Policies and Procedures for Baltimore Student Exchange Program at UMBC

Baltimore Student Exchange Program (BSEP) allows qualifying students at certain Maryland institutions of higher education to take selected courses at other select campuses, while only paying tuition at their home school. Through the program, students register for courses at both their home and host institutions, but are billed only by their home school. At the end of the semester, the student’s credits and grades from the host institution are transferred to their home institution. Courses taken through BSEP are calculated into a student’s UMBC GPA and credit totals.

Students are expected to follow academic policies at both institutions. Completion of the BSEP form does not guarantee enrollment. Be sure to review the below eligibility requirements and procedures before completing the form.

Institutions participating in the BSEP include:

    • Community College of Baltimore County (limit to 5 students)
    • Coppin State University
    • Goucher College
    • Johns Hopkins University
    • Loyola University of Maryland
    • Maryland Institute College Of Art
    • Morgan State University
    • Notre Dame University of Maryland
    • Peabody Institute
    • Towson University

Any questions? Email interinstitutional@umbc.edu.

 

Undergraduate students who:

    • have sophomore standing (30 earned credits) or higher
    • have academic advisor approval
    • are enrolled full-time (at least 12 credits) between the two institutions
    • have completed a VOT for the course in which they intend to register
    • want to take a class in the Fall or Spring semesters (Winter and Summer classes are not available)

Graduate students are not eligible to participate in BSEP.

  1. Speak with your academic advisor about recommended courses and complete a Verification of Transferability form for each course.  Note: the VOT can take 1-2 weeks to process once received by the Registrar’s Office. Be sure to allow time for processing.
  2. Complete the BSEP Enrollment form. In the “Registration Information” section, the course information requested refers to the classes you wish to take at the host institution.
  3. Your advisor’s signature is required in the “Other Home Institution Academic Approval” section of the form.
  4. The UMBC Registrar’s Office will review your form and provide the second approval, then enroll you in placeholder classes at UMBC to equal the number of credits you wish to take at the host institution. This is for billing purposes only, and does NOT guarantee registration at the other institution. It is recommended you keep a copy of the completed form for your records.
  5. The UMBC Registrar’s Office will send your completed form to your host institution. The host institution will enroll you in the requested course(s), if available. If a course is closed or requires special permission, you may need to speak with the instructor or department offering the course to see if you can obtain permission to enroll.
  6. If you are unable to get approval to enroll in a closed or permission required course, or if you decide not to enroll in courses at the host school for whatever reason, notify the UMBC Registrar’s Office immediately by emailing interinstitutional@umbc.edu.  
  7. Do not adjust your schedule on your own to add or drop BSEP-approved courses, as it could have billing implications. You must contact the Registrar’s Office to make adjustments to BSEP courses.
  8. At the end of the semester, the host institution will send your transcript to UMBC, and the grades will be posted to your UMBC transcript. Check your student record in MyUMBC and, if your grade does not appear 3-4 weeks after the end of the semester, reach out to the UMBC Registrar’s Office at interinstitutional@umbc.edu.
  9. Students will pay tuition through their home institution, but may be responsible for additional fees at the host institution.
  10. Students are expected to follow all academic policies at both institutions.
  1. Complete the BSEP form with your home institution. The student’s home institution will send it directly to UMBC and the UMBC Registrar’s Office will register the student for the course(s). Students should NOT register for the courses themselves.
  2. Obtain any necessary course permissions, including prerequisite overrides, from the course instructor or UMBC academic department. Please note that approval from the home institution does not guarantee course availability or approval by the UMBC academic department.
    • The course instructor will need the student’s UMBC campus ID in order to grant the permission (ex AB12345). If the student does not yet have a UMBC campus ID, the student may copy interinstitutional@umbc.edu on any email requests for permissions to the course instructor.
    • The Registrar’s Office does not have the authority to override course prerequisites or permissions. These need to be requested from the course instructor or academic department. It is the student’s responsibility to request these.
    • The student should notify the UMBC Registrar’s Office once permissions are obtained by emailing interinstitutional@umbc.edu.
  3. Students may NOT adjust their UMBC enrollment on their own. They must contact the Registrar’s Office to request any changes. 
  4. Students will pay tuition through their home institution, but may be responsible for additional fees at the host institution.
  5. Once the course is completed, the UMBC Registrar’s Office will send a final transcript to  the student’s home institution. Courses taken through interinstitution are calculated into the student’s GPA.
  6. Students are expected to follow all academic policies at both institutions.