Guidelines for CHC Course Substitutions

Effective Fall 2020

Please speak with a CHC advisor if you have any questions about course substitutions or the petition process.

Study Abroad Course Substitutions

1. Students do not need to petition for colloquium credit for the CHC’s own study abroad opportunities unless they wish to request a different kind of credit from what is typically awarded for each opportunity (see CHC website for details).
2. All CHC students who study abroad with a non-CHC program (no matter the length of time spent abroad) are guaranteed one CHC elective colloquium substitution without a petition to the Undergraduate Studies Committee (CHC students are guaranteed only one study abroad course substitution, no matter how many times they study abroad). See the page on Course Substitutions for Study Abroad Coursework for more information. A study abroad course is guaranteed to substitute for an elective CHC colloquium without an Undergraduate Studies Committee petition only if it is:
   1. A minimum of 4.0 credits on the UO transcript (regardless of amount of time spent abroad)
   2. Liberal arts/research orientation: no language instruction classes
   3. Not fulfilling any requirements for the student’s majors or minors
3. Students who have determined that they can make use of the one guaranteed study abroad course substitution option must notify the CHC upon their return of their request to have a study abroad course substitute for an elective colloquium. Students will submit a course substitution request form to the CHC upon their return (once the course has appeared on their degree guide in DuckWeb) that confirms that the course meets all of the requirements for a guaranteed study abroad colloquium substitution. A CHC staff member will verify that the course is eligible for a guaranteed substitution and then work with the Registrar’s Office to finalize the substitution.
4. Once a student has received their one guaranteed study abroad course substitution, they must petition the CHC for any additional study abroad course substitutions (including for a second course substitution, if the student has been abroad for two or more consecutive terms) using the course substitution petition form. In addition, any student who wishes to have a study abroad course substitute for any of the subject-area colloquia (HC 421, HC 431, HC 441)—including students who have not yet received a guaranteed course substitution for study abroad—must petition the CHC’s Undergraduate Studies Committee upon their return. Study abroad courses not subject to the guaranteed study abroad course substitution can be considered for colloquium substitutions only if they follow the CHC colloquium model:
   1. Upper-division (300- and 400-level) course credit noted on the transcript
   2. A minimum of 4.0 credits on the UO transcript (regardless of time spent abroad)
   3. Small class size
   4. Discussion-based
   5. Liberal arts/research orientation: no language instruction classes
   6. Substantial reading and writing assigned and completed. Benchmark: 10- to 15-page final paper
   7. Not fulfilling any requirements for the student’s majors or minors
5. Petitions are only accepted following a student’s return from abroad, after the credits and grade are posted on the Degree Guide in DuckWeb.
6. Final projects should be intellectually and analytically robust. Journal entries or reflections on cultural experiences do not satisfy this requirement. These same strictures apply to papers written in a language other than English. Please note: depending on the petition committee’s language facilities, a student may be required to submit translations.
7. If a study abroad course that a student wishes to petition appears to have insufficient workload to yield colloquium credit, a student can consult with the study abroad instructor to add, for the CHC student, substantial required reading and writing. Note: instructors are not obligated to approve such a request. Work added in this fashion does not eliminate the petition process when the student returns to the CHC. Students should be able to provide documentation that such an arrangement was made with the instructor.
8. Typically, one elective colloquium substitution is allowed for one term spent abroad. Students who study abroad for two terms or a full year may petition for a second elective colloquium substitution. A second elective colloquium substitution may also be granted for special circumstances, including time spent abroad.
9. Very special circumstances may allow a study abroad course that satisfies requirements for a student’s major or minor to substitute for an elective colloquium. The petition committee requires full documentation and reserves judgment in such cases. 
10. A student may petition to receive elective colloquium credit for a combination of two or more study abroad courses that, together, account for a CHC colloquium (this could include two or more courses that, when combined, yield a total of 4 credits). The committee reserves judgment in such cases.
11. Internships do not qualify for a guaranteed elective colloquium substitution. Internships that require coursework, small group discussion, and substantial reading and writing—in other words, that follow the CHC colloquium model—can be petitioned to substitute for elective colloquium credit. 
12. When unsure which study abroad course would best fit an elective colloquium substitution, a student may submit more than one petition. Please include a note to this effect in both petitions.
13. Non-CHC study abroad courses typically do not substitute for any part of the required 100-, 200-, or 300-level CHC curriculum in Arts & Letters, Social Science, or Science (although, if needed, arrangements can be made for 200-level course substitutions). A student who studies abroad in the freshman or sophomore years completes these requirements, if still pending, upon return to campus. 
14. Petitions may be granted for verified and equivalent work. They are not granted as a remedy for poor student planning.

Other Kinds of Transfer Course Substitutions

1. Same principles for study abroad petitions apply, with the exception of upper-division requirement.
2. Students are generally discouraged from petitioning substitutions for 100-, 200-, and 300-level courses with HC subject codes. In some cases, one transfer course substitution for HC 221, HC 231, or HC 241 can be granted. The committee reserves judgment in such cases.
3. No students can substitute transfer courses for the entire required 100-, 200-, and 300-level CHC curriculum. The CHC curriculum provides a crucial foundation for the broader CHC education and experience.

UO Departmental Petitions (e.g. colloquium credit for a UO philosophy course)

1. Same principles for study abroad petitions apply, including documentation of a course’s rigor and demonstration that the course follows the CHC colloquium model.
2. Courses that satisfy requirements for a student’s majors or minors typically cannot be substituted for CHC colloquia.
3. Petitions for non-CHC courses (even those not satisfying requirements for the student’s majors or minors) to satisfy any part of the CHC curriculum, including elective colloquium credit, are rarely approved and require extraordinarily special circumstances; poor student planning is not a viable consideration.