In the BC Transfer System, an articulation committee is a group of institutional representatives, from institutions that offer courses or programs in a specific subject area. Every BC Transfer System member institution is expected to send a representative to meetings of articulation committees related to its courses or programs.

There are more than 60 articulation committees in BC. Each one meets at least once per year.

Representatives that attend articulation committee meetings are usually faculty members or department heads in the relevant subject area. Each BC Transfer System member institution is entitled to one vote on motions at the meetings.

Private institutions that are members of the BC Transfer System can only send representatives to meetings of articulation committees related to the subject of the degree(s) they have been authorized to offer.

At articulation committee meetings, the representatives discuss transfer-related issues at their institutions and in their subject area. Articulation agreements are not created at those meetings; these are created throughout the year through the Transfer Credit System (TCS) that connects all BC Transfer System members. Articulation committee representatives may be asked by their institution to evaluate transfer credit requests that the institution receives.

Each committee has a chair that facilitates the committee’s operations throughout the year, and organizes its meetings. Some committees also have co-chairs or vice-chairs.

Articulation committees are overseen by BCCAT’s Transfer and Articulation Committee (TAC). The work of the committees is supported by BCCAT staff, and BCCAT staff usually attend articulation meetings as non-voting guests. However, BCCAT does not direct the activities of articulation committees, or organize and run their meetings.

Articulation is the process of one institution assessing another institution’s courses or programs to determine if they are similar enough to award transfer credit. If transfer credit is awarded, the agreement to grant transfer credit is called the “articulation agreement”.

In the BC Transfer System (BCTS), the institution requesting articulation for its course or program is the “sending institution”. The institution evaluating the articulation request and awarding transfer credit is the “receiving institution”.

The sending institution requests articulation using the Transfer Credit System (TCS), the application and workflow that enables BCTS articulation requests and evaluations. The sending institution provides the receiving institution with information on the course, and asks the receiving institution to evaluate it. The receiving institution usually sends the request to a subject matter expert at the institution.

If the receiving institution decides that the sending institution’s course or program is similar enough to its own courses or programs, it awards transfer credit. “Transfer credit” means that if a student has taken the course or program at the sending institution, they will receive credit for the equivalent course at the receiving institution.

Articulation agreements are recorded in the BC Transfer Guide. The Guide can be searched by course or by program, and by sending and/or receiving institution. The information in the Guide is updated in real time, as soon as a new agreement or a change is sent through the TCS.

Not all courses or programs are equivalent enough to justify transfer credit. Students’ learning in equivalent courses should be recognized, but students can be disadvantaged by receiving credit for learning or skills that they have not fully acquired.

BCCAT does not create or approve articulation agreements. BCCAT operates the TCS and the BC Transfer Guide, and supports institutions in administering their articulation agreements.