transfer - Am I Competitive?

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Transfer applicants must be able to demonstrate that they are capable of successfully completing college-level work. Competitive applicants for transfer admission will have the following:

Additional coursework may be required, depending on the degree program desired. Applicants must also meet the UNC-system Minimum Course Requirements. 

Transfer GPA

Transfer admission to NC State University requires a minimum cumulative GPA for all completed transferable college-level work. The minimum varies by college or program (view the requirements by college or program here).

Transferable Credits

Transfer students must submit official transcripts from each institution they have attended. Transfer credit is granted for coursework with a 'C' or better grade, including coursework attempted at NC State through the Non-Degree Studies program.

Qualifying scores for certain AP exams can be used to meet college-specific admissions course requirements as described on the transfer admission criteria webpage for each college. AP credit is limited to courses needed to meet admission requirements for the requested program of study. In certain limited circumstances, these AP credits can also be used to help meet the 30 credit hours necessary for admission.  See "Admissions Criteria, by College" links below for specific course requirements. AP scores must be sent to NC State directly from the College Board - we will not accept scores forwarded to us or reported on transcripts. A complete listing of all course credit and placement offered to enrolled students for qualifying AP scores is described on the AP credit information page. Note: Transfer students receive course credit for AP scores on their university transcript one semester after enrollment.

Transfer Course Equivalency

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions is not able to evaluate an applicant’s transfer credits until after an application has been officially submitted and reviewed. A list of courses at other institutions that have transferred for credit to NC State in the past is available on our Course Equivalencies website. 

College level work must be completed at a regionally accredited institution to be considered for admissions/ transfer credit. The applicant must be eligible to return to each institution attended. Work completed in technical programs is not normally considered for transfer credit. If there has been work completed at an institution outside of the U.S., official transcripts and an official "course-by-course" evaluation must be submitted from an accredited foreign credential evaluation service. The official evaluation must include course, grade, and credit equivalents in U.S. terms.

Many students apply to transfer to NC State with college courses in progress elsewhere.  Any work in progress must be completed and transcripts received by December 1 (for spring semester applicants) or by July 1 (for fall semester applicants). We will not consider coursework still in progress at the time a decision on your application is made. Separate deadlines pertain to international applicants.

Admissions Criteria for each college

The following links will direct you to additional admissions criteria for each College. This information should help you determine your admissibility as a transfer student and assist you in planning appropriate courses before you transfer. Course requirements vary by degree program, even within a single College.  For a complete listing of majors by College, please see the Registration & Records Degree Requirements page.

Admissions Criteria, by College:
College of Agriculture and Life Science
College of Design
College of Education
College of Engineering
College of Humanities and Social Sciences
College of Management
College of Natural Resources
College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences
College of Textiles

If you do not meet the criteria listed for the program in which you wish to enroll, you should continue at your current school until you meet the appropriate GPA and course requirements. We do not recommend selecting a second choice major in the hope of later transferring into your preferred program.  If you enter in a second choice program, you will not be able to take courses in your first choice degree program, because most upper-level courses are limited only to students officially enrolled in the program.   You would then be subject to on-campus transfer requirements, which are no less rigorous than the off-campus transfer requirements.

Non-Degree Studies

Alternately, you may wish to enroll at NC State as a part-time, non-degree student through Non-Degree Studies to complete the transfer requirements.  Applicants who have taken coursework through NC State University’s Non-Degree Studies (NDS) program must have earned at least a 2.0 GPA within NDS and must still meet the minimum cumulative GPA requirement. Students enrolled in NDS beginning with the Spring 2008 semester, must have 30 transferable hours to be considered for transfer admission. Also, in order to enroll in NDS, students must have their high school diploma for at least one year.

Minimum Course Requirements

Applicants who will not be 24 years old before they enroll must meet UNC-system Minimum Course Requirements (MCR) at the high school level including:

A high school mathematics course higher than Algebra II is required for all applicants who graduate from high school in May 2006 and later.

Students who do not meet MCR or hold a GED will be required to complete 6 credit hours of the following:

Or a student can complete an Associate of Arts, Associate of Fine Arts or Associate of Science degree before transferring in order to meet MCR.

Note: Foreign language proficiency is a General Education Requirement at NC State. Students may satisfy that requirement through completion of two years of a foreign language in high school (both years in the same language with a grade of “C” or better for each year). Students who have not fulfilled that requirement through high school work must complete foreign language coursework through the FL 102 level before graduation, either at NC State or by equivalent transfer coursework at another institution.

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