Academic Catalog

Retro-credits are a system designed for new students enrolled in high school foreign language courses beyond the first-semester course.

Retro-credit is ungraded credit for the coursework prerequisite to the course in which the student is enrolled, contingent upon the student having received a "B" or better in the course. For example, if a student completed four years of high school Spanish, they may be eligible to enroll in SPA 303 and earn 16 units, contingent on receiving a "B" in SPA 303.

Students must apply for retro-credit during pre-registration, summer registration (for incoming students), or during the first four weeks of the semester in which they enroll in a foreign language class. Retro-credit may be applied only when the student enrolls in their first university foreign-language course. Retro-credit is posted on the NAU transcript as test credit, and it may not be transferred to another university.

Placement is determined by the number of years of foreign-language study at the high-school level and/or by consultation with an advisor from the Global Languages and Cultures department during summer orientation.

When the student completes the university foreign-language course with a grade of "B" or better, they will receive ungraded credit for the course prerequisites.