Campus News

Transfer program expands opportunities for admission

Dean of Students Bill McDonald speaks with students
Dean of Students Bill McDonald speaks with students at the 2019 Transfer Student Welcome. The 2021 Transfer Student Welcome is scheduled for Aug. 24, from 3–5 p.m. in the Grand Hall of the Tate Student Center. (Submitted photo)

To help more students realize their dream of becoming a University of Georgia graduate, the university has created a new transfer pathway program to fast-track a select group of wait-listed students for admission.

Barkley Barton II, director of the UGA Office of Undergraduate Admissions, noted that the high demand for a UGA education means that many highly qualified applicants are wait-listed.

“As first-year admission continues to become more competitive, the Transfer Pathway program will offer an additional avenue for qualified students to gain admission and further their undergraduate career,” he said. “Our experience has been that many qualified students begin their UGA career as a transfer student, become an integral part of the student body, and then achieve great success after graduation.”

This Transfer Pathway program gives students an opportunity to apply a semester earlier than the traditional transfer route, which often results in students applying for admission to UGA in the fall semester of their sophomore year.

Through the Transfer Pathway program, students who have enrolled at any accredited college or university may apply for admission in the spring semester of their first year of college. If they have 30 transferable credit hours completed by June 15 and meet the overall GPA requirements for transfer admission, they may transfer to UGA for the following fall semester. Students are automatically selected for this pathway and do not need to apply for it separately.

Comprehensive transfer support services

Realizing that the foundations of transfer student success begin before enrollment, UGA offers transfer support services for students before they set foot on campus. The Office of Transfer Services helps students enroll in courses that will transfer appropriately into a UGA major and understand criteria for high-demand majors in the Grady College of Journalism of Mass Communication, Mary Frances Early College of Education and Terry College of Business. In addition, undergraduate-serving schools and colleges and the UGA Griffin and Tifton campuses provide Transfer Handbooks and designated advisors to support transfer students.

After transfer students begin their journey at UGA, the department of student transitions within the Division of Student Affairs helps connect them with other UGA students, engagement experiences and academic resources through the Transfer Student Experience Success Pathway.

“Through the Transfer Pathway program, the University of Georgia is helping talented students achieve their academic goals,” said Vice President for Instruction Rahul Shrivastav. “As an institution, we are committed to the success of all of our outstanding students.”

For more information on the Transfer Pathway program, see https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/transfer/transfer-pathway-faq/.