General Advice for Preparing to Transfer - First Steps!

 Hello Everyone,

This may not be the best timing for this - but this NPR article was sent to me today and does a really nice job of framing how to start this process. I wanted to link to it here just in case anyone finds this blog towards the beginning of their process:

https://www.npr.org/2021/11/10/1054306602/how-to-transfer-colleges

Spring Transfer Stats

Hello Everyone,

Here are the stats for this spring transfer cohort:

Spring Transfer Admission Statistics

Offers of Admission: 56 out of 436 (12.8%)

Virginian Offers of Admission: 37 (66%)

Studying in Virginia Community College System: 29 (52%)

I hope this helps detail how extremely competitive the spring transfer process continues to be - please do not be too discouraged if you were not offered admission - it is a much larger pool in the fall admission process (we enroll about 700 students usually then) and we are happy to roll over your application for fall consideration if you follow the instructions in your portal.

Spring 2022 Transfer Decisions

The time has come!  Transfer decisions for the spring 2022 semester will be released by the end of the week. You'll be notified via email to check an update to your application portal. A student is either offered or not offered.  There is no wait list process for spring admission (except for the small BSN program cohort).

Do not call the office to ask for your decision.  We do not give out decisions over the phone.   If you don't remember your portal login information, check your submission confirmation email, then seek out the help information on the left-hand side of that same page.  

If you were not admitted, you might have the opportunity to "roll over" your application for fall 2022 consideration.  Please follow the directions in your online letter.  NOTE: This option is not available for students who are entering their sixth semester at a four-year institution (this is not a community college) next spring.  Unfortunately, these students are no longer eligible to transfer to UVA.  I know our graduate schools would look forward to reading your applications.  

Thank you for your patience through this extremely busy time of year - we're excited to bring in this small group of students to UVA for the new semester - and look forward to starting on the larger fall 2022 process soon!

Upcoming Virtual Events

 Hello Everyone,

Later this month, we'll be hosting some online events with all kinds of content about UVA and the various programs here. One event is specifically directed towards transfer students, but any and all of them would be valuable to learn more about the UVA experience. I've posted the schedule below - here is the registration link: https://admission.virginia.edu/VESW-Fall2021 

Monday, October 18

6:00pm: Transfer Admission

7:30pm: The UVA Student Experience

 

Tuesday, October 19

6:00pm: Kinesiology (First-Year and Transfer)

 

Wednesday, October 20

6:00pm: College of Arts and Sciences (Transfer)

                School of Architecture (First-Year and Transfer)

                School of Nursing (Transfer – Direct-Entry BSN and RN to BSN)

                7:00pm: Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy

McIntire School of Commerce

School of Data Science

                                School of Education and Human Development (Transfer)

                                School of Engineering and Applied Science (Transfer)

 

Thursday, October 21

6:00pm: Q&A with Deans of Admission

7:00pm: Q&A with VA Ambassadors

What Documents Are Required?

Hello Everyone,

Whether you're finishing your spring application or starting to plan out next semester's application for fall admission, I wanted to post a quick note about required documents:

Let's recap what's needed in order for the admissions committee to review your transfer application.

1) Your current college transcript- This will give us a record of your previous work and your current courses.

2) Previous college transcript(s)- You are required to list every college you've ever attended. Whether it was last year or many years ago, you need to list it on the common app and you'll need to order your transcripts to come to us.  Please don't leave any colleges out of your application.  We do have ways to double-check your academic history, but we would prefer to hear it from you.

3) Your high school transcript or GED score report- Yes, we require this as well.  If you attended school in a foreign country where the transcript is in another language,  you'll need to have this officially translated. If you attended high school for part of your secondary schooling, but then got the GED, we would like to see both the score report and your partial high school transcript.

4) Standardized testing-  If you graduated from a high school where English was not the language of instruction, you must take the TOEFL, the IELTS, or submit an Initial View interview. We are more concerned with your transcripts over your test scores, but if you would like, any applicant is welcome to include SAT or ACT testing to be considered. Please do not retake these exams for our transfer application though, I assure you it is not a major part of the review - but if you have the previous scores and want them considered, by all means self report them in your Common Application.

Of course, you can't have any of this reviewed without the application, so make sure you apply through the common application spending time on each and every essay.  If you've spent time out of school after high school or at any time in between, please tell us about this time in your life. If there are unexplained gaps, we will reach out to you.

Our address is on the right-side of this blog. Please send have official transcripts sent to that address.  You'll also notice guidance on the forms you'll find on the common application.

A Reminder on Foreign Language Requirements

 Hello everyone,

I hope your semesters are off to a great start! If you're new to the transfer application cycle, we'll be running through tips and notes this fall semester as we prepare for our spring enrollment application (due October 1st) and to a larger degree, next fall's (due March 1st).

If you're not new to this process or blog (or our info sessions), you've probably heard us say over and over "pay attention to the course requirements!" because of how critical those are to our transfer application review. Those can be found here:

https://admission.virginia.edu/transfer/transfer-course-requirements

Every year, plenty of students are surprised to learn that they need to take through the 202 level of foreign language to complete the courses needed for the College of Arts and Sciences (or McIntire School of Commerce). Even if you're interested in majoring in Biology, or the Computer Science BA, or Economics, etc...if you're applying as a third-year transfer, you'll want to have that foreign language requirement completed. If you're a VCCS student applying via the Guaranteed Admission Agreement, you must have your foreign language completed to fulfill that contract to the College.

If you're applying as a second year applicant, there's no expectation to have all of the requirements completed, but taking a semester or two of foreign language will greatly help your application regardless. If you're applying as a third year applicant and cannot finish the 202 level - let me definitively say: having taken one or two semesters of language is far better for your application than having taken none. So, plan your future semesters accordingly!

A Message from Dean Greg Roberts

 Good morning everyone. Our Dean, Greg Roberts, has a message to pass along to the transfer applicant community. I've included it here:

On behalf of the UVA Office of Admission, I’d like to send a heartfelt thank you to all of the transfer applicants and their families who placed their faith in us during this challenging and chaotic year, including those who were on our waiting list and received our final decisions last week. We are honored and humbled that you chose to apply to UVA. While we were unable to offer admission to every deserving and capable candidate in this intensely competitive year, please know we saw you, we heard you, we believe in you, and we are grateful to you.  And please know we wish you happiness and success as you begin your college journey in the fall. 

Thanks again and take care.

The Transfer Class is Complete for Fall 2021

Hello Everyone,

By now, you should have received an email or seen the status reflected in your application portal that we have closed the waitlist for the transfer class of fall 2021. Thank you for your patience this summer as we looked to enroll as many students as possible in each of the schools. I know there are so many qualified candidates out there who didn't get offered a spot and for such this is a disappointing final result to your application, but hope that you're excited to move forward with your other options for the fall - if you would like to explore applying for spring transfer, we will shift our focus on that here in the office and here on this blog in the near future.

If you'll be applying next year, regardless of the semester, the best thing to do now is review the course requirements for your chosen school at UVA and plan your fall schedule accordingly. In the meantime, I hope you all have a fun, relaxing, and safe rest of your summers.

Take care,

-Pierce

Final Transcripts

Here's a quick reminder to send those final transcripts officially to the office of admission.  If you have paid your deposit, this is imperative.  If you want to be considered for a spot off the wait list, you should send your transcript.  Do us a favor and make sure all of your grades have been posted before you request the transcript.

You must send a transcript including your spring grades even if you are taking summer courses.  If you are in summer courses, you'll need to send two transcripts - 1) now and 2) when your summer courses are over.

Some of you attend a school with trimesters where transcripts won't be available until June.  Please make sure to send those as soon as possible.

We expect to go to the wait list for the College of Arts and Sciences some in the coming weeks, the other schools are up in the air.

We look forward to taking a look at your updated transcript - thanks!

Fall Transfer Admission Stats

Hello, Everyone!

If you're curious, here are the offer rates for the different schools in this fall admission cycle:

Fall Transfer Decision Release

Hello Everyone!

Please read this entire post. We've received so many calls and emails requesting an update - everything you'll need is here:

Thank you for your patience during our busy review season - with 3250 applications to review, it's been a busy couple of months but we're now ready to release decisions this evening. They should go live around 5pm - you'll receive an email saying there is an update to your application's status in your student portal. Check that portal for your decision!

DO NOT CALL THE OFFICE TO ASK FOR YOUR DECISION. OUR REPRESENTATIVES DO NOT GIVE OUT DECISIONS OVER THE PHONE OR OVER EMAIL.

If you're admitted, you'll see that your deadline to accept the offer is 5/15. Do so via placing your deposit in your portal. After that - you're all set to send in your final transcripts to the admission office when your current semester is finished!

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 it’s best to let the decisions settle in and we’ll address your thoughts and inquiries next week.  

Summer Virtual Transfer Info Sessions

Hello Everyone,

While we wait for our fall application review to finish up this month, I wanted the next class of prospective students to know we've got more Virtual Information Sessions for transfer students coming up this summer. They will be held on the first Tuesday of every month!

These sessions are a great way to chat with a couple deans of admission here on the transfer team and ask any and all questions you might have about the school or the process. 

Sign ups for the sessions can be found here: https://apply.undergradadmission.virginia.edu/portal/virtual_info_session

I hope to see you all at the first session on May 4th!

Financial Aid Deadline - April 1st

Happy March 1st, Everyone!

Now that the application deadline is here and those have been submitted - make sure you're working on your financial aid applications. You'll recall from the right-hand sidebar of this blog that this deadline is quickly approaching.  To complete your financial aid application, we require submission of the FAFSA, the CSS Profile, and your tax return transcripts. For more information on this process (we don't handle aid in this office), please go to: https://sfs.virginia.edu/financial-aid-new-applicants/how-apply-aid-undergrad-programs/how-apply-financial-aid-transfer

McIntire School of Commerce Webinar

Hello Everyone,

Our Commerce School is hosting a Zoom webinar for interested transfers on Thursday - this is a wonderful opportunity to talk to their staff! You can find the registration info below:

The Common application deadline of March 1 for fall admission is fast approaching. As we approach the Common Application deadline, we hope that you consider joining us this Thursday (2/18) from 7-8pm for a free 1-hour webinar covering McIntire School of Commerce Application Tips and Financial Aid Overview. 

Register here for the McIntire School of Commerce Application Tips and Financial Aid Overview Webinar:

https://mcintire.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_SoZGCG_zTI26zFj7M_8DEw

Come and engage with the Undergraduate Admissions team as we cover meaningful application tips and financial aid resources while we answer your questions live!

Send your transcripts now!

 

Send Your Transcripts Now

Just as a reminder, if you're intending to apply by the March 1st deadline, have your transcript requests processed soon!

All too often, applicants do not mobilize quickly enough, or do not think about the need to send transcripts until March 1.  That's typically too late. Think about it this way.  If you wanted to mail a birthday card or an anniversary card to someone, you wouldn't wait until the day of the occasion to send the card, would you?  March 1 is the postmark deadline, but you can help us to complete your applications as efficiently as possible by planning ahead.  Request those transcripts now (this can take 7-14 days at some schools) and we'll match up your application to your transcripts after submission.

UPDATE: We will accept these via mail (see our address over there to the right -->)  or electronically ( undergradadmission@virginia.edu) , so long as they come directly from your school.  Sometimes, these e-transcript services have email addresses pre-selected for them, but they should still end up here.

Spring Coursework Notes

Spring Coursework

Are you applying for fall 2021 and looking to continue to take appropriate courses ahead of applying to transfer?  Be sure to keep an eye on our transfer course requirements.  As many of you are already aware, these are the building blocks to a competitive application and a smooth transition to UVA. 

To find out what courses transfer to UVA, be sure to check out this transfer equivalencies page.   With millions of courses out there, the College of Arts and Sciences has added as many courses as have been taken by our former transfer students. Just because your course isn't listed, it doesn't necessarily mean that the course won't transfer successfully.  We've also uploaded a document under our FAQs that should help prospective engineering transfers.

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.