Southwestern Illinois College is a participant in the Illinois Articulation Initiative (IAI), a statewide agreement that facilitates transfer of the completed Illinois Transferable General Education Core Curriculum between participating institutions. Completion of the General Education Core Curriculum at any participating college or university in Illinois assures transferring students that lower division general education requirements for an associate or bachelor’s degree have been satisfied. This agreement is in effect for students entering an associate or baccalaureate degree-granting institution as a first-time freshman in summer 1998 (and thereafter).

The following IAI codes identify qualifying general education courses:

The Illinois Articulation Initiative also includes recommended freshmen and sophomore-level programs of study for specific majors in the Illinois Baccalaureate Majors’ Curricula. The Baccalaureate Majors’ Recommendations build on the transferable General Education Core Curriculum by identifying major and prerequisite courses that students need to complete to transfer as a junior (that is, with a minimum of 60 transferable semester credits) into the specific major. Each major recommendation explicitly encourages community and junior college students to complete an AA or AS degree prior to transfer.

A database has been compiled for the IAI that contains all of the statewide articulated courses at each participating institution. Students who plan to transfer at some point during their college career should see a counselor for additional information and can access the IAI on the World Wide Web—www.iTransfer.org. www.itransfer.org.

Southwestern Illinois College has adopted the following procedures in order to enhance the articulation of all transfer students:

• Transfer students who have been certified by a participating Illinois institution as having completed the Illinois Transferable General Education Core, will be considered as having fulfilled the general education requirements toward the Associate in Arts, Associate in Science, and Associate in Fine Arts degrees.
• An AA, AFA, AAT, AS or AES degree seeking student who matriculates as a first-time freshman or a transfer student who has not yet completed the Core will be required to meet admission requirements and complete Southwestern Illinois College’s general education degree requirements.
• Students who have completed a minimum of 37 hours may request an audit of their record in order to determine that the Illinois Transferable General Education Core has been completed. The student may make this request by submitting a Transcript Evaluation Request form. In addition, a request can be made when ordering a transcript by checking the appropriate box on the Transcript Request form. If completed, a statement will be placed on the transcript indicating that the Core has been completed.
• Courses with a minimum grade of “C” will be applied to the Illinois General Education Core Curriculum with the exception of writing courses. However, students must have an overall 2.0 GPA in the General Education Core in order to be considered as having completed the Core.
• Transfer students who have satisfactorily completed courses within the Illinois Transferable General Education Core at a participating Illinois institution, but who have not completed the Core, will be evaluated upon receipt of the Transcript Evaluation Request form and an official transcript from the participating institution. In most cases, courses that have been approved within the core will be applied toward the General Education Core and toward Southwestern general education requirements.
• Students who transfer to Southwestern who have not completed the General Education Core must complete a minimum of 15 hours of the General Education Core at Southwestern Illinois College in order to be certified as having completed the Core at Southwestern.
• Courses completed at out-of-state or at non-participating instate, accredited colleges and universities will be evaluated upon receipt of the Transcript Evaluation Request form and an official transcript from the accredited college or university.
• Courses which are accepted as equivalent to Southwestern Illinois College courses will be applied toward Southwestern’s general education requirements and to the General Education Core if the courses were taken at an IAI institution and if the courses were approved as IAI courses.
• Southwestern Illinois College will waive a fraction of a semester hour completed in an approved course of the core at a participating college or university. However, students must complete the minimum course requirement in each section of the Core and a minimum of 37 semester hours overall to fulfill the Core requirements.