ISEP Conference ’08 Cooperating to Meet the Challenge of Credit Transfer: U.S. and International Perspectives

1.ECTS issues Notes following a recent experience with transcript issues at the Université du Maine (Le Mans)  - “course” in the French system = an element that is part of the predefined structure of a degree - the students’ course choices are largely constrained by the kind of degree they are seeking defined primarily by content, in conjunction with the other course contents contributing to building the curriculum for a “degree” ECTS are distributed among the courses forming the structure of one specific degree; they have a relative, interdependent weight and worth (the work load associated with each course is also a function of the general structure of the degree ECTS secondary though used in transcripts - French system remains a largely grade-based system - grades and credits not combined towards a “GPA”

ECTS issues (cont.) French students’ grades are averaged - all the grades for a semester and a year: a student will « pass » the semester or the year provided his/her grade average is 10 or above Some courses weighing more than others in the structure of a specific degree, a French student can pass even with a below 10/20 grade - or two = a favorable system that American students who take separate courses cannot benefit from As a consequence, it seems very unfair to apply a strict mechanical division of the ECTS in order to get the American credits - grades have to be taken into account first  French grading system: see notes on the specificities of the French grading scale on ISEP website passing grade: rather 8/20 than 10/20 and 14/20 and above considered as very good to excellent grades

ECTS issues (end) As a consequence:  Taking various courses in various departments: a challenge for the American student because it is not the standard student curricula are organized and the workload will be heavier for the American studeni  it is almost impossible for an American student to take 30 ECTS per semester in separate departments: an average of 15 hrs/week seems reasonable a pre-approved selection of courses modelled on the Erasmus learning agreement and focusing on course content should prevail Next slide: a sample of a transcript from the Université du Maine (note that the following example is a rare one of a high achiever who accumulated 29 credits and received excellent grades; the credits are ECTS credits)

Transcript issued for a US student

2. The US students’ responsibility in obtaining grades  The students need guidance and cannot be left on their own to handle such issues (not an uncommon problem upon return)  - pre-departure: role of the home institution ISEP coordinator and/or academic advisor counseling or encouraging the student to prepare a course list Helping the student obtain information from the host institution via e- mail when websites are not updated or user-friendly for international students)  - during exchange period: role of the host institution ISEP coordinator and/or academic advisor regular and sustained communication communication between student and advisor - revising and finalizing course choices and lists explaining the rules the students have to abide by (like the French students): guidance and counseling Remind the students of all the information provided by ISEP on its website and in the IIS

3. Issues facing French students when returning  - transferring American credits and grades to the grade-based French system  - credits and grades have to fit into the student’s specific French degree  - solutions that have been adopted at the University of Le Mans: the courses taken by the students are integrated into the structure of the French degree s/he is enrolled in a conversion table is used to “translate” the American letter grades into French grades the American credits are not used - if the student gets the passing grades when all grades are averaged, s/he will automatically receive the 30 ECTS or 60 ECTS as a « bulk »

Conversion table ( used for French students returning from the US)

Comparative table (with French requirements on the left handside) Note that there are 7 required courses for the French student - the first 6, then a choice of 1 in the rest of the list. In this (incomplete) table, the translation workshop and seminar in communication the student took in the first semester in the US will also be used to fulfill the French requirements for the second semester

A French transcript for a French student Note that some of the student’s grades are below 10/20, which does not prevent him/her from passing as the total for the year averages 11,4/20.