Do petitions for transfer credit and course substitutions need to be taken care of before I declare?
No, they can be taken care of any time up until the quarter before you graduate. However, BE CAREFUL. If you wait too long, and your petition is not approved, you might not be able to graduate on time. Also, depending on how busy people are, the petition may not be approved in time. Once you plan to petition for transfer credit or a course substitution, you should go about getting approval as soon as you can.