Whether it’s a lack of course offerings in your chosen major or a party scene that makes you want to hide in your room, your current college may not be “the one.” For community college students, transferring is often already built into the plan, but many other students will choose to transfer from one four-year college to another before graduation (about 15% of all college students are transfers). If transferring is on your mind, you should understand how the transfer application process differs from that for first years, research your options, and allow enough time to gather all the required documents. Keep your goal in mind: finding a better fit and a college experience that will help you meet your goals.
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THE TRANSFER PROCESS
Academics: Similar to the first-year admissions process, your academic record is the most significant part of your transfer application. This means if you apply to transfer during your first year of college, your high school record (grades, scores) will still be your primary “proof” of your academic potential. At most, you will have first-semester college grades and one or two faculty recommendations, but admissions officers will scrutinize your high school record more closely than if you were to apply to transfer in your second year of college. If your grades declined at the end of your senior year of high school or you had a rough first semester of college, you may want to consider delaying your transfer applications until you can bring up your grades. Showing what you have done academically since high school is a priority, so focus on cultivating strong relationships with your instructors, asking about research opportunities, joining academic clubs, and submitting work to be published before you apply.
Timeline: You may not need to wait an entire year to apply to transfer. A number of schools offer both spring (often Oct.-Nov. deadlines) and fall (often Mar.-Apr. deadlines) admissions rounds. Consider whether you would rather transfer in the fall, when the vast majority of new students—both first-year and transfer students—will be enrolling and going through orientation, or whether you are independent enough to enter a new school in the spring, when you will be one of a small number of new students and may have little by way of orientation programming.
SELECTED LIST OF SCHOOLS OFFERING BOTH FALL & SPRING TRANSFER ADMISSION
| School | Deadline for Fall Admission | Deadline for Spring Admission |
|---|---|---|
| Amherst College | March 1 | November 1 |
| Boston University | March 15 | November 1 |
| Carnegie Mellon University | February 15 | October 15 |
| Claremont McKenna College | March 15 | November 1 |
| Colorado College | March 1 | October 15 |
| George Washington University | April 1 | October 1 |
| MIT | March 15 | October 15 |
| Middlebury College | March 1 | November 1 |
| New York University | April 1 | November 1 |
| Rice University | March 15 | November 1 |
| Tulane University | February 1 (early, non-binding) April 15 | October 15 |
| University of Michigan | February 1 | October 1 |
| University of Notre Dame | March 15 | October 1 |
| University of Virginia | March 1 | October 1 |
Diversity: As a transfer applicant, you will likely be part of a more diverse pool of students than you were as a first year. Many schools, especially more selective institutions, look to advance their diversity goals through transfer, actively recruiting students who bring a wider range of life experiences to their classrooms and campus communities. Ivy League schools in particular explicitly seek to admit transfers from nontraditional backgrounds. Princeton, for example, “particularly encourage[s] applications from students from lower-income backgrounds, community college students, and U.S. military veterans.” If you are seeking to make a lateral transfer, recognize that published transfer acceptance rates often include non-traditional students, as well as recruited athletes.
Competition: Outside of large public universities like the UCs (which offer guaranteed admission to qualified community college students), colleges typically admit a very small number of transfer students. Harvard, for example, admitted just 15 transfer students in 2022, or .8% of those who applied! Other highly selective schools like Columbia, University of Chicago, and Vanderbilt have more encouraging rates (between 11-17%). Transfer can be more or less competitive than first-year admissions. To see for yourself the transfer acceptance rates at your target colleges, search on their websites for “Common Data Set,” which provides federally mandated statistics on admissions, and go to section D to find how many transfers applied, were admitted and enrolled.
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GATHER YOUR DOCUMENTS
Requesting and submitting all the required documents to accompany your applications takes time, so don’t wait until the week before the deadline to start the process! Transfer application requirements may include:
- The Common Application for Transfer—sadly, you will need to start over and create a new account. Some schools (like Georgetown or MIT) use their own application, but most will require the Common App.
- Official copies of your high school and college transcripts must be mailed, emailed, or uploaded by your high school and current college registrars to the admissions offices at your destination colleges. The Common App for Transfer has a handy Transcript Request Form you can use. Some colleges will also ask for course descriptions to assess your potential credit transfer. You can usually pull these from your college’s website.
- The Common Application College Report verifies that you are in academic good standing at your current school and must be submitted by a college official (like your registrar or dean).
- The Common Application Mid-Term Report asks for your in-progress grades for courses you are taking when you apply. You can often fill this in yourself.
- Standardized test scores (SAT/ACT and AP scores) may be required or optional. If your scores are not competitive, and you have enough time to retake the SAT or ACT, strong scores will often benefit you in the admissions process.
- Most colleges require one academic letter of recommendation but may allow you to submit up to four (this will show on the Common App). If you can provide multiple strong letters from your professors, do so! These are key indicators of your academic potential. Personal and professional letters are typically less valuable, but, if you feel they add to your application and are allowed, feel free to submit them. You will provide email addresses on the Common App for your recommenders—be sure to speak to them first!
- There is no required essay for the transfer application, but schools often ask you to answer a prompt about why you are seeking to transfer to their institution. Avoid generalities (more convenient location, better reputation, friendlier campus) and cite specific programs, courses, professors, or research/internship programs. Keep the focus on academic reasons, but you can mention specific clubs, organizations, or community resources you would engage with if you have space.
TRANSFER PROCESS: UP NEXT
While applying to college a second time may not be easier, you should know more about yourself and your priorities this time around. Make sure this depth of understanding comes through in your essays and any meetings you might have with admissions officers or interviewers. Stay tuned for our second post in this series, “Transfer Acceptance Rates and Top Tips” to see where transfers have the best odds of admission and to learn more from a transfer admissions expert on how to craft applications and essays that will help you stand out in competitive transfer pools.
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- Transfer Acceptance Rates and Top Tips - January 10, 2024
One reply on “Second Time’s the Charm: Understanding the Transfer Process”
PLEASE DISCOURAGE ANY of your students/clients from applying to Princeton as a transfer unless they are as indicated: lower-income backgrounds, community college students, and U.S. military veterans. They accept (LITERALLY) 1/1000 applicants not from one of those designations. As a Princeton student myself who was charged with shepherding transfers I only knew one student not so designated and that individual spent his freshman summer doing research- on campus- with Princeton profs. So wink, wink!