Preparing a Strong Transfer Application: Showcasing Your Academic Journey

Transferring from one college to another, such as from a community college to a four-year school, like Dean College, requires a bit more than just an application. You’ll need to spend some time prior to transferring to show the new school that you’re on a strong academic path.

What do you need to consider while planning your transition from one school to another? Are there certain things that you need to do? Here’s some advice that can make you a strong transfer applicant.

Know When to Transfer

The first thing that you need to know is that many four-year schools don’t allow you to transfer in if you’ve gone beyond your sophomore year of college. This is due to the fact that at this point in your academic career, you’re more than likely taking specialty courses for your major that won’t transfer over.

With that in mind, you can arrange to transfer schools anywhere from after your first semester of college to after your fourth, or second year of school. Since the transfer deadlines are usually in the spring, you’ll find yourself applying with either one or three semesters of school under your belt.

Does High School Still Count?

Also, if you apply to transfer after your first semester of college, you’ll need to include your high school grades and other information in your application, since you won’t have much college available for the new school to study. However, if you wait until your second year, your high school transcripts won’t matter as much.

Showcase Your Activities

There’s more to college than just classes, although those rank pretty high on the list, of course. In order to make your application more appealing to the four-year school that you want to attend, consider getting involved in some activities. They can be related to your major, like writing for the school newspaper or hosting a radio show on the campus station, or things that you enjoy that provide you with skills for your future career, such as helping in the technology lab.

Focus On Your Grades

Since your grades are the most important part of your application package, you want them to be as high as possible. In addition, you should focus on the courses that will easily transfer to your new school. This means taking your general education courses and excelling in them.

Explain Why You Want to Transfer

One part of your application will require you to write a statement on why you want to transfer to a new school. This is where you need to point out what your current school lacks, such as a solid theatre program or dance program, in order to highlight the benefits that you’ll receive from attending the new school.

Consider Attending Dean College

Are you looking for a four-year school to transfer to? Check out Dean College. Our small class sizes and large number of activities and majors make us one of the best in the area. Check out our transfer process today.