Advising and Registration:

Credit by Examination

At the sole discretion of the College, a student who is currently enrolled at Peirce College and pursuing a degree or certificate may apply for credit by examination (or test out) in certain subjects. In order for a student to receive credit by examination, he/she must comply with the following process:

  • The student must obtain prior written approval from his/her program advisor.
  • The student may take the exam to test out of a course only one time per course.
  • A student may not test out of a course that he/she previously completed with a grade lower than a C or received an I (Incomplete) or W (Withdrawal).
  • The non-refundable fee for Credit by Examination must be paid before scheduling the test with the Mary W. Walker '33 Center for Academic Excellence. If the student does not successfully test out of the course, the fee will be credited toward future tuition charges at Peirce College within one calendar year from date of test out.
  • The student must complete the test within the scheduled time and follow test-taking procedures as outlined by the test administrator.
  • For more information regarding credit by examination, including which exams are available, contact the Walker Center for Academic Excellence at
    1-888-GO-PEIRCE, x9251 or WCAE@peirce.edu

BIS 101 Test Out

  • Peirce graduates returning to pursue a bachelor's degree who took BIS 101 more than three years ago but graduated fewer than three years ago will be given full credit for the course. If the graduation date was more than three years ago, the Peirce College graduate may have one opportunity to test out of BIS 101 at no charge. If the Peirce College graduate does not successfully test out of BIS 101, he/she must enroll in BIS 109, Information Searching and Presentation, in order to upgrade his/her skills.
  • Associate degree students who have not graduated and are readmitting into the College and who took BIS 101 fewer than three years ago will be given full credit for the course. If the readmit student took BIS 101 more than three years ago, he/she may have one opportunity to test out of BIS 101 at no charge. If the readmit student does not successfully test out of BIS 101, he/she must enroll in BIS 109, Information Searching and Presentation, in order to upgrade his/her skills.
  • If the student is successful in testing out of the course, the title of the course, credit hours and notation of Credit by Examination (CE) will be recorded on the student's permanent record. Unsuccessful attempts are not recorded on the transcript. The credit hours earned through Credit by Examination are not included in the calculation of the student's grade point average (GPA).