next four years.

During plebe summer, you’ll be escorted into air-conditioned rooms — a blessing in itself — to take validation exams. Score well enough and you can skip certain plebe-level courses: calculus, chemistry, English, history and so forth. Now, that doesn’t mean you can take fewer classes in the next four years. It just means you can skip to the next course in the sequence — which may or may not be a blessing. Or if you validate the whole sequence, you can take electives in their place.

Example: DD validated Chemistry 1. Instead of jumping to Chemistry 2, she was told to leapfrog to Modern Chemistry. Ouch! Out of the frying pan and into the fire. She validated Calculus 1 and English 1 also, and jumped to Calculus 2 and English 2. The payoff came later, in freeing up her schedule to do a minor and to take a lighter load as a 2/C.
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Does everyone take each validation exam, or do you have to sign up somehow?
 
Peter2025 said:
Does everyone take each validation exam, or do you have to sign up somehow?
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Not sure if this is the case every summer but last year you sat for the tests of your choosing on the "entry" level side and if you scored well enough, you were invited to sit for the next level. So for instance my Plebe did well on Calc 1 and Chem 1 (Equivalent to one semester) and was invited to take the next validations and placed out of the whole year. Languages - there is one test and based on your score the dept reviews and you would receive credit for 1 or more years.
 
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CJS68 said:
Not sure if this is the case every summer but last year you sat for the tests of your choosing on the "entry" level side and if you scored well enough, you were invited to sit for the next level. So for instance my Plebe did well on Calc 1 and Chem 1 (Equivalent to one semester) and was invited to take the next validations and placed out of the whole year. Languages - there is one test and based on your score the dept reviews and you would receive credit for 1 or more years.
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Awesome, thank you.
 
MidCakePa said:
During plebe summer, you’ll be escorted into air-conditioned rooms — a blessing in itself — to take validation exams. Score well enough and you can skip certain plebe-level courses: calculus, chemistry, English, history and so forth. Now, that doesn’t mean you can take fewer classes in the next four years. It just means you can skip to the next course in the sequence — which may or may not be a blessing. Or if you validate the whole sequence, you can take electives in their place.
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MidCake PA is spot on with all advice -- but one warning Peter2025: While definitely a blessing, beware of quiet, air-conditioned rooms during Plebe Summer.

I literally fell asleep halfway thru the Chemistry validation test because it was air-conditioned, quiet and most of all, no one was yelling at me. I had never fallen asleep in a test before -- but it was the single best nap of my life and the only one I got during Plebe Summer. So worth it.
 
20USNA23 said:
While definitely a blessing, beware of quiet, air-conditioned rooms during Plebe Summer.

I literally fell asleep halfway thru the Chemistry validation test because it was air-conditioned, quiet and most of all, no one was yelling at me. I had never fallen asleep in a test before -- but it was the single best nap of my life and the only one I got during Plebe Summer. So worth it.
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One of the best encapsulations of the plebe summer experience that I’ve ever heard! Brilliant!
 
Be careful what you wish for ..... during my plebe summer they ended up wanting to put me in some experimental calculus course with like only 10 people b/c I scored too high on the validation test. :p

(I resigned before classes started, so didn't actually get to see what the class would have been like).
 
IronmanDaremo said:
Be careful what you wish for ..... during my plebe summer they ended up wanting to put me in some experimental calculus course with like only 10 people b/c I scored too high on the validation test. :p

(I resigned before classes started, so didn't actually get to see what the class would have been like).
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You went to NAPS, so now I'm confused.
 
IronmanDaremo said:
Be careful what you wish for ..... during my plebe summer they ended up wanting to put me in some experimental calculus course with like only 10 people b/c I scored too high on the validation test. :p

(I resigned before classes started, so didn't actually get to see what the class would have been like).
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What does that mean?
 
I went to NAPS, got my appointment, reported for Plebe summer, went through all the testing, resigned near the end of plebe summer. So didn't start classes at the Academy.

Based on the testing, they wanted to put me in the class for the first semester of Plebe year. And a higher English class. My point being, if you want tougher classes and like a challenge, do well on the assessments during the summer!
 
So, if you are a college applicant, you will have to test out of a class versus USNA accepting the college credit. Is that correct or is it on a case by case basis?
 
IronmanDaremo said:
I went to NAPS, got my appointment, reported for Plebe summer, went through all the testing, resigned near the end of plebe summer. So didn't start classes at the Academy.

Based on the testing, they wanted to put me in the class for the first semester of Plebe year. And a higher English class. My point being, if you want tougher classes and like a challenge, do well on the assessments during the summer!
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Oh, forgive my ignorance. I didn't know one "resigned" from plebe summer.
 
85USMA said:
So, if you are a college applicant, you will have to test out of a class versus USNA accepting the college credit. Is that correct or is it on a case by case basis?
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If you go to USNA.edu, the overall validation process is explained, and you can find the validation policy fir individual departments.
 
Unless things have changed, mids have the option to "accept" their validation -- i.e., validating and moving to a higher level class. Some people think you're better off not accepting the validation b/c your workload is easier since you've already "mastered" the material. However, others counter that -- saying that taking the "easier" course can lead you to slack off thinking you know it all and then not doing well. Finally, if you start in a higher level course and find yourself under water, there is a period each semester during which you can drop a course (and presumably move to the lower level of that course).
 
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