Transfer Student FAQs

Our admission process is selective. If you meet minimum admission requirements, we will consider additional factors such as whether you hold an associate of arts (A.A.) degree from an Oregon or approved Washington community college, which of your completed courses fulfill university graduation requirements, your GPA, and your grade trend throughout your academic history. Academic potential and special talents are also considered.

Does the UO require a personal essay or letters of recommendation?

No, not in most cases. However, such material is sometimes useful when there are unusual circumstances regarding your academic record or if the material contains pertinent information not included on standard transcripts.

If your high school or college performance was affected by special circumstances such as a documented disability, serious illness, or other extenuating circumstances, please submit a personal statement describing these circumstances. Include dates when applicable. Also include two letters of recommendation from teachers or other academic sources who can comment on your academic performance. It is to your advantage to advise us of any special circumstances early in the admission process, especially if you do not meet one or more admission requirements.

Is an interview or campus visit necessary?

We do not require applicants to interview for admission. However, a campus visit is the best way to decide whether the UO is for you. You may meet with an admissions counselor, talk with a departmental adviser, take a campus tour, and have lunch in a residence hall dining room. We will be happy to make these arrangements as well as accommodations necessary for accessibility and interpretation. The Office of Admissions is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Will college credits from other institutions be accepted at the UO?

We will accept college-level academic course work from regionally accredited two- or four-year college or university. We will evaluate credits from colleges outside the United States on an individual basis. We accept credit for Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), and some kinds of credit by examination if those examinations are administered by another college. To grant transfer credit, we require official transcripts.

There is no maximum number of credits that can be transferred from a regionally accredited four-year college or university.

Up to 124 credits from an accredited community or junior college may be applied to a bachelor's degree. Credits earned at a community or junior college are transferred as lower-division credits and cannot be used to satisfy the UO upper-division graduation requirement. If you have more than 124 credits, we will accept all of your course work but not the credits. Up to 12 credits of vocational-technical, physical education, and music performance courses may be transferred, and up to 48 credits will be accepted for professional courses such as veterinary medicine or nursing.

We grant 1.5 quarter credits for each semester credit. (Multiply the number of semester credits by 1.5 for the number of quarter credits.) Students transferring from a school on the semester system will not lose credits; their credits are just expressed in a different way. One semester course is generally equivalent to one quarter course. Occasionally, two semester courses, taken in sequence may be equal to three quarter courses.

Will my transfer work meet any of the UO requirements?

There are two kinds of requirements for a degree from the UO: general-education requirements (courses taken by every student regardless of major) and major requirements (courses required by individual departments). An official evaluation of your transfer credits tells you which courses we have accepted and which courses will count toward your general-education requirements. The official evaluation of your transfer credits will be completed after you are admitted to the UO. Fall term applicants must also pay the advance tuition deposit before the evaluation will be completed. Your major department will determine if your transfer work meets major requirements.

For an unofficial evaluation visit the transfer credit information.

What are the general-education requirements?

General-education requirements promote educational breadth; they include courses in expository writing, mathematics or foreign language, humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and multicultural studies. To earn a bachelor of arts (B.A.) or a bachelor of science (B.S.) degree, you must complete the following UO courses or transfer equivalents:

When will I receive an official evaluation of my transfer credits?

Your transfer credits are evaluated as soon as we receive all of your official transcripts (and, for Fall Term applicants only, the advanced tuition deposit). A Transfer Evaluation Report, showing the number of credits transferred and course equivalents, will be sent to your mailing address before you meet with your adviser and register for classes. Your major adviser will complete an evaluation of your transfer work for major requirements. If you have been admitted for Fall Term and attend one of the orientation programs, you can pick up the evaluation on campus.

Will having an associate of arts (A.A.) degree improve my chances of being admitted as a transfer student?

Yes, your A.A. degree from an Oregon or approved Washington community college will help you gain admission. Moreover, under the A.A.-Oregon Transfer Agreement, you will have completed your writing and group requirements before coming to the UO. Ask your college counselor for more information. This agreement does not apply to students holding an A.A. degree earned at an out-of-state institution or to students who complete the A.A. degree after matriculation at the UO.

How will the UO calculate my GPA from another institution?

To determine your GPA for admission, we will include all attempted credits for which you received an A, B, C, D, or F, even repeated courses. Incompletes and withdrawals are not considered in the transfer GPA.

Will the UO grant transfer credits for a course with a grade of D?

Yes, we accept transferable courses in which you received a grade of D--except for courses required for transfer admission (one college-level writing course and one college-level mathematics course) and for courses that satisfy the general-education requirements in writing, mathematics, and a second language.

Will courses taken with a grade option of P/N (pass/no pass) or S/U (satisfactory/ unsatisfactory) transfer, and can they be used to fulfill requirements?

We accept transferable courses graded P or S. However, because the UO requires letter grades (A, B, C, or D) for most of your work, we recommend that you take no more than 12 credits of P or S work at your transfer school. We also recommend that all courses in your intended major and courses in English composition, mathematics, and second languages be taken for a letter grade. If your school offers only P/N or S/U grade options, you should contact the UO Office of Admissions.

What if I do not meet the minimum transfer requirements?

Along with your application for admission, send a personal essay that explains how and why you do not meet our minimum requirements along with two letters of recommendation from teachers or other academic sources who can comment on your academic performance. This information will be considered with your application.

Can I defer admission?

The UO admits students for a specific term. You must submit a new application with updated transcripts to reapply. Your $50 application fee is good for one academic year (fall through spring terms). Applications and supporting documents are kept for one calendar year.

How do I apply for on-campus housing?

After you submit an Application for Undergraduate Admission, we'll send you a housing brochure that describes residence-hall life and contains an application for on-campus housing. Complete the application and submit it with a $30 nonrefundable application fee to the Office of University Housing by the priority deadline of March 31. Space is limited. If you are interested in Family Housing and University Apartments or want more information visit University Housing.

• Two years of the same high school-level second language, or
• C- or better in the third year of high school-level second language, or
• Two quarters or semesters of a college-level second language with a grade of C- or better

• OUS/PASS second language proficiency assessment (Benchmark IV), or
• Demonstrated proficiency in American Sign Language (ASL) (Benchmark III), or
• ACTFL oral proficiency interview
• California oral competency interview

• Satisfactory performance on a Brigham Young Foreign Language Assessment, or
• Score of 530 or higher (500 is taken prior to May 1995) on a SAT Subject Tests Foreign Language Text, or
• Score of 2 or higher on an Advanced Placement Foreign Language Test, or
• Score of 4 or higher on an International Baccalaureate High Level Foreign Language Exam, or
• Score of 40 or higher on a CLEP Foreign Language Exam, or
• Satisfactory performance on a college second-language departmental challenge exam
• Students admitted as exceptions to the second-language requirement are required to complete two college terms of the same second language before graduating from the University of Oregon.

Address questions about demonstrating second-language proficiency to the Office of Admissions.

For math, a qualifying course must have intermediate algebra as the prerequisite course. The course cannot be remedial in nature (typically below the 100-level). In Oregon, two approved courses include Math 105 or 111. Intermediate algebra (Math 095) does not qualify to complete the admission requirement.

For writing, a qualifying course must be in expository writing. At most colleges, the required freshman-level composition course typically meets our admission requirement. In Oregon, the course titled College Composition I (Writing 121) fulfills this admission requirement. The following is the UO course description for College Composition (Writing 121): "Written reasoning as discovery and inquiry. Frequent essays explore relationship of thesis to structure and audience. Strong focus on the process of revising. Regular work on editing."

Can AP test scores be used to fulfill the math and English transfer admission requirements?

Yes, an AP score of 3, 4, or 5 on the "English: Language and Composition" or any Calculus test earns UO credit and counts toward the transfer admission requirements.

If I "placed out of" or was not required to take a writing or math course at my previous college(s), must I still meet these admission requirements for the UO?

Yes, applicants must complete the math and English admission requirements prior to UO enrollment.