Acceleration and Credit
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Freshmen who have already completed advanced work are encouraged to pursue higher-level courses. Students' scores on Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate examinations or on appropriate SAT II Subject Tests determine their eligibility to enroll in intermediate or advanced courses during their first year. Yale's objective is to encourage students to take courses that will challenge them at the appropriate level from the very beginning of their college experience. In addition to being able to enroll in advanced-level courses, students with exceptional preparation in certain areas may be eligible for acceleration—that is, early completion of their degrees and graduation through the acquisition of sufficient acceleration credits. Acceleration credits are acquired through high scores on Advanced Placement examinations, International Baccalaureate examinations, A-level examinations, or other international examinations. Such credits are also awarded at the end of freshman year to students who have satisfactorily completed an appropriate advanced course at Yale. Yale does not give acceleration credits for courses taken at another college or university while a student is still enrolled in high school. Scores from the examinations mentioned above are the only means of gaining acceleration credits from high school academic work, and these credits are only applicable if the student decides to accelerate. |
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Students may complete degree requirements in fewer than eight terms, even without acceleration credits, through the early accumulation of thirty-six Yale course credits. Extra credits may be acquired by carrying a heavier-than-usual load of courses or attending the Yale Summer Session.
The decision to accelerate may be made as early as sophomore year but, once made, may always be reversed. Only a small number of eligible students actually elect to graduate in fewer than eight terms. Many students who have the appropriate credits accelerate and then decelerate later. They may feel that three years is too short a time to accomplish their undergraduate objectives or may simply wish to graduate with their original class.
With appropriate permission, undergraduates may take courses for credit in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and in certain of the University's ten professional schools. It is also possible for students of outstanding ability to qualify for the simultaneous award of the bachelor's and master's degrees at the end of their senior year through the addition of graduate-level work to their undergraduate curriculum.
