Spring Transfer Decisions are Out!

Spring Transfer Decisions are Out!

Decisions for the spring semester enrollment are out!

Check via your application portal or in the email you should receive for you decisions - if you were admitted, the reply form in the email will take you to directions on how to submit you deposit, if you wish to accept your offer of admission. You have until December 15th to accept your offer and deposit.

There is no wait list in our spring admission process. Please do keep in mind how much more limited in space the spring pool is - it is not even a tenth of the size of the fall semester enrollment. The acceptance rate for this spring pool was just under 16% - if you were not admitted, you may select via the reply form in your email to have your application roll over to the pool for fall admission. If you do select to have your application rolled over, do know that we'll want to see an updated transcript with your final grades in the courses you're currently in.

The deadline to accept rolling over your application is March 1st.

Please note: Those applicants who are entering their sixth semester at a four-year institution (that is, not a community college) are not eligible to roll over for the fall semester pool for the College of Arts and Sciences, as six semesters will put you over the limit on credits taken at a four-year institution. If this is the case for you, we hope that you apply to UVa for graduate school in future.

Unfortunately, we do not have admitted student days for transfers and, like you, our students and faculty will be heading into final exams in the coming days - if you have questions, give the Office of Admission a call and ask to speak to the Dean of the Day.

Best of luck to everyone as we head towards exam season!

Transfer Open House 2019!

Hello Everyone!

We've got the date and registration finalized for this year's transfer open house - it will be on Friday, November 15th here at UVa in Newcomb Hall.

This event is a great way to see grounds, meet with the specific colleges, and hear from previous transfer students about their experiences - I hope you're able to make it! Please do make sure to register below, as space is limited.

You can find the schedule of events here:https://admission.virginia.edu/sites/admission2016.virginia.edu/files/November%202019%20Transfer%20Open%20House%20Agenda2.pdf

Registration link: https://apply.undergradadmission.virginia.edu/register/?id=4d33aaca-bc85-45c3-91f7-c3c66309a0e7

Let me know if you have any questions in the comments!

Welcome Back!

Hello everyone - fall semester is almost here!

As you get started with finalizing you fall course selection make sure you're checking the list of pre-requisite courses and planning an appropriate selection.

Certainly, you may have courses at your institution that are required, but if possible, overlap your institutional requirements with courses that fulfill transfer recommendations.

If you go to our website admission.virginia.edu/transfer and click on "Transfer Course Requirements" on the left-hand side, you'll see some very helpful introductory information.  Once you click through to each school -- the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Architecture, etc -- you'll see a list of exactly what you need to take.  Follow this closely.  If you would like to see how your school's courses might transfer, you can use our transfer credit analyzer.  This will show most of your institutions and many courses.  Do not fret if courses you have taken do not appear on the analyzer.  It doesn't necessarily mean that they won't transfer, but our registrars will evaluate the credit once you're admitted.

Also note: the Common App is open!

You can begin working on your spring or fall applications now, if you'd like. Please note that as you begin to work on your application, the 2nd essay question won't appear until you select the specific college at UVa you're applying to in the application itself.

For spring admission, we only offer admission into the College of Arts and Sciences and School of Architecture.

Let us know if you have any questions!

Wait List Update

Hello Everyone!

We've had many questions about the wait list timeline and the good news is that more and more final transcripts are arriving and we've been able to start making a few wait list offers over the past few days.

The response to our initial offers in April was higher than we anticipated, so with some many choosing to enroll, there hasn't been much space to make offers from the wait list. A few have been offered for the Commerce and Nursing schools and I anticipate a group of offers to the school of Engineering to come out this week and the following weeks. Space in the College of Arts and Sciences is now filled so the wait list for that particular school is closed.

We're still gathering final transcripts for the School of Engineering, so while offers haven't gone out for that wait list, they will be beginning as soon as today.

Please check your emails for updates on your account status - if you applied to the College of Arts and Sciences, you should have received an email last night notifying you that the wait list is closed. If you applied to another school and are offered a spot off the wait list, you'll receive an email to check your account status and will see the pertinent information in your account.

It's hard to believe, but the deadline for spring 2020 admission to the College of Arts and Sciences, Urban Planning, and Architectural History is just three months away (October 1)!

If you are rising second year interested in the College, you are eligible to apply for spring admission. Keep in mind that spring is a competitive process, but students are admitted each year.

In a few weeks, we'll start the conversation again about signing up for the proper coursework to put you in the best position for a spring 2020 or a fall 2020 application.

We know the wait list closure is disappointing news for many of you, but we hope it will allow you to move on from this process and focus on next steps.

Are you on the Wait List?

You can use this post as a space to make comments or ask questions about the wait list. 

If you are interested in staying on the wait list, please make sure you click the button labeled “remain on the wait list.”  If you don’t do this, we will not review your file again in the future. Once you’ve clicked it, that does the trick.  This page stays the same after you click the button in case you change your mind at a later date. If you do end up changing your mind and want to leave the waiting list, please come back and decline the spot. 

Admitted students have until May 15th to make their decisions. After this deadline passes, we will begin to look to see how many students we can take off the wait list. These numbers vary from year to year and unfortunately, it can be a long process. We won’t make any decisions on May 16^th.  There is a bit of a wait. Why? Because we have to wait for your final exams to end, and for you to send us updated grades. We hope to make our decisions by the end of June however. Offers are usually made in waves meaning we'll reach out one or two times. 

How do we make these decisions?  We absolutely need to see your transcripts listing your spring 2019 grades.  In short, send us your final transcript. Trust us. If you want us to look at your file again, send it along.  You’ll want to do this, but only after your exams are completed and ALL of your grades are posted.  To send this transcript, please use the same address that appears on the right panel of this blog. Ideally, you would want to get these to us by the first week of June, but there is still time after that period. We know there can be extenuating circumstances. If you were not taking classes this spring, feel free to send a note/email/letter of continued interest to undergradadmission@virginia.edu. It will get to the transfer committee, so you do not need to put it to anyone’s attention. Please do not send us additional essays or recommendations. 

If your grades are strong, this may help you earn the offer, but we can’t offer to everyone from the wait list, so we’ll be looking at the strongest candidates.  If you earned poor grades this past spring, it would be difficult for us to admit you.

Our wait lists are divided by school – Arts and Sciences, Engineering, Architecture, Nursing, Batten, Commerce, Kinesiology.  So, you are only on a wait list for that particular program.  It is not ranked, and it is only made up of students who elected to remain on the wait list.  That’s why we can’t give a firm number of right now. Historically, about 20% of the applicants are offered a spot on the wait list, but not everyone elects to stay on it.

If you are eventually offered admission from the wait list and need financial aid information in order to make your decision, we will do our best to help you with this.  If you post here, please be considerate of each other’s feelings, emotions, reactions and the like. We will delete any inappropriate commentary. Good luck all!

Not Offered Admission?

This is obviously not the decision you were looking for when you set out on this journey.  We wish we could admit all of the great applicants who have applied.  The reality is that we only have so much space, making admission highly selective.  We want you to be proud of your accomplishments and proud of the fact that you stuck your neck out and applied to transfer from your world to a whole other world. Even that is an accomplishment. This decision is not a declaration of your personal worth or who you are.  We trust that you have other options and hope you can find peace in that next step.

                        

We do not have an appeals process, but depending upon the length of time you’ve been in college and your desired school here at UVA, you may be able to apply again in the future. You’ll need to complete a new application. For those of you who are in your first year of college, or in community college, with an interest in the College of Arts and Sciences, spring 2020 applications (available beginning on August 1) will be due October 1. If you post here, please be considerate and supportive of each other’s feelings, emotions, reactions and the like. We will delete any inappropriate commentary. We wish you the best of luck wherever this decision may lead you.

Offered Admission?

Please use this post to ask questions if you have been offered admission.

Congratulations! As I said in my previous post, you will receive a letter (in a thin-ish envelope) via the snail mail in the next week or so.  Take note that we never promise admission to a particular major.  You have been admitted to the school to which you have applied. Major declaration and planning will occur at orientation and over the summer, and sometimes into the fall semester for rising third years.  For rising second-years, you have plenty of time to declare

For those of you who applied to Architecture or McIntire, watch out for information on required summer courses (in your offer letter for Architecture and over email for McIntire).
  

Your $400 admissions deposit can be paid online.  This goes towards your first semester’s tuition. Below your online “letter,” you should see buttons to accept or decline our offer of admission.  Clicking “YES” will not completely secure your spot in the class.  You will need to pay your $400 deposit to set it in stone.  You can pay with a credit card (we do not accept VISA) or with an e-check.  As specified in the letter, you will have until May 15^th to put down a deposit.

Financial aid information will start to go out next week, if your financial aid has been reviewed.

You should keep a close eye on your to-do list in the event that Student Financial Services needs more information from you. 

We do not have open houses for admitted transfer students. You are welcome to visit and look around, but keep in mind that our students and faculty are headed towards or in the midst of final exams.

As far as the next steps go, 72 hours after you deposit, you should be able to take UVA’s responsible computing quiz, officially set up your email account and look into orientation. Housing and dining information will take a couple of weeks to come.   It is so important to keep an eye on both your old and new email addresses.  EVERYTHING happens on email.  Don’t miss important deadlines by ignoring these accounts. Hopefully, the email address you put on your application is the one you check most often. Your academic credit will not be evaluated until you pay your deposit and send in your final transcript. This evaluation is ongoing until summer orientation.   If you’re curious about what might transfer, check out our transfer credit analyzer.  Generally, you will not sign up for classes until orientation.  Specialty schools may reach out and tell you you can register at an earlier date, but this won't happen to until late Jane at the earliest.

If you decide not to come to UVA, please be sure to decline the offer using the other button-- the "NO" button. We and our wait listed students would really appreciate you taking the time to do this.

Lastly, keep up the good work and good grades.  We’ve admitted because you have shown us you can perform well in college-level coursework. You’ve come this far.  Let’s keep it up!   Feel free to come back to the blog for moral support during that final exams.

Fall Decisions!

We'll be releasing decisions this morning! We don't control the time in the admissions office, but instead we leave it in the capable hands of our tech people. 

Most of you will know how to get there, but let’s review how to view your official decision.  In order to see it, you must be able to get into your application portal.

The decision pages online will give you limited information on your decision– Offer, Wait list, or Not Offered. We do not email decisions.  Detailed information for admitted students will arrive in the mail next week.  In an effort to be environmentally conscious, we only mail letters to admitted students.  In addition, please look out for important inserts in your envelopes if you applied to the Architecture school or Curry teaching program. Additional information for nursing admits will come in a separate letter. Students admitted to McIntire will receive very important information via email next week.  Many of these students will have additional requests for summer coursework or things-to-do in their letters. If this is you, often your spot is contingent upon your taking summer pre-requisites.

We’ll be creating spaces on this blog for you to comment, similar to what you’ve seen in past years. Look out for that later this evening.

Thank you for reading our posts and posting your questions throughout the whole year.  There is less to cover with you all because you are already college students, but we are happy to try and address any general topics you can think of regarding becoming a student at UVA.  We DO work most weekends during our reading season of October to April, but find now is the time to let the decisions settle in and we’ll address your thoughts and inquiries next week.  Good luck!

Planning a Visit?

Hello folks!

We are in the thick of it this month with application review (as well as our admitted student days for the first-year applicants) and know that you might be thinking of making a visit to grounds once you receive your acceptance!

Decisions on transfer applications will be released by May 1st, with a deposit deadline of May 15th you'll have two weeks to weigh your options for next fall. If you're looking to come visit grounds for a tour in that two week window, there's a few things you'll want to keep in mind:

You are certainly welcome to make the trip, but like you, students and faculty will be in the midst of final exams. Grounds (albeit warm) will look a little different and faculty won't be accessible. We would encourage you to instead visit in the second half of April. We, the admissions office will be hosting spring breaking high schoolers from all over the country, but we would be happy to see you as well!

Feel free to take a tour(skip the information session which is mostly for high school students) and sit in on a class. For information on this, check out our page here.

While this post encourages you to visit before decisions come out, please understand that we do not require prospective transfers to visit, we do not offer interviews, and coming to UVA will have no impact on your admissions decision.  That's called "demonstrated interest" and we do not practice this policy. This would merely be an informational visit for YOU and your college search process.

High School Transcripts (or the GED) are Required

Hello folks,

Many applicants are surprised that we require a high school transcript, or a GED score report from our transfers. This is an important part of application review and yes, it's required for everyone, no matter how old you are, or how long you have been in school.

This also goes for international students and students who finished high school abroad. This can present difficulties for these students.  Please make sure to consult with your school or school district to have these documents sent to us. If your transcript need translating, you will want to work on this as soon as possible. Most of our applicants use WES for their translation service.  We don't need the evaluation, only the translation. Some international schools do not provide transcripts, but rather summaries or test results from secondary education.  We will take those documents as well.

We tend to look closer at the high school records of rising second-years, because after all, that was less than a year ago.  While we require them for any applicant, typically the longer you have been away from high school, the less closely we'll look at that record.

A Quick Note for those Who Applied out of High School

Hello Everyone!

As you're working on your common applications before the 3/1/19 deadline, there's a note I want to pass along - if you applied for first year admission previously, it could impact you:

Common App this year split off transfer applications to a different platform from the first year platform.  We have had a few transfer applicants who have called stating that UVA was not listed as a school to select.  Here is the reason why:

Students who create a transfer application in CAO can currently use these credentials to still login to the First Year platform. If they do use their Transfer credentials to login to the First Year platform, then they are not able to see UVA's Transfer program (since it's on the other platform). CAO is currently working on a way to not have this linked access to minimize confusion going forward.

If this happens to you, log in to the transfer platform at https://apply.transfer.commonapp.org/applicant-ux/#/login and then you should be able to see UVA.

Spring Semester Coursework

Happy New Year, Everyone!

As we begin to look at the spring semester - if you're intending to apply for fall transfer, keep in mind our transfer course requirements as you double check your spring registration. As you may already know, these course requirements are the foundation of a successful transfer application and ensure that you'll have a smooth transition to your degree progress at UVa.

One helpful tool for the transfer course requirements is the credit analyzer - found here. As many previous enrolling students have taken courses you may have taken, you can see how those courses have transferred in. However, please know that the list isn't exhaustive - meaning it's entirely possible that courses you have taken may not be listed on it, but still be transferable when you enroll at UVa. Use your judgement to select courses at your institution that fit into the recommended subjects.

Taking the appropriate courses and earning strong grades are the most important aspects of file review. Now, back to those transfer course requirements. Once you click through to each school -- the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Architecture, etc. -- you'll see a list of exactly what you need to take.  Follow this closely, but it's highly recommended that you look to see what UVA students are taking their first two years as well.  It may be wise to take an additional math course if that's what Psychology or Biology is looking for. Some departments have done a great job of speaking directly to transfers on their pages.  Here are some examples -economics, psychology, and media studies. Some give curriculum guides like chemistry and mechanical engineering.  A quick google search will give you information on curricula all over the University.  Our best applicants have planned out their schedules using this information and it shows on transcripts.

Enjoy the rest of your break!