The Culinary Institute of America

  • Transfer Credit Policies

    Due to the unique nature of the curriculum at The Culinary Institute of America, only selected business management and liberal arts courses will be considered for transfer credit approval. We do not accept transfer credits for culinary arts, baking and pastry arts, or hospitality and service management (restaurant) courses.

    Approval Criteria

    1. The course you are requesting to transfer must be from an accredited college or university and comparable to one of the CIA courses listed below.
    2. You must have completed the course to be transferred with a grade of "C" or better.
    3. All applicable course work must have been completed within the past 10 years.
    4. You took the college AP exam and received a score of "4" or higher within the past five years.
    5. For a list of eligible courses that will be considered for transfer credit, please review or download a copy of the Transferring Credits to the CIA brochure (PDF 815 KB)

    How to Apply for Transfer Credit

    The following steps should be followed when preparing your request for transfer credit (to be submitted with your application for admission):

    • Consult The Culinary Institute of America's academic catalog to find out which courses are required for your intended major. Feel free to contact the Transfer Credit Coordinator for assistance at 1-800-CULINARY (285-4627).
    • Complete the top two sections of the Application for the Transfer of Credit (PDF 84 KB).
    • If you are requesting transfer credit for College Board AP classes, please provide us with an official College Board report of your scores. If you are requesting transfer credit for the CIA's Food Safety course, you must attach a copy of your National Restaurant Association (NRA) ServSafe® certificate and include either one of the following with or on your Application for the Transfer of Credit:
          a) The course description for the food safety college course of at least 1.0 credit or
          b) A copy of your ProStart National Certificate of Achievement.  
    • Include an official copy of your high school and/or college transcripts if they were not previously sent.
    • Submit your completed transfer credit application and supporting documentation along with your application for admission, to:
      Admissions Department
      The Culinary Institute of America
      1946 Campus Drive
      Hyde Park, NY 12538-1499

    Transfer credit applications are due no later than three weeks prior to your approved entry date. No transfer credit will be granted if the application is not received by this deadline.

    Transfer credits will be considered for the following courses:

    • Chinese*
    • College Writing
    • Controlling Costs and Purchasing Foods
    • Culinary Math
    • Finance*
    • Financial Accounting*
    • Food Safety (for eligibility, see guideline #3 above)
    • French*
    • History and Cultures of Asia*
    • History and Cultures of Europe*
    • History and Cultures of the Americas*
    • Human Resource Management*
    • Italian*
    • Introduction to Gastronomy
    • Introduction to Management
    • Leadership and Ethics*
    • Literature and Composition*
    • Managerial Accounting*
    • Marketing and Promoting Food*
    • Menu Development
    • Nutrition
    • Organizational Behavior*
    • Personal Finance*
    • Principles of Design
    • Principles of Macroeconomics*
    • Principles of Microeconomics*
    • Professionalism and Life Skills
    • Psychology of Human Behavior*
    • Spanish*
    • Survey of Mathematics*
    • Wine Studies*

    * Indicates Bachelor's Degree Course.

    The costing practical is a graduation requirement and cannot be transferred. There may be additional electives eligible for transfer credit. Students should contact the Transfer Credit Coordinator for additional details.

    Please note:

    • Credits accepted in transfer may count toward the completion of degree requirements but are not calculated in a student's grade point average at the college.
    • Full-time students may not receive transfer credits for all courses requested if the number of credits transferred reduces the amount for a semester below the 12 credits required for full-time study. Tuition charges are assessed based on full-time study, with each semester ranging between 12–18 credits.
    • Students who receive transfer credit and wish to supplement their semester courses may take an Independent Study course or elective with the permission of the appropriate academic dean.
    • Students who transfer credits from another institution do not receive credit toward tuition and fees at The Culinary Institute of America.
    • For students entering the junior year of the CIA bachelor's degree program with transfer credits from another accredited college, a 45-credit-hour, three-semester residency is required. The credit-hour requirement must be satisfied by course offerings from the CIA BPS program.

    Questions?

    For more information about transferring credit to the CIA, please call the Admissions Office at
    1-800-CULINARY (285-4627).