Transfer applicants must submit the Transfer Common Application and the application essay questions specific to Brown by the listed application deadline for their desired entry semester. Please refer to the Transfer Admission Calendar for annual deadlines. Supporting documents such as transcripts must be completed in order for a transfer application to be reviewed, and applicants should monitor their application status via the Brown Admission Portal to ensure completion. More information about eligibility requirements for transfer applicants can be found on our website.

To be eligible for transfer admission you must have completed at least one full year of college study (or its equivalent) before your planned matriculation at Brown. Both part-time and full-time students at accredited two- and four-year colleges may seek transfer admission.

University rules stipulate that anyone admitted as a transfer must be enrolled full-time at Brown for at least four semesters prior to earning their undergraduate degree. For this reason we discourage (but do not forbid) transfer applications from students who will have accrued more than four semesters of college work prior to their enrollment at Brown. We only admit transfers with more than four semesters of completed college work in rare circumstances.

All students who are eligible for transfer admission may apply for fall entry (March 1 spring application deadline). Students who will have completed between 1 and 1.5 years of full-time college enrollment by the time they would enroll at Brown (typically designated college sophomores) may also apply for spring entry (October 2 fall application deadline).

High school students who are currently pursuing a dual enrollment program or an early admission program should apply to Brown as first-year applicants.

Most liberal arts courses taken at other colleges and universities are transferable to Brown. More specifically, Brown will transfer credit for courses at other colleges that are similar to courses offered in our own curriculum. If you are wondering which of your classes may receive credit you should peruse Brown's online Course Search to see if the University offers a similar course. Brown will not award transfer credit for correspondence courses, courses taken during summer programs, or for courses that were taken as part of a dual enrollment curriculum. Brown also will not award transfer credit for AP test scores. University courses that the pandemic necessitated be taught remotely will still be considered for transfer credit in the same manner as in-person courses. Any courses that were taken remotely due to the pandemic will not negatively impact chances of admission or transfer credit.

When an applicant is accepted, the acceptance letter will include a preliminary, conservative credit estimate and information about the semester level at which the student will enter (first semester sophomore, second semester sophomore or first semester junior), but the final number of transferable courses will not be determined until the College has access to an admitted applicant's final college transcript from their most recent completed term just prior to enrolling. Final transferable credit is determined by the College after a student enrolls.

The fall application deadline for spring entry is October 1. You will receive a decision by late November. The spring application deadline for fall entry is March 1. You will receive a decision by mid-May.

If the transfer application fee constitutes a financial hardship, we will accept a signed letter from an official at your current college as a fee waiver. The letter should be sent to Brown’s Office of College Admission by a dean, academic advisor or financial aid officer at your current college. The letter should briefly explain why the application fee constitutes a financial hardship, and should be hand-signed by the college official on your current college’s letterhead.

We offer limited financial aid for transfer applicants and are need-aware when making decisions on transfer applications. Students who feel that they may require financial assistance during their time at Brown should apply for financial aid when they make their initial application for transfer admission. Please visit the Office of Financial Aid website for more information regarding financial aid at Brown.

Brown is test optional for transfer applicants, meaning that test scores are not a required component of the transfer application. If you would like to include test scores for review in your application, testing must be completed by February for fall entry applicants or by September for spring entry applicants to ensure receipt of scores. You may use your Brown Applicant Portal to self-report test scores that were not included on your Common Application. Please see our website for more information about our standardized testing policies. 

If you wish to use the official test scores that you submitted with a prior application, then you do not need to resend those scores.

If you are accomplished in music, you may include additional supplements with your application in the Common Application, through SlideRoom. You do not need to wait for access to your Brown Applicant Portal to upload music to SlideRoom.

For the fall application for spring entry, the deadline to create a SlideRoom account and submit a music supplement is October 2. For the spring application for fall entry, the deadline to create a SlideRoom account and submit a music supplement is March 4.

We cannot assist students with issues submitting their supplements unless they have created an account in SlideRoom by October 2 (for spring entry applicants) or March 4 (for fall entry applicants). Creating a SlideRoom account well before submitting your material is recommended to ensure that you are able to meet the submission requirements and adhere to the proper formatting in SlideRoom.

Although we accept visual art submissions for our first-year applicants we do not have the option to submit a visual art supplement for transfer applicants at this time.   

All other supplementary material may be uploaded through your Brown Applicant Portal, to which you will receive access shortly after you have submitted your Common Application.

Transfer candidates must submit two instructor evaluations from faculty who have taught you at your current college. Alternatively, we will accept evaluations from TAs who have been your instructors. These letters must be submitted through the Common Application or sent via email to transferdocuments@brown.edu or by fax to 401-863-9300. Material sent by email or fax should include the applicant's name, date of birth and college or university. Letters sent by email should be sent as PDF attachments. If there are not two faculty members or TAs from whom you are able to request an evaluation, you may replace one of the required letters with a recommendation from a teacher from your senior year of high school.

The appropriate administrator at your current or most recent college should complete the College Report (Report of Good Standing) on your behalf and may either submit it through the Common Application or print, scan and email the completed document to transferdocuments@brown.edu.

If you are currently enrolled in college, the Mid Term Report, found on the Common Application, should list your current courses. You should ask each of your professors to provide a progress grade, and then you should upload the Mid Term Report through the Brown Applicant Portal. If you are not currently enrolled in college, we will waive the Mid Term Report.

In addition to an official transcript showing courses in progress, you must submit an official transcript(s) and final grades from all previous college coursework. If necessary, an interim unofficial transcript of current work may be submitted. However, a final and official transcript will still be required before you are permitted to enroll at Brown.

We require that you have your high school mail us an official copy of your final high school transcript. We recommend, but do not require, that transfer applicants also have their high school counselor send us a completed copy of the Common Application School Report.

We require that your high school send us an official copy of your high school transcript. While not required, we recommend a copy of your Final Report, which is typically completed by your high school counselor.

The Transfer Application, Instructor Evaluations, College Report, Mid-Term Report, College Transcript, and Final High School Transcript are all required. While we may evaluate an application with missing credentials, the most competitive applications will be from those who have submitted all required materials.

We require an official high school transcript regardless of where you attended high school. This transcript must be sent to us either by your original high school or by your current college; we will not accept transcripts that are sent to us by an applicant directly. We recommend that you ask your original high school to send us a Final Report as well, but it is not required.

Interviews are not offered as a component of Brown’s admission process. Instead, the video introduction provides a wonderful opportunity for us to learn more about you. Applicants who intend to submit a video introduction may upload a brief introduction video (no more than 2 minutes). Video introductions are due within one week of receiving this application acknowledgement email. Read more about submitting a video introduction.