The transfer admissions process can often be even more selective than regular undergraduate admissions, and with35%of college students transferring at least once, it’s important to understand exactly how difficult (or not!) it is to transfer to your dream school.
Why Transfer?
There are a number of reasons why students choose to transfer schools. It can be anything from homesickness or a negative experience their first year, to a change in major that isn’t offered at their current institution. Often students are also transferring from a two-year school to a four-year university. What’s key when transferring is to knowwhyyou want to transfer and how tobuild a balanced transfer college listthat can meet your new needs. Part of building that list includes understanding your chances of admission.
Transfer Admission Rates
It’s important to understand that the transfer admission process is often much more selective than the undergraduate process— especially at universities where gaining admission is already very difficult. According to NACAC, on average, transfer admission rates were slightly lower than that of first-year students. Why? First, students are applying for admission to classes that are already established and may have few seats available. It’s not like the undergraduate process, where the class is first being built and there are thousands of spots for applicants. However, that’s not to say that it’s hard to gain admission as a transfer student at all universities. In fact, at some schools transfer admission rates are about the same or slightly higher than the undergraduate admission rate. As schools look to fill out their classes and maintain high yield rates, they’veplaced more of an emphasis on recruiting transfer students.
Here are some transfer admission rates for fall 2023 (the most recent data available.)
| School | First-Year Acceptance Rate | Transfer Acceptance Rate |
| American University | 47.38% | 80.50% |
| Amherst College | 9.81% | 8.68% |
| Auburn University | 50.47% | 50.98% |
| Babson College | 19.74% | 26.09% |
| Bates College | 13.06% | 15.11% |
| Baylor University | 50.97% | 89.40% |
| Boston University | 10.85% | 39.74% |
| Bowdoin College | 8.02% | 6.82% |
| Brandeis University | 35.33% | 37.32% |
| Brown University | 5.23% | 4.15% |
| Bucknell University | 32.01% | 26.46% |
| Carleton College | 22.28% | 10.97% |
| Carnegie Mellon University | 11.40% | 5.77% |
| Case Western Reserve University | 28.67% | 32.02% |
| Chapman University | 55.61% | 56.32% |
| Claremont McKenna College | 11.12% | 8.31% |
| Clark University | 41.67% | 30.07% |
| College of Charleston | 72.00% | 87.40% |
| College of the Holy Cross | 21.10% | 46.45% |
| College of William and Mary | 32.72% | 48.13% |
| Colorado College | 20.03% | 42.77% |
| Cornell University | 7.90% | 12.67% |
| Dartmouth College | 6.23% | 1.56% |
| Davidson College | 14.48% | 14.76% |
| DePaul University | 73.53% | 63.07% |
| Elon University | 67.31% | 56.25% |
| Emory University – EmoryCampus | 10.65% | 16.80% |
| Fairfield University | 44.98% | 7.14% |
| George Washington University | 43.54% | 58.88% |
| Georgetown University | 13.08% | 13.21% |
| Georgia Tech | In-State: 36.60% Out-of-State: 12.53% International: 9.95% | 27.84% |
| Gonzaga University | 75.96% | 67.33% |
| Hamilton College | 11.77% | 11.15% |
| Harvard University | 3.45% | 0.79% |
| Harvey Mudd College | 13.10% | 5.08% |
| Haverford College | 12.91% | 15.50% |
| Indiana University | 80.37% | 65.99% |
| Johns Hopkins University | 7.56% | 6.39% |
| Lafayette College | 31.47% | 21.08% |
| Lehigh University | 29.26% | 29.50% |
| Lewis & Clark College | 74.53% | 50.98% |
| Loyola Marymount University | 40.29% | 40.84% |
| Loyola University – Chicago | 81.39% | 55.14% |
| Macalester College | 28.21% | 27.52% |
| Marquette University | 87.48% | 73.27% |
| Middlebury College | 10.37% | 5.90% |
| New York University | 9.41% | 37.17% |
| Northeastern University | 5.65% | 24.30% |
| Pepperdine University | 49.85% | 43.97% |
| Pitzer College | 16.66% | 20.77% |
| Pomona College | 6.76% | 7.17% |
| Providence College | 48.72% | 55.95% |
| Reed College | 27.16% | 19.33% |
| Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 58.50% | 55.49% |
| Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 72.81% | 67.19% |
| Sarah Lawrence College | 58.93% | 54.78% |
| Smith College | 19.73% | 25.00% |
| Southern Methodist University | 61.22% | 68.77% |
| Stanford University | 3.91% | 2.04% |
| Swarthmore College | 6.94% | 9.20% |
| Syracuse University | 43.12% | 43.42% |
| Texas A&M | 63.10% | 58.07% |
| Texas Christian University | 42.60% | 84.16% |
| Trinity University | 28.16% | 32.93% |
| Tufts University | 10.13% | 12.76% |
| Tulane University | 14.59% | 50.59% |
| University of California – Berkeley | Overall: 11.73% In-State: 15.13% Out-of-State: 7.80% International: 3.53% | 26.23% |
| University of California – Davis | 41.85% | 64.62% |
| University of California – Irvine | 25.75% | 43.39% |
| University of California – Los Angeles | In-State: 9.46% Out-of-State: 8.62% International: 6.09% | 26.32% |
| University of California – San Diego | Overall: 24.76% In-State: 24.51% Out-of-State: 31.92% International: 17.93% | 62.54% |
| University of Colorado – Boulder | In-State: 92.35% Out-of-State and International: 74.82% | In-State: 83.95% Out-of-State and International: 68.16% |
| University ofDenver | 70.67% | 78.81% |
| University of Georgia | In-State: 50.24% Out-of-State: 28.11% International: 21.60% | 73.92% |
| University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign | Overall: 43.69% In-State: 56.23% Out-of-State: 35.87% International: 34.50% | 51.70% |
| University of Maryland | In-State:53.90% Out-of-State and International:41.56% | 55.45% |
| University of Massachusetts – Amherst | 57.74% | 68.73% |
| University of Miami | 18.51% | 51.38% |
| University of Michigan | 17.94% | 34.50% |
| University of Notre Dame | 12.38% | 15.80% |
| University of Richmond | 23.31% | 49.66% |
| University of Rochester | Overall: 35.85% College of Arts, Sciences and Engineering: 35.81% Eastman School of Music: 36.89% | 39.09% |
| University of Texas at Austin | In-State: 40.97% Out-of-State: 11.76% International: 13.24% | 30.18% |
| University of Virginia | In-State: 26.86% Out-of-State: 12.35% | In-State: 45.00% Out-of-State: 19.00% Virginia Community College System (including Guaranteed Admission Applications): 58.50% |
| University of Washington – Seattle | In-state: 52.27% Out-of-state: 38.46% International: 45.42% | 46.13% |
| University of Wisconsin – Madison | Overall: 43.24% In-State: 60.67% Out-of-State: 42.67% International: 31.91% | 47.55% |
| Vanderbilt University | 6.28% | 18.86% |
| Vassar College | 17.73% | 11.72% |
| Virginia Tech | In-State: 47.08% Out-of-State: 63.16% International: 68.01% | 59.59% |
| Washington & Lee University | 17.36% | 4.71% |
| Wellesley College | 13.91% | 14.55% |
| Wesleyan University | 17.10% | 25.85% |
| Williams College | 9.99% | 3.15% |
| Worcester Polytechnic Institute | 58.50% | 77.18% |
| Yale University | 4.50% | 1.22% |
What to Know as a TransferApplicant
As a transfer student it’s important to knowhow your application will be evaluatedin the admissions process. According to NACAC, GPA and grades at students’ current college or university are most important to schools when evaluating transfer applications. Students need to be doing well in their current courses in order to have the best chance of admission at their top-choice transfer schools.
The transfer application will also be a lot different than the applications you may be familiar with from the undergraduate admissions process. Instead of providing information on your high school courses and activities, you will provide information on your courses at your current school and recommendations from current professors. While transfer application essays vary from school to school, overall, they tend to ask questions about why you are transferring and your intended field of study— rather than the usualpersonal statementsandquirky prompts.
Resources for Transfer Students
There are a number of resources to help guide you through the transfer admissions process. Here are a few below:
- Transfer Admissions Tips from a Former Admissions Officer (And Transfer Student!)
- Transfer Admissions: How Transfer Applications are Evaluated
- What to Do If You Want to Transfer
- Just Admit It!Should I Transfer?
AtIvyWise, we work with students in any part of thecollege admissions process, including those who are navigating the transfer admissions process. For more information on ourcollege counseling services for transfer students,contact us today.
