EQUIVALENCY OF COURSES TRANSCRIPTS AND CREDIT SYSTEM

The global process of education for the 21 st century already touch continent and societies, and
will continue to acquire more relevance and meaning through the two decades ahead.
Educational ideas and practices are increasingly shared by peoples and nations at different levels
of development and inheriting diverse traditions. Education is no longer confined to national
realities and horizons: beyond these boundaries global vistas appear rapidly and made education
more and more a human concern confronting common problems and offering opportunities to all.
The interdependence of nations goes far beyond and international education is seen as the more
and more best instrument for moral and human solidarity. In order to make education cross the
border, it is essential to meet the standards of it in the concerned universities or institutes. This is
made possible through the use of equivalency of courses and transcripts.

There is a close relationship between course equivalency and transcript. Transcripts form the
basis for assessment of course equivalency. Transcripts include details of course content covered
by students, hours covered in classes and clinical area.

DEFINITION

Course equivalency is the term used in higher education describing how a course offered by one
college or university relates to a course offered by another. If a course is viewed as equal or
better than the course offered by the receiving college or university, the course can be noted as
an equivalence course.

Course equivalency refers equivalence of the different versions of a course, usually arising from
differences in location offered, particularly off shore versions of locally delivered courses,
different modes of delivery or offering in a language other than English.

Issues of course equivalence may also need to be considered in relation to new modes of
delivery of existing courses for example, where a new version of course replaces an industrial
experience with alternative learning experiences.

A Course equivalency can be unilateral, meaning it is deemed equivalent by the receiver. Or it

could be bilateral, meaning both sender and receiver acknowledge their acceptance of each
other’s course as equivalent. The methods and measures used to determine course equivalency
vary by institution, state, region and country.

PRINCIPLES

 Courses are regarded as equivalence if they have the same intended learning outcomes
and consequences the same graduate profile.
 Equivalence courses should therefore have the same overall educational aims and assess
their achievement at the same standard.
PROCEDURE

The procedure involved for equivalence of foreign nursing qualification is as follows:

A transcript perform has to be filled by the concerned university/ board from where the candidate
has qualified his/her training

After receiving the transcript, it is placed before the equivalency committee

The decision of the Equivalency committee is communicated to the candidate.

A demand draft of 1000/- in favor of secretary, Indian Nursing Council, new Delhi towards
equivalence fee is required to be submitted by the candidate.

TRANSCRIPT AND CREDIT SYSTEM

DEFINITION

A transcript is an official copy of the student’s academic record. It records all courses
successfully and unsuccessfully completed and all courses that were withdrawn after registration
deadline.

CHARACTERISTICS

 A transcript is a copy of a student’s permanent academic record which usually means all
courses taken, all grades received, all honors received that were withdrawn after
registration deadline.
 A transcript may also contain average grade of the class.
 An official transcript is prepared and sent by the issuing school with an original signature of
a school official. When students are thinking about changing schools, the cumulative
transcripts usually get mailed from school to school.
 Transcripts can be cumulative record file, permanent record, or simply record.

Contents of an academic record/ Transcript

 Students name and registration number

 Date of issue
 Previous school’s names, addresses and phone numbers
  List of courses you took: usually by year.
 Course and until titles
 Year of study and total marks obtained
 Qualification and graduation dates.

Benefits and uses for the students

 Enables students to organize experiences and document accomplishments.

 Assists students with targeting specific skill areas and competencies thereby focusing on
goal setting and attainment.
 Assists students in communicating their campus involvement during advising sessions.
 Assists students with college and university application, internship and employment
interview preparation, resume development, and job search strategies.
 Increases students proactive educational planning, self-awareness, and confidence to
support decision making/ goal setting.
 Helps students communicate and effectively articulate their college experiences to potential
employers and/or graduate/professional schools.
 Helps students develop personal contacts with professional staff from students affair and
across campus who would be assistance to them in choosing areas of involvement which
meet personal and career goals.

Benefits and uses for college and Universities

 Allows prospective colleges and universities to view different aspects of student’s ability.
 Provides colleges and universities with information complementing a student’s academic
transcripts and resume.
 Presents colleges and universities with an understanding of the technology available to
students and allows students to demonstrate their technological skills by creating and
designing their own unique SLT.

Benefits and uses for university advisors, Faculty and staff

 Serves as a recruitment and retention tool.

 Enhances accessibility to self-reported student information regarding a wide range of
cocurricular and life experiences that may be helpful in providing and improving student
services and assistance.
 Documents student’s competencies for accreditation and outcome assessments
 Provides advisors, faculty and staff with information that can assist in fostering student 
development, decision making and retention to graduation
PROCEDURE TO REQUEST COLLEGE TRANSCTRIPT

A student’s signature is required each time a transcript is requested

The request must be in writing and may be sent by fax or by mail or request in person. The
request must include: student’s name and Father’s name as it was during attendance in college,
students university registration Number, session of passing, address where transcripts is to be
mailed student’s signature

Any transcripts issued directly to the students will be stamped issued to student and will be
considered unofficial.

official transcripts are marked with the official seal of the university and are mailed directly by
the registrar office to prospective employers, to official representatives of other universities, to
certification agencies, etc.

TYPES OF TRANSCRIPTS

Transcripts are of two types

I. Official transcripts
II. Unofficial transcripts

Official transcripts

 The official transcripts are the type that each program to which you are applying will need
from you.
 An official is sealed in an envelope by the originating school to prevent tampering.
 Can request the official transcript be sent directly to the nursing programs to which
application has been made or to home so that you can package everything together and
send off as unit to avoid missing information later down the line.

Unofficial transcripts

 An official transcript is all of the same information that is an official transcript but it is not
sealed.
 Can order these, and in fact can sometimes print right from the school’s website for the
records.
CREDIT SYSTEM

According to the News published in The Economic Times (February 2015), the Indian
government has made Choice-Based Credit system (CBCS) mandatory for all 400 public
universities at the undergraduate and postgraduate level beginning in the academic year 2105-
2016. It will encourage students to learn in an interdisciplinary manner, in which teachers from
varied disciplines design a curriculum, instruct the class and grade teams. Students can opt for
courses of their choice, learn at their own place, take additional courses and get more than the
required credits.

Definitions of Key Words:

 Academic Year: Two consecutive (one odd + one even) semesters constitute one academic
year.
 Choice Based Credit System (CBCS): The CBCS provides choice for students to select
from the prescribed courses (core, elective or minor or soft skill courses).
 Course: Usually referred to, as ‘papers’ is a component of a programme. All courses need
not carry the same weight. The courses should define learning objectives and learning
outcomes. A course may be designed to comprise lectures/ tutorials/laboratory work/ field
work/ outreach activities/ project work/ vocational training/viva/ seminars/ term
papers/assignments/ presentations/ self-study etc. or a combination of some of these.
 Credit Based Semester System (CBSS): Under the CBSS, the requirement for awarding a
degree or diploma or certificate is prescribed in terms of number of credits to be completed
by the students. Credit Point: It is the product of grade point and number of credits for a
course.
 Credit: A unit by which the course work is measured. It determines the number of hours of
instructions required per week. One credit is equivalent to one hour of teaching (lecture or
tutorial) or two hours of practical work/field work per week.
 Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA): It is a measure of overall cumulative
performance of a student over all semesters. The CGPA is the ratio of total credit points
secured by a student in various courses in all semesters and the sum of the total credits of all
courses in all the semesters. It is expressed up to two decimal places.
 Grade Point: It is a numerical weight allotted to each letter grade on a 10-point scale.
 Letter Grade: It is an index of the performance of students in a said course. Grades are
denoted by letters O, A+, A, B+, B, C, P and F.
 Programme: An educational programme leading to award of a Degree, diploma or
certificate
 Semester Grade Point Average (SGPA): It is a measure of performance of work done in a
semester. It is ratio of total credit points secured by a student in various courses registered in
a semester and the total course credits taken during that semester. It shall be expressed up to
two decimal places.
 Semester: Each semester will consist of 15-18 weeks of academic work equivalent to 90
actual teaching days. The odd semester may be scheduled from July to December and even
semester from January to June.
 Transcript or Grade Card or Certificate: Based on the grades earned, a grade certificate
shall be issued to all the registered students after every semester. The grade certificate will
display the course details (code, title, number of credits, grade secured) along with SGPA of
that semester and CGPA earned till that semester.

DEFINITION

According to the UGC, Credit is unit by which the course work is measured. It determines the
number of hours of instructions required per week. One credit is equivalent to one hour of
teaching (lecture or tutorial) or two hours of practical work /field work per week, whereas credit
point is the product of grade point and the number of credits for a course.

Credit defines the quantum of content/syllabus prescribed for the course. It may be a unit
prescribed for a course and is determined by the number of hours of instruction required per
week. Thus, in the number of hours required per week for lectures/tutorials/laboratory work/field
work to complete the course in a single semester.

A course credit in s unit that gives weightage to the value, level or time requirements of an
academic’s course taken at a school or other educational institution.

Credit system is a systematic way of describing an educational program by attaching credits to

its components. The definition of credits in higher education systems may be based on different
parameters, such as student workload, learning outcomes and contact hours.

Need for credit system in Indian Educational system

The university Grants Commission (UGC) has initiated several measures to bring equity,
efficiency and excellence in the Higher education system of the country. The important measures
taken to enhance academic standards and quality in higher education include innovation and
improvements in curriculum, teaching-learning process, examination and evaluation systems,
besides governance and other matters. The credits based semester system provides flexibility in
designing curriculum and assigning credits based on the course content and hours of teaching.

TYPES OF CREDIT

 High School credit

 University Credits
 Credit hours
 Credits by Exam
 Faculty hours
BENEFITS OF ACADEMIC CREDIT SYSTEM

 Keep track of student process and determine when he or she has met the requirements for
awarding a specific academic degree.
 Offer a good estimate of the workload of a programme and how it is distributed between the
different higher education activities.
 Some academic credit systems permit students to transfer to different programmes and keep
part or all of their previously earned credit points.
 If a student has not graduated a study programme, but wants to find a job, earned academic
credits may be presented to employers as proof of previous studies.
 Some universities use academic study credits to set programme costs.

CHARACTERISTICS

 Term credit has a connation of achievement or earning.

 It in the present context also implies successful completion of course of study measured in
term of classroom instruction hours/week in the courses being studied in the semester.
 It is also an identification of credits for a learning effort.
 It also an identification of credits for a learning effort.
 It also measures the volume of the content to be delivered in the course being studied
 Credit of the course also indicated the weightage of the course for calculating grade point
average.

Semester System and Choice Based Credit System

The Indian Higher Education Institutions have been moving from the conventional annual
system to semester system. Currently many of the institutions have already introduced the choice
based credit system. The semester system accelerates the teaching-learning process and enables
vertical and horizontal mobility in learning. The credit based semester system provides flexibility
in designing curriculum and assigning credits based on the course content and hours of teaching.
The choice based credit system provides a ‘cafeteria’ type approach in which the students can
take courses of their choice, learn at their own pace, undergo additional courses and acquire
more than the required credits, and adopt an interdisciplinary approach to learning, It is desirable
that the HEIs move to CBCS and implement the grading system.

Types of Courses

Courses in a programme may be of three kinds: Core, Elective and Foundation.

Core Course

There may be a Core Course in every semester. This is the course which is to be compulsorily
studied by a student as a core requirement to complete the requirement of a programme in a said
discipline of study.
Elective Course

Elective course is a course which can be chosen from a pool of papers. It may be:

 Supportive to the discipline of study

 Providing an expanded scope
 Enabling an exposure to some other discipline/domain
 Nurturing student’s proficiency/skill.

An elective may be “Generic Elective” focusing on those courses which add generic proficiency
to the students. An elective may be “Discipline centric” or may be chosen from an unrelated
discipline. It may be called an “Open Elective.”

Foundation Course

The Foundation Courses may be of two kinds: Compulsory Foundation and Elective foundation.
“Compulsory Foundation” courses are the courses based upon the content that leads to
Knowledge enhancement. They are mandatory for all disciplines. Elective Foundation courses
are value-based and are aimed at man-making education.

RECOMMENDATION OF CREDIT BY UGC

 Applicability of the grading system

 Choice Based Credit System (CBCS)
 Credit Based Semester System (CBS)
 Credit Points
 Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)
 Grade Point
 Letter Grade

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NUMBER OF CREDITS AND MARKS PER PAPER

Through credits are not directly related to marks, as thumb rule we may consider

1 credit = 25 marks
A theory paper with 4 credits shall be assigned 100 marks
A theory paper with 3 credits shall be assigned 75 marks
A theory paper with 3 or 4 credits shall be assigned 75 or 100 marks

CREDIT BASED CHOICE SYSTEM

Vision:

To evolve a higher education system that is suitability blended with provision for knowledge
values and skill practice where every student learns in without sacrificing his/her creativity.
OBJECTIVES

 To introduce Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) at Undergraduate level.

 Development of Curricula that would facilitate student centric learning
 Examination Reforms
 Administrative Reforms

STRATEGY

i. To introduce Semester system,

ii. To develop a structured programme for CBCS that would
 Enable students to have a flexible learning within a structured model.
 Enable students to have wider choices outside their discipline of their study.
 Enable students to have an exposure to real life experience by participation in
internships as well as vocational training
 Enable students to have facility of Credit transfer across the country
iii. To design the curriculum with sufficient/appropriate/adequate provision for Value
oriented courses, Interdisciplinary courses and Vocational courses. Each course shall
have a clearly defined course objective and course outcome.
iv. Teacher training and capacity building
v. Revamping of learning processes by changing in teaching pedagogy by
 Use of ICT
 Use of Sandhan

GOALS

The ultimate goal is to bring reforms in higher education so that students develop thinking as
well as analytical ability, he/she gets equipped with necessary skills ultimately making him/her
suitable for an employment and to integrate values of our culture with education.

HIGHER EDUCATION REFORMS IN INDIA {CREDITS, SEMESTERS AND ACCESS}

FROM CURRENT CENSUS

The Govt. of India has set the goals of increasing the enrolment ratio among Indian colleges. In
12th plan: - it adopts a holistic approach to the issues of expansion , equity and excellence so that
it will provide larger no of students in institution and assure the quality of study in India

The ministry of HUMAN RESOURCRES DEVELOPMENT’S (MHRD) 2013 RASTRIYA

UCCHATTAR SHIKHA ABHIYAN (RUSA) plan.

These include the introduction of academic credits , significant curricula changes, new
assessment protocols and the transition to a semester based academic calendar.
BUILDING BLOCKS OF RUSA ACADEMIC REFORMS

SEMESTER SYSTEM
CBCS (CREDIT BASED CHOICE SYSTEM)
CIRRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
NEW ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES
EXAMINATION REFORMS

EXAMINATION AND ASSESSMENT

The HEIs are currently following various methods for examination and assessment suitable for
the courses and programmes as approved by their respective statutory bodies. In assessing the
performance of the students in examinations, the usual approach is to award marks based on the
examinations conducted at various stages (sessional, mid-term, end-semester etc.,) in a semester.
Some of the HEIs convert these marks to letter grades based on absolute or relative grading
system and award the grades. There is a marked variation across the colleges and universities in
the number of grades, grade points, letter grades used, which creates difficulties in comparing
students across the institutions. The UGC recommends the following system to be implemented
in awarding the grades and CGPA under the credit based semester system.

Letter Grades and Grade Points

I. Two methods -relative grading or absolute grading– have been in vogue for awarding
grades in a course. The relative grading is based on the distribution (usually normal
distribution) of marks obtained by all the students of the course and the grades are
awarded based on a cut-off marks or percentile. Under the absolute grading, the marks
are converted to grades based on predetermined class intervals. To implement the
following grading system, the colleges and universities can use any one of the above
methods.
II. The UGC recommends a 10-point grading system with the following letter grades as
given below:

Grades and Grade Points

Letter Grade Letter Grade
O (Outstanding) 10
A+ (Excellent) 9
A (Very Good) 8
B+ (Good) 7
B (Above Average) 6
C (Average) 5
 P (Pass) 4
F (Fail) 0
Ab (Absent ) 0

 A student obtaining Grade F shall be considered failed and will be required to reappear in
the examination.
 For non-credit courses ‘Satisfactory’ or “Unsatisfactory’ shall be indicated instead of the
letter grade and this will not be counted for the computation of SGPA/CGPA.
 The Universities can decide on the grade or percentage of marks required to pass in a
course and also the CGPA required to qualify for a degree taking into consideration the
recommendations of the statutory professional councils such as AICTE, MCI, BCI, NCTE
etc.,
 The statutory requirement for eligibility to enter as assistant professor in colleges and
universities in the disciplines of arts, science, commerce etc., is a minimum average mark
of 50% and 55% in relevant postgraduate degree respectively for reserved and general
category. Hence, it is recommended that the cut-off marks for grade B shall not be less than
50% and for grade B+, it should not be less than 55% under the absolute grading system.
Similarly cut-off marks shall be fixed for grade B and B+ based on the recommendation of
the statutory bodies (AICTE, NCTE etc.,) of the relevant discipline.

Fairness in Assessment:

Assessment is an integral part of system of education as it is instrumental in identifying and

certifying the academic standards accomplished by a student and projecting them far and wide as
an objective and impartial indicator of a student’s performance. Thus, it becomes bounden duty
of a University to ensure that it is carried out in fair manner. In this regard, UGC recommends
the following system of checks and balances which would enable Universities effectively and
fairly carry out the process of assessment and examination.

 In case of at least 50% of core courses offered in different programmes across the
disciplines, the assessment of the theoretical component towards the end of the
semester should be undertaken by external examiners from outside the university
conducting examination, who may be appointed by the competent authority. In such
courses, the question papers will be set as well as assessed by external examiners.
 In case of the assessment of practical component of such core courses, the team of
examiners should be constituted on 50 – 50 % basis. i.e. half of the examiners in the
team should be invited from outside the university conducting examination.
 In case of the assessment of project reports / thesis / dissertation etc. the work should be
undertaken by internal as well as external examiners.

Computation of SGPA and CGPA

The UGC recommends the following procedure to compute the Semester Grade Point Average
(SGPA) and Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA):

1. The SGPA is the ratio of sum of the product of the number of credits with the grade
points scored by a student in all the courses taken by a student and the sum of the number
of credits of all the courses undergone by a student, i.e

SGPA (Si) = Σ(Ci x Gi) / ΣCi

where Ci is the number of credits of the ith course and Gi is the grade point scored by the
student in the ith course.
2. The CGPA is also calculated in the same manner taking into account all the courses
undergone by a student over all the semesters of a programme, i.e.

CGPA = Σ(Ci x Si) / Σ Ci

where Si is the SGPA of the ith semester and Ci is the total number of credits in that
semester.
3. The SGPA and CGPA shall be rounded off to 2 decimal points and reported in the
transcripts.

Illustration of Computation of SGPA and CGPA and Format for Transcripts

1. Computation of SGPA and CGPA

Illustration for SGPA

Course Credit Grade letter Grade point Credit point ( Credit x Grade)
Course 1 3 A 8 3 x 8 = 24
Course 2 4 B+ 7 7 x 4 = 28
Course 3 3 B 6 3 x 6 =18
Course 4 3 O 10 3 x 10 = 30
Course 5 3 C 5 3 x 5 =15
Course 6 4 B 4 4 x 4 = 16
20 130

Thus, SGPA =139/20 =6.95

Illustration for CGPA

Semester 1 Semester 2 Semester 3 Semester 4 Semester 5 Semester 6

Credit : 20 Credit : 22 Credit : 25 Credit : 26 Credit : 26 Credit : 25
SGPA : 6.9 SGPA :7.8 SGPA :5.6 SGPA : 6.0 SGPA : 6.3 SGPA : 8.0
Thus, CGPA = 20 x 6.9 + 22 x 7.8 + 25 x 5.6 + 26 x 6.0 + 26 x 6.3 + 25 x 8.0/ 144 = 6.73
 2. Transcript (Format): Based on the above recommendations on Letter grades, grade
points and SGPA and CCPA, the HEIs may issue the transcript for each semester and a
consolidated transcript indicating the performance in all semesters.

ADVANTAGES

 In this students can earn credits at her own pace

 It promotes student mobility (within and between institutions)
 It improves curriculum design (flexible routes and pathways) and the quality of education
 Facilitates diversity in national higher Education qualification and institutions
 Promotes the development of multiple entry and exit points and encourages widening
participation and lifelong learning.
 Facilitates more students-centered education and the development of mass higher
education system.
 Improves the recognition of learning wherever it is achieved
 Improves the quality of qualification since learning-outcomes are clear.
 It allows the students to study in the sequence that she prefers –putting her interest.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

The credit system in world is introduced to increases the quality standards. And in India it’s also
in glance and increasing the quality standard by credit system and it also focuses on state level,
where over 90 % of the nation’s approximately 30 million higher education student are involved.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has initiated several measures to bring equity,
efficiency and excellence in the Higher Education System of country. The important measures
taken to enhance academic standards and quality in higher education include innovation and
improvements in curriculum, teaching-learning process, examination and evaluation systems,
besides governance and other matters.

The UGC has formulated various regulations and guidelines from time to time to improve the
higher education system and maintain minimum standards and quality across the Higher
Educational Institutions (HEIs) in India. The academic reforms recommended by the UGC in the
recent past have led to overall improvement in the higher education system. However, due to lot
of diversity in the system of higher education, there are multiple approaches followed by
universities towards examination, evaluation and grading system. While the HEIs must have the
flexibility and freedom in designing the examination and evaluation methods that best fits the the
curriculum, syllabi and teaching–learning methods, there is a need to devise a sensible system for
awarding the grades based on the performance of students. Presently the performance of the
students is reported using the conventional system of marks secured in the examinations or
grades or both. The conversion from marks to letter grades and the letter grades used vary widely
across the HEIs in the country. This creates difficulty for the academia and the employers to
understand and infer the performance of the students graduating from different universities and
colleges based on grades.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Basvanthappa BT. Nursing Education. 2nd edition: Jaypee publication; page no. 178-189
2. Neerja KP, Textbook of Nursing education. 1st edition: Jaypee publication; page no.
145-162
3. D. raj Elakkuvan, Bhaskar Nina. Text book of Nursing education: Emmess Medical
Publishers; page no. 156-174
4. Sodhi Jaspreet Kaur. Comprehensive Textbook of Nursing Education. 2017: Jaypee The
health Sciences Publisher; page number. 362-365
5. Internet reference:
http://vikaspedia.in/education/policies-and-schemes/choice-based-credit-system-cbcs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcript_(education)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Course_credit
 ASSAM DOWNTOWN UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF NURSING
CLASS PRESENTATION

ON

EQUIVALENCY OF COURSES: TRANSCRIPTS, CREDIT SYSTEM

SUBJECT – NURSING EDUCATION

SUBMITTED TO: SUBMITTED BY:

MS. LAKHIMI GOGOI AMANDA KHARSAMAI

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR 1ST YR. M.Sc. NURSING

FACULTY OF NURSING ROLL NO- 02

ASSAM DOWNTOWN UIVERSITY ASSAM DOWNTOWN UNIVERSITY

SUBMITTED ON: 07/11/2021

 CONTENT
1. Introduction
2. Definition
3. Principles
4. Procedure

TRANSCRIPT ANS CREDIT SYSTEM

 Definition
 Characteristics
 Contents of an academic record/ Transcript
 Benefits and uses for the students
 Benefits and uses for college and Universities
 Benefits and uses for university advisors, Faculty and staff
 Procedure to request college transcript
 Types of transcripts

CREDIT SYSTEM
 Definitions of Key Words
 Definition
 Need for credit system in Indian Educational system
 Types of credit
 Benefits of academic credit system
 Characteristics
 Semester System and Choice Based Credit System
 Types of Courses
 Recommendation of credit by UGC
 Relationship between number of credits and marks per paper
 Credit based choice system
 Objectives
 Strategy
 Goals
 Higher education reforms in India {credits, semesters and access} from current census
 Examination and assessment
 Advantages

5. Summary and conclusion

6. Bibliography