Students who placed above the 101 level in Hawaiian or foreign languages offered at the College can receive, at no additional cost, credits for the courses for which they are exempted upon completing the next course in the sequence with grade C or better. For example, upon completing 102 with a C or better, students will also earn the credit for 101; upon completing 202 with a C or better, students will also earn the credit for 101, 102, and 201.
Students who place above the 202 level, including a native speaker of the language, can receive credit for the full course sequence provided they complete, with grade C or better, any course in any field (e.g., history, literature, culture, language, Hawaiian studies, anthropology, education, or musicology) in which they make significant use of the language. The judgment as to “significant use” is normally made by the instructor of the course students have taken. If no classes above 202 are available that provide “significant use,” students or native speakers must pass the 202 course with grade C or better.
Click to request Hawaiian or Second Language Back Credits.
Back Credit Implementation Guidelines
- Eligibility: The UH Maui College back credit policy went into effect in Fall 2006. Classified students at the College may apply for back credits in language. The back credits will count toward the College’s degrees and certificates. Note: The University of Hawai’i at Mānoa (UHM) allows back credits only to those students who entered the University of Hawai‘i system in Fall 2001 or later, or who have chosen to graduate under the UHM General Education Requirements adopted in Fall 2001. Other colleges or universities in the UH system and elsewhere may have different policies regarding back credits or policies that may prevent the transfer of UH Maui College back credits.
- Placement Examination: See Hawaiian or foreign language departments to schedule a placement exam. Based on results of the placement tests and/or oral interviews with language teachers at the College, students are placed in 100 or 200 level language courses.
- Bilinguals: Bilinguals and native speakers are eligible for back credits, providing they complete with grade C or better in an appropriate post-202 language course. Students should contact the Hawaiian or foreign language departments for a list of courses above 202 that may be available in language at UH Maui College, or via distance education.
- Back Credits/Grades: Back credits are awarded with no grade designation.
- Transfer Credits: Students may not apply for back credits based on courses above 101 taken outside the UH system or in high school, including those courses for which AP credits have been granted by UH Maui College.
- Number of Languages: Back credits may be earned for only one language.
- Number of Credits: Students may earn from 3 to 16 back credits: 6 to 8 for first-year language courses, and 6 to 8 for second-year language courses.
- Petition Forms: Back credits will not be awarded automatically. Students interested in obtaining back credits must initiate the process. Forms for back credit requests are available through language course instructors or the Humanities Department office.