College Transfer Process

The process of transferring colleges can be complicated. Read on to know more about the different factors that must be considered...

Anyone who has arrived at the decision of transferring colleges, for whatever reasons, must first make a list of colleges to apply to, if he or she hasn't selected one already. You may benefit from having a talk with a counselor.

It may prove very important for you in choosing a college or deciding the major you want to pursue in future. It may also guide you on the various formalities, such as transferring your accumulated credits to your future college.

The following are some issues that must be considered while changing colleges:

• While selecting the next college, it is important to find out whether it acknowledges the accreditation of your current college.

• Find out whether the college you are interested in, has a transfer agreement with your current college. Such agreements facilitate the process, and enable you to cut down varying amounts of classwork in your new college.

• Send for the school catalog and course book of the college you intend to transfer to. Go through it, and find out the requirements for the major, and what criteria must be fulfilled for you to get accepted.
• Find out what courses from your present college can be transferred. It is also important to know how they are transferred.

• Know which of the credits you have gained at your present college are transferable.
• Try your best to get the credits transferred for subjects in which you have scored 'B' or better grades.

• Know about the programs that you are interested in, and those that have a high job placement rate.
• Find out the costs at your desired college. Include not only the fees, but the cost incurred by accommodation, food, travel, etc.

• Get to know about the policies and deadlines for application and financial aid, such as grants and scholarships.

• Before you apply for a transfer, it is important to have the right degree with sufficiently high grades. A student close to finishing his AA degree should do so, because the other college may decide to waive a few educational requirements for him.

A large percentage (25%-30%) of students decide to transfer during their education. Some of these have genuine reasons, such as access to career education so as to open career opportunities for them. There is no guarantee that the transfer will work for you.

If there are some issues with the culture at the present college, solve them instead of moving to a whole new culture; the culture shock would probably be much worse than tackling your current issues head-on.

Making friends with students who share your tastes may work as a solution for you. Transferring can indeed be an unsettling experience, as it disrupts your social life, especially if you haven't away from home for the majority of your life. It may also add to the educational cost, if you have to retake some course because of the credits denied to you.

Take care of all the formalities well in time, and do your best in your present courses. Both is absolutely essential if you want to be transferred to the college of your choice.