Transfer Student Admission

For admission and scholarship purposes, students are considered as transfer students if they have attended a post-secondary institution after graduating from high school or the equivalent.

Admission requirements to UNC as a transfer student are based upon the number of credit hours of collegiate work the student has attempted and the cumulative GPA from all schools attended after high school graduation. All entering transfer students will be under the following admission standards as set forth by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education.

• 12 or fewer transferable semester hours - admission based on high school credentials including cumulative GPA, class rank, ACT and/or SAT scores.
• 13 or more transferable semester hours - admission based on college credentials and requires a 2.4 cumulative college GPA or higher for admission.

Transfer Application Procedures An Application for Admission, non-refundable processing fee ($45 if transferring from a 4-year institution or $25 if transferring from a 2-year institution) and an official transcript from EACH college or university previously attended must be submitted to the Office of Admissions. Students who have completed less than 30 semester hours (45 quarter hours) of college work must also submit a high school transcript and ACT or SAT test score for admission purposes. Final high school transcripts are required for financial aid reasons if a student has less than 60 semester hours. Final admission status cannot be determined until official transcripts have been received from each institution attended. Applications can be submitted on-line at www.unco.edu/admissions.

No portion of an applicant's previous collegiate record can be disregarded. Should the applicant fail to list all institutions previously attended, admission to UNC may be denied or canceled.

Transfer Credit UNC awards a maximum of 90 transfer semester hours from all sources. A student who has earned a liberal-arts based Associate of Arts (AA) or Associate of Science (AS), or Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college will receive a full waiver of the Liberal Arts Core (LAC) requirements. Certain UNC majors require specific and/or additional LAC credit. These requirements are not waived by the AA, AS, or Bachelor's Degree. Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degrees are not transferable to UNC. Individual courses taken as part of the AAS degree will be evaluated for possible credit on a course-by-course basis. Courses with a letter grade of “C-“or higher are eligible for transfer. Remedial courses and vocational/technical courses are not eligible for transfer.

College work earned 10 years before the baccalaureate degree is to be granted may be applicable toward the UNC degree at the discretion of the applicant's intended major and minor programs.

Previous grade point averages are used for admission and scholarship purposes only and are not carried forward on the student's academic record at UNC. New transfer students begin with a new UNC grade point average. A minimum of 120 semester hours is required to graduate from UNC.

Coursework completed through International Student Exchange/Study Abroad or National Student Exchange will be recorded as transfer coursework upon receipt of an official transcript from the exchange institution, but is not subject to the restrictions on transfer coursework and counts as in-residence for graduation residency requirements. International Student Exchange/Study Abroad and National Student Exchange students register for ISE 100 or NSE 100 courses, respectively, which are courses taught under the authorization of the University of Northern Colorado.

Transfer Course Guide UNC does not allow transfer of credit from institutions not accredited by a regional association of colleges and secondary schools. The University of Northern Colorado only accepts credit from institutions of higher education holding full regional accreditation from one of the following agencies:

• Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
• New England Association of Schools and Colleges
• The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
• Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
• Western Association of Schools and Colleges

To find out if your previous college or university is regionally accredited by one of these agencies, visit http://www.ope.ed.gov/accreditation/

If course work was completed at a school not regionally accredited, a student may specifically request that his/her course work be considered for transfer. Students who wish to appeal the transferability of course work must write a letter within the first semester after the work was not accepted. The letter must be addressed to the Office of Admissions and include:

• The name(s) of the previous institution(s) attended, the course number and title of each course for which the student was denied transfer credit, and the date(s) of enrollment in each course.
• A copy of the catalog description (from the appropriate year) for each course in question.
• A copy of the syllabus or course outline (from the appropriate year) for each course in question. This information can be obtained from the sending institution.
• A statement indicating why the credit(s) should be accepted.

The Office of Admissions will re-evaluate the course(s) for which the student is requesting reconsideration in consultation with the department chair/school director. A written response will be delivered to the student in a timely manner once the appropriate faculties have reviewed the course materials, past practices, and the student’s specific circumstances.

To determine transferability of courses, the following will be considered:

1. The educational quality of the sending institution
2. The comparability of course content to the UNC course
3. Applicability of the credit in relation to the programs being offered at UNC
4. Additional documentation provided by the student regarding the transferable course(s). 

Course work taken at vocational/technical institutes will not be accepted. Copies of the Transfer Course Guide are on file at each Colorado community or junior college and may also be obtained online at www.unco.edu/admissions. For the student's Liberal Arts Core requirement and major requirement, the Catalog in effect at the time of admissions and major declaration will be followed.

High School Concurrent Coursework. Students who have successfully completed college coursework from a regionally accredited institution while in high school must submit an official transcript from the college/university before the coursework will be evaluated. College credit completed while in high school may count towards UNC degree requirements but cannot be used to classify a student as a transfer student for admission and/or transfer scholarship eligibility purposes.

Additional Program Requirements. Some programs require an additional application. Please refer to the specific catalog pages describing the details for the following Bachelor degree programs:

Transfer Application Deadlines Applications completed by the Priority Deadline receive priority consideration for admission, financial aid, and scholarships.