English Composition 1
Self-paced online English Composition 1 course (ENG 101). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
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Does transfer credit count toward the North Dakota substitute credit rule?
By the team. Checked 15 Nov 2026.
The short answer
ESPB asks for an official transcript documenting at least 48 semester hours of college coursework. Its page does not say how it treats transfer credit, so ask ESPB in writing. Credit from other colleges usually shows on the receiving college's transcript once that college posts it; send ESPB official transcripts from every college you attended.
What the rule says
NDAC 67.1-02-04-02 asks for two years of postsecondary education, which it defines as 48 semester hours. ESPB's application page asks for an official transcript documenting at least 48 semester hours of college coursework. Neither text lists required subjects, so the hours can come from any area of study.
Neither text says how transfer credit is treated either. That is the question to put to ESPB in writing before you plan courses around it.
How transfer credit usually appears
When you move credit from one college to another, the receiving college lists the transferred courses on its own transcript, often with a grade of transfer or pass and the number of hours. Some licensing boards count those hours from the receiving transcript; others want the original transcript from each college too. Sending official transcripts from every college you attended avoids most questions.
Credit from courses with ACE or NCCRS credit recommendations works the same way: it reaches a transcript only when a college posts it. TESU and UoPeople are partner colleges that consider ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended credit, and Newlane is a third.
- Send every official transcript
- Check the hours shown on each
- Ask ESPB how it counts transferred hours
Quarter hours and conversions
Some colleges use quarter hours. A quarter hour is usually two-thirds of a semester hour, so 48 semester hours equals about 72 quarter hours. If your transcripts mix systems, convert them and ask ESPB to confirm your total. Remedial or developmental courses may not count as college coursework, so leave them out of your own count until ESPB says otherwise.
| You have | Semester-hour equivalent |
|---|---|
| 72 quarter hours | About 48 semester hours |
| 60 quarter hours | About 40 semester hours |
| 45 quarter hours | About 30 semester hours |
The question to send ESPB
Write briefly: say you are applying for the interim substitute license on the 48-hour route, list the colleges on your record and the hours on each, and say whether any hours are transfer credit posted by another college. Ask whether that transcript record would meet the official transcript requirement. Keep the reply.
If you are several courses short, add one more question: whether ESPB would prefer you use the training route instead. For many people it is the quicker answer.
When to take more courses
Taking courses just to reach 48 hours is rarely worth it, because ESPB's $99 training route needs only a high school diploma or GED. More courses make sense when you are working toward a degree, which is also what removes the 30-consecutive-day limit. Choose general-education courses a degree plan will use: composition, maths, psychology, history, sociology.
Ask the college that will grant your degree, in writing, which courses it would post before you enrol.
What to ask in writing
Before you enrol
Ask ESPB in writing whether the official transcript you plan to send, including any transfer credit on it, meets the 48 semester hour requirement before you take more courses.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited. ACE and NCCRS review our courses and recommend credit; a college decides whether to give that credit and records it on its own transcript.
ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
Questions people ask
Do I need official transcripts from every college?
ESPB asks for an official transcript documenting 48 semester hours. If your hours are spread across colleges, send official transcripts from each, unless ESPB tells you in writing that one transcript showing all transferred hours is enough.
Do the 48 hours have to be in education?
No subject is named. The rule asks for two years of postsecondary education, defined as 48 semester hours, and ESPB asks for 48 semester hours of college coursework. Ask ESPB if you have a specific course you are unsure about.
What if I have 40 hours?
You can take more college courses to reach 48, or use ESPB's training route, which needs a high school diploma or GED plus the roughly 20-hour online course. If a degree is not your plan, the training is usually quicker.
Courses that fit
ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended courses, studied online at your own pace.
College Algebra
Self-paced online College Algebra course (Math 111). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
US History 1
Self-paced online US History 1 course (HIST 101). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →Start when you have it in writing
Add general-education courses with ACE or NCCRS credit recommendations toward a degree, moved via a college transcript, once ESPB confirms in writing how it treats transfer credit.
Sources
- ESPB: Substitute License Requirements and Application (official)Official transcript documenting a minimum of 48 semester hours of college coursework, plus an ESPB background check and an online application; applicants with fewer than 48 credits take a Frontline online course ($99, about 20 hours) and send the completion certificate, fingerprint packet and a high school diploma, GED or college transcript; license fee $95 plus a one-time $30 application fee; valid 2 years, expires on the applicant's birthday; covers grades K-12. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.
- NDAC 67.1-02-04: Alternative Access Licenses (section 67.1-02-04-02, Interim licenses for substitute teachers) (official)Interim licensure for substitutes with two years of postsecondary education (48 semester hours), or a high school diploma plus the state-approved substitute training, when a shortage exists; no more than 30 consecutive days in the same classroom without a bachelor's degree; fingerprint background check; fee stated as ninety dollars for two years; valid a minimum of two years; last amended January 1, 2024; authority NDCC 15.1-13-09, 15.1-13-10. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.