AP Credit and IB Credit
The Department of History maintains the following policy with regard to Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) credits:
- A score of 4 on the AP U.S. History exam, the AP European History exam, or the AP World History exam receives 4 credits. Students with minimum scores of 4 on two such exams will receive 8 credits. In addition, a score of 5 on any one of these exams fulfills the "Historical Forces" (F3) Foundation requirement.
- A score of 5 on the IB History exam receives 4 credits. In addition, a score of 6 fulfills the “Historical Forces” (F3) foundation requirement.
Credit earned through AP or IB does not fulfill the requirements of the History major or minor but does count toward the 128 credits required for graduation.
Academic Integrity
All Rhodes College students pledge to uphold the Rhodes College Honor Code: "As a member of the Rhodes community, I pledge I will not lie, cheat, or steal, and that I will report any such violation that I may witness."
History students should familiarize themselves with the College′s guidelines involving plagiarism. The Rhodes Student Handbook provides a clear definition: "′Cheating′ includes plagiarism. Plagiarism is an act of academic dishonesty. A student must not adopt or reproduce ideas, words, or statements of another person without appropriate acknowledgment. A student must give credit to the originality of others and acknowledge an indebtedness whenever he or she does any of the following:
- Quotes another person’s actual words, either oral or written.
- Paraphrases another person’s actual words, either oral or written.
- Uses another person’s idea, opinion, or theory.
- Borrows facts, statistics, or other illustrative material unless the information is common knowledge.
It is the student’s responsibility to consult the professor, an Honor Council member, or writing handbooks for procedure for properly acknowledging sources."
For a more detailed discussion of plagiarism, defined by the American Historical Association as the appropriation of "the exact wording of another author without attribution," and the borrowing of "distinctive and significant research findings or interpretations" without proper citation, see the AHA’s Statement on Standards of Professional Conduct.
Transferring Credit from Colleges and Universities in the United States
In order to transfer credit from another domestic institution, the course(s) must first be approved by the Department Chair before the student invests time and money. The following guidelines apply:
- Students should schedule a meeting with the Department chair.
- Transfer credit may not be used to satisfy a foundation requirement. This is College policy. (Rhodes College Catalog 2010-2011, p. 60)
- To receive credit, the course must be taken at an accredited, 4-year college or university. Online or distance education courses are not accepted. Community college courses are not accepted.
- The chair will only grant approval if a student has a course description and/or syllabus.
- History courses taken at other institutions will be counted as the equivalent of a 200-level Rhodes course.
- Students are discouraged from taking broad survey courses that Rhodes does not offer, such as World History, Western Civilization, or United States to 1877. Look instead for more specific themes or periods.
- All 400-level seminars for History majors must be taken at Rhodes.
In cases where limited information about the desired course or program is available, the Department Chair may provide only provisional permission. In that case, the student must provide the syllabus along with test and writing assignments in order for a final assessment of the coursework to be made. Approval is not guaranteed.
Transferring Credit from Institutions Abroad
In order to transfer credit from a study abroad program, the course(s) must first be approved by the Department Chair before the student invests time and money. The following guidelines must be followed:
- Students should schedule a meeting with the Department chair.
- Students can fulfill the Foundation #3 requirement with a history course, so long as it is through a study abroad program that has been approved by the Buckman Center for International Education.
- A course(s) taken through a Buckman Center-approved study abroad program can count toward the student’s major or minor requirements.
- The chair will only grant approval if a student has a course description and/or syllabus.
- History courses taken through Buckman Center-approved study abroad program will be counted as the equivalent of a 200-level Rhodes course.
- Students are discouraged from taking broad survey courses that Rhodes does not offer, such as World History, Western Civilization, or United States to 1877. Look instead for more specific themes or periods.
- All 400-level seminars for History majors must be taken at Rhodes.
