We welcome applications from students who have previously studied at other institutions and wish to transfer into either Year 2 or 3 of a course at Birmingham City University. We’d love to consider you, so we have detailed the process below on how to apply.
We facilitate Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) which enables credit awarded from one institution to contribute to a BCU award, subject to an application process. Applicants who provide evidence of prior learning can be considered for exemption from certain years of study (Advanced Entry). Recognition of Prior Learning is also a requirement of the application process for some of our Top-up degrees.
View our Recognition of Prior Learning Policy
How to apply
Applications for advanced entry must be received before 30 June and should be made via UCAS. When submitting your UCAS application you will be able to include the year of entry you wish to apply for.
Midland Credit Transfer
BCU is a member of the Midlands Enterprise Universities, as such if you're enquiring with regards to transferring to BCU from:
- Coventry University
- University of Derby
- Nottingham Trent University
- University of Wolverhampton
- University of Lincoln
Please complete and return, by 30 June, our application form to MidlandsCreditCompass@bcu.ac.uk.
Documentation required for advanced entry
Please see below a list of documents we require you to upload before we can progress your application any further:
- A current academic reference from the institution you are looking to transfer from.
- Official transcript of results/module marks received so far from your current or previous course – including module names and credit value. (Please note: if you are still waiting for your final module grades, we are still able to assess your application and where possible a conditional offer will be made. All we will need in place of your transcript are module outlines, which your current university should be able to provide.)
- Module outlines/syllabus/learning outcomes from your current course e.g., in the form: Module title, Credits, Learning Outcomes, (there are usually three or four of these per module). These will enable our tutors to map the previous content you have studied against our course.
- If you are applying to a course in the Faculty of Arts, Design and Media, a digital portfolio of your work may also be required. Please see the Portfolio Guidance webpages for more information.
For all applicants who apply for direct entry into either the second or third year, we must ensure that the modules they have already completed (or still being worked towards) at Level 4 (year 1) and/or Level 5 (year 2) are compatible with our course and this is why we require this additional information of your previous or current studies.
What happens after you've applied?
For Arts, Design and Media, Computing, Engineering and Built Environment and Business, Law and Social Sciences
Our Admissions Tutor will complete a mapping process of your Record of Prior Learning, with the information provided on your transcripts and module guides, to determine the compatibility of the two courses. Before we are able to confirm the outcome of the mapping process it will need to be approved by the Deputy Dean, so please bear with us whilst the mapping process takes place. Please be advised that applications involving Recognition of Prior Learning can take slightly longer to assess than applications for entry to year one of our courses.
Depending on the course you have applied for, you may also be invited to an interview or an audition if applying to a course in the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire or one of the Popular Music courses.
In some cases, if your current course isn’t compatible with our course then we may not be able to offer you a place in your chosen year of study, however, a recommendation may be made to offer you a place in an earlier year of the course.
For Health, Education and Life Sciences
Your application will be considered by our Admissions Tutors, for some courses you may also be asked to attend an interview. If we are able to offer you a place on the course, as part of the conditions of the offer you will be asked to complete Record of Prior Learning Application Form. A copy of the form, along with instructions on how to complete the form, will be made available for you to download from your BCU portal.
Upon receipt of the completed Record of Prior Learning Application Form, our Admissions Tutors will complete a mapping process to determine the compatibility of the two courses and whether the credits can be transferred to the course you have applied for at BCU.
In some cases, if your current course isn’t compatible with our course then we may not be able to offer you a place in your chosen year of study, however, a recommendation may be made to offer you a place in an earlier year of the course.