How to Get University Credit Approved Before You Go on Exchange: Learning Agreements Explained

What a Learning Agreement Is

A learning agreement is a signed document that names the exact courses you will take at a host university and confirms they count toward your home degree. It protects you from finishing an exchange semester with grades your home university refuses to recognize. Most exchange programs, including Erasmus+ partnerships and ASEAN university agreements, require one before you register for host courses.

The document usually carries three signatures: yours, your home coordinator's, and the host coordinator's. Each signature confirms that the listed courses fit your study plan and that the course descriptions match closely enough for credit transfer.

Step 1: Research the Host University's Course Catalog

Get the host university's course catalog for the exact semester you will attend, not last year's catalog, since course codes and content change. Most host universities publish a semester-specific list on their international office or registrar page. Note the course code, title, credit value, and a short description for each subject you consider.

Step 2: Match Courses to Your Home Degree

Take your host course list to your home department and sort each course into one of three categories: a direct equivalent to a required course, a free elective, or a course with no equivalent that your department still agrees to credit as general credit. Bring the course descriptions, not only titles, since two courses with similar names sometimes cover different content.

Ask your program coordinator which courses in your remaining degree plan still need completion, so you do not accidentally choose host courses that duplicate content you already passed.

Step 3: Draft and Submit the Learning Agreement

Fill in the learning agreement template your international office provides. List each course with its code, title, and credit value in both the host university's credit system and your home university's system, since a European ECTS credit does not equal an ASEAN university's local credit unit.

Submit the draft to your home coordinator first, then to the host coordinator, well before the semester begins. Universities set their own deadlines, so check your specific exchange office's calendar rather than relying on the host university's general enrollment date.

Step 4: Get Sign-Off Before You Leave

Do not travel without both signatures on the agreement. If a signature is delayed, ask your international office to confirm in writing that the agreement carries provisional approval, so you have documentation if a dispute comes up later. Keep a digital copy and a printed copy in your travel documents folder.

Step 5: Handle Changes During Add/Drop

Once you arrive, timetable clashes or closed classes often force changes to your course list during the host university's add/drop period. Most learning agreements include a change form for exactly this situation. Update the form with your home coordinator's approval before the add/drop deadline closes, not after, since late changes are harder to get approved after the fact.

Step 6: Convert Credits After You Return

Request an official transcript from the host university as soon as your exchange semester ends. Submit it with your signed learning agreement to your home registrar for credit transfer. Keep a copy of everything until the credits appear on your home transcript, since processing takes a full semester at some universities.