Letters of Permission (LOP)

Why do I need an LOP (Letter of Permission)?​

You need a Letter of Permission so that the Registrar’s Office has record of where you will be studying, since you may not be taking courses at SMU during that semester away.​ We will make sure your status is updated as “AWAY” so you continue to appear as an active student in the system.​ After confirming your LOP, the courses you take on exchange will factor into your tuition costs.​ The LOP also ensures you can receive credit for the courses you are taking at another institution.​The courses you take will be given SMU equivalents and those courses will then appear on your transcript and will factor into your degree/major/minor requirements.​ If you are taking an LOP at a domestic school (out of province-within Canada) you will receive letter grades for those courses. For international schools, you will receive a TR (transfer credit).​

How does the process work?

After speaking to their Academic Advisor, students should:

• Fill out a LOP form and send it to records@smu.ca

• The Records Office checks eligibility for a LOP and whether course equivalents are known

If you are eligible and we have a SMU equivalent:

• The Records Office will send your LOP to your Faculty Advising Department for final approval.

• The Records Office will send you the final signed LOP. Your courses & equivalents will be added to your record.​

If SMU doesn’t have the equivalent and/or needs more information:

• The Records Office will email you and request course outlines for course(s) you want to take.​

• Once we receive your outlines, they will be sent to the appropriate chair for a course review. This can take 2-4 weeks.​

• SMU equivalents will be established by chairs. The Records Office will add the equivalents to your LOP.​

What are the deadlines?

• Submit LOP: Usually the add/drop date - Sept 12/13 & Jan 16/17: This is really the last day you should be submitting your LOP by, as this is the final day for students to add or drop courses. (We can make exceptions if your courses are still under review, or if you decided to take different courses than what you originally planned).​

• Withdraw Date: Also Sept 12/13 & Jan. 16/17th: This is the last day to withdraw from your LOP courses without needing official proof. After this date we will require a letter from your visiting institution or a transcript stating you have withdrawn.​

• Transcript Due Date: Around The transcript due date is usually 3 months from the last day of classes at SMU. We will let you know the exact deadline in the confirmation email you will receive with your Approved LOP. ​

• Extensions: If you require an extension because you will not be finished your course on time, please email records@smu.ca to let us know well in advance of the deadline so we can note in on your file and keep your grade as blank until the transcript it received.

What are the eligibility requirements?

1. Must be a current student​

2. Must not have any financial holds (you must have paid all your tuition fees)​

3. Must not have maxed out your transfer credits (60 credits)​

4. Must be in good academic standing (if you are on probation or suspension not eligible)​

5. Must not be over 18 SMU credits for Fall or Winter semesters (9 or Spring & Summer)​

6. Should have spoken to your Advisor​

7. Must have a sound reason for taking LOP (course not aYou have a financial hold on your account.​vailable in term, not offered, personal)​

8. Must submit LOP before add/drop deadline

What happens if I’m NOT eligible for a LOP?

1. ​You are taking too many credits for what you are allowed to take in your semester (i.e. you are over the max amount of credits – 18 for Fall and Winter, 9 for Spring and Summer).​
   What to do: Drop courses that you don’t need, or remove some of the courses from your LOP.​

2. You have a financial hold on your account.​
   What to do: Contact Service.Centre@smu.ca to pay your fees so your holds will be removed.​

3. Your academic standing prohibits you from taking an LOP (you are on probation or suspension).
   What to do: Contact your advisor to see if your probation allows you to go on LOP. Suspended students are prohibited from taking LOPs.​

4. You have already used the maximum number of transfer credits (60 for 120cr programs)​:
   What to do: You are prohibited from taking any more LOPs unless transfer credits are removed. Contact your advisor.​

5. You already have an active LOP and are taking the max amount of credits.​
   What to do: You are prohibited from taking any more LOPs unless you withdraw from current LOP courses. You must send proof of withdrawal if after the add/drop deadline.​

6. You have not provided adequate reason for taking an LOP.
   What to do: If you have chosen “other” for your reason, submit a letter explaining your reason, and discuss with your advisor.

What is a course outline?

A course outline (also known as a syllabus) is a document that is normally given to students on the first day of classes that outlines all the content that will be covered in the course. Generally, it should contain the following information:​ a description of the course, the number of credits (1.5, 3, 6, etc.), topics covered & learning outcomes, how your work will be assessed (assignments, quizzes, exams), the total number of hours in your course or length of course (including lectures and independent work), information on prerequisites, required textbooks and resources, and information about the instructor.  

Why (and when) are course outlines needed?

An outline is needed when we don’t have an equivalent in our databank for the course you have requested to take.​ If we don’t have an equivalent, we cannot add the LOP to your record, as that course will not exist in our system. It is important that the Chairs review the outlines, as they will have the best understanding of whether that course aligns with one of SMU’s courses. ​If you do not send us your course outlines, when we request them, we cannot add your LOP to your record and you will not receive credit.

What are Indirect vs Direct Equivalents?

Direct Equivalents

Both institutions’ courses are worth the same amount, of credits, and the course material is aligned.​ For example, Dalhousie’s MATH 3120 Differential Equations II = SMU’s MATH 3406 Differential Equations II.​

Indirect Equivalents

The visiting institution’s credits are worth less than or more than our credits. It’s also when there is no course that meets the subject material exactly, and we award a general elective.​

Example. 1. The school’s credits are in European ECTs and vary in number. But 2 ECTS ≠ 3 SMU credits. When grouped, 17 ECTS = 9 SMU credits. OR Approx. 6 ECTS = 3 SMU credits.​

Example 2. If a visiting course is worth more than a three credit SMU course, we will give multiple course credits. 6 visiting school credits in one course = two 3-credit SMU course credits.​

Example 3. We have to give general electives. Dalhousie’s ANAT 1010 = SCIE 1901​​​

​​What happens if I don’t know the courses I am registering for yet?

(Or, if I change my mind about the courses I am registering for/the course is no longer available)

If you don’t know all the courses yet, please send us a list of the courses you want to take or are interested in, and I can check to see if we have the equivalents. Depending on that outcome, you can send me your LOP with the courses you most want to take. Please keep this number to under 10 courses. We will then let you know if we need outlines. But you can always send them anyway.​

If you change your mind, or you are no longer able to take the course that’s OKAY! You can send a new LOP with your updated courses. If your LOP was processed already I will remove the ones you don’t want.​

If it is past the add/drop deadline, we will need proof that you are not enrolled in those courses. A simple letter from your school will suffice. ​

How are grades updated?

Once you have completed your courses, and you have received grades for your courses, you will need to send official transcripts to the Records Office, in order for your credits to appear on your record.​ Official Transcripts should be sent directly from the institution itself to Records, OR if you are on Exchange, they should be sent to Global Learning, so they can be assessed for credits – i.e. to see if the grades you earned were high enough to receive credit.​ If you are on Exchange at an international school, you will not receive a letter grade, but rather a transfer credit. This will appear as TR on your transcript. You will receive general credit, but it will not factor into your GPA.​ If you are on LOP at a domestic institution, you will send your transcripts directly to Records and your grades will be added as they are on your transcript.

How do I submit ​my transcript?

Official transcripts should be submitted either through MyCreds or by contacting your visiting institution and asking them to send a digital or physical copy to the Records office.​

• For MyCreds, you will first need to contact the registrar’s office of your visiting school and ask them to share your transcript through MyCreds. Then you will need to go to their website, Homepage - MyCreds.ca and create an account or login if you already have one. From there you can purchase a “share” and select the school you want to share it with or type in the email. TIP: We suggest typing in the Records@smu.ca email as it is the fastest way for us to receive the transcript.​

• For physical copies, simply request your institution to mail us your transcript to the address:​

Enrolment Services ATTN: Student Records, Saint Mary's University, 923 Robie St. Halifax, NS, B3H 3C3 ​