Starting this fall, first-year students at Oxford College can only count eight credits earned through Advanced Placement exams, International Baccalaureate exams or other colleges toward their Associate of Arts degree. Previously, students could apply up to 18 outside credits to the degree.
Oxford requires nine general education requirements before a student can move to the Atlanta campus. While students can still earn and apply up to 18 outside credits to their eventual bachelor’s degree, limiting the number of these credits that can specifically apply toward the associate’s degree could affect students who aim to graduate early from Oxford. Over the past five years, over a fifth of Oxford students graduated early.
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Valerie Molyneaux stated in an email to The Emory Wheel that Oxford made the policy change to promote fairness in coursework.
“Oxford made this change in the interest of equity and to ensure that the quality and rigor of outside coursework meets university standards,” Molyneaux wrote.
Some students feel the new policy may jeopardize their goals, including Grace Liu (26Ox), who is considering graduating from Oxford a semester early. She explained that the extensive selection of classes offered on the Atlanta campus is “more appealing” to her.
“Ultimately, this is removing some of the students’ choice and ability to decide,” Liu said. “People are going to try and want to graduate early … whether or not they have a low or a high amount of credits they can transfer in.”
Ethan Miller (26Ox) said that the credit limit was a way for the University to make students stay at Oxford longer. Mac Dixon (26Ox) said that although the change is not ideal, it is not “entirely negative.”
“I understand that the school doesn’t want people rushing through their time at Oxford,” Dixon said.
Jack Steffen (26Ox) believes that the decision will not be negative as long as Oxford is committed to providing the same opportunities available on the Atlanta campus.
“It’s unfortunate to see students desiring, from a perspective of necessity, to graduate from Oxford a semester early in an attempt to succeed in their personal or academic careers,” Steffen said. “From what I've seen, the Oxford campus administration is heavily committed to the success of every student. I believe that this elite college is fully capable of ensuring the same opportunities that students who choose to graduate a semester early are gravitating towards on our Atlanta campus.”
However, Oxford Student Government Association (OxSGA) Arts and Academics Committee Chair Braden Newsome (25Ox) criticized the lack of student input in the decision.
“The way they announced this, to me, just seems unfair because … they didn’t give all the information to the incoming class — Oxford Class of ’26, Emory Class of ’28 — that they should have had when making their decision,” Newsome said. “OxSGA was not looped into this until after it had happened.”
Assistant Director of University Communications Rachel Smith clarified in an email to the Wheel that OxSGA was informed during a November 2023 meeting that the transfer credit policy was under review.
Newsome and OxSGA Spring Start Liaison Isabella Chow (25Ox) were especially concerned with spring start students’ ability to graduate on time under the new credit policy, so they wrote a resolution calling for an exception that would allow students in the spring start Class of 2026 to apply up to 12 outside credits to their associate’s degree. Specifically, the resolution indicates that, under the new policy, spring start students will need to enroll in 19 credits per semester to graduate on time if they want to avoid summer school.
Newsome emphasized the importance of student feedback on the issue.
“We want them to talk to us about issues, and we want them to make their voices heard,” Newsome said. “I am going to be working on this, on trying to see what we can do, both in the short term and the long term, to make this credit policy more equitable for Oxford students.”
With the policy implemented, students like Elie Lee (26Ox) have considered the best ways to verbalize their concerns.
“They definitely should have an opinion because, at the end of the day, it’s their quality of life on campus and their academics,” Lee said.
Correction (9/11/2024 at 11:35 p.m.): A previous version of this article stated that OxSGA was not informed about the policy change until after it was implemented, according to OxSGA Arts and Academics Committee Chair Braden Newsome (25Ox). In fact, OxSGA was informed during a November 2023 meeting that the transfer credit policy was under review.
