Applying to Tufts as a Transfer Applicant

Tufts welcomes applications for transfer admission to the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineering, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts. Our only entry point for transfer students is in the fall. The number of transfer students who matriculate to Tufts in any given year varies.

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Transfer Application Timeline

• Transfer Application Due: March 15
• Visual Art Portfolio Submission Deadline (required only for BFA applicants): March 20
• April – May: Transfer applications reviewed and evaluated by the Transfer Admissions Committee.
• Mid-May: Transfer admissions decisions will be released by Mid-May. Applicants will be notified of the release date via email.

Who is eligible for Transfer Consideration?

A transfer student is any student who has matriculated to another college or university. To be eligible for transfer consideration at Tufts, students must be in good academic and disciplinary standing at an accredited two- or four-year institution. For any questions about transfer eligibility or the process, please contact us by emailing transfer.admissions@tufts.edu.

To be a successful candidate for transfer admission at Tufts, we recommend completing at least one year of college study by the time of enrollment at Tufts. Applicants to the School of Engineering must meet a designated level of curriculum completion to be considered for admission which can be reviewed here.

In order to receive a Tufts degree, students must be fully enrolled members of the Tufts community for at least two years. Therefore, students who have already earned more than two years’ worth of full-time college credit are discouraged from applying to Tufts.

Students who have taken classes at a community college or university but have not enrolled as a degree-seeking student are eligible to apply as a first-year applicant.

Students who are 24 years or older, a veteran or currently serving in the armed forces, a parent, or married may be eligible for our Resumed Education for Adult Learners (REAL) program which has different application requirements. Found out more here.

How to Apply

Transfer candidates apply online using the Common Application, which includes the Tufts Short Answer Questions. If you have any questions about the transfer application process, please contact us at transfer.admissions@tufts.edu.

We are looking for students to articulate their maturity and growth since entering college in their applications. Accordingly, if you are reapplying to Tufts, we expect a fresh set of essays that reflect who you are now.

Application Requirements

A complete transfer application must be submitted by March 15th and must include the following items. We strongly recommend including your social security number only where requested; please do not include on essays, recommendations, etc. Feel free to print out this page and use it as a checklist:

1. The Common Application, which includes the Transfer Application and Tufts Short Answer Questions.
2. College Report (from each college you have attended) available via the Common Application website.
3. One Academic Evaluation from a college level instructor or advisor via the Common Application website. For BFA and Combined Degree students, we require one college-level studio art instructor evaluation and one college-level non-studio art academic evaluation.
4. All secondary school transcripts.
5. Official college transcripts.
6. Brief descriptions of college courses. Copy course catalog descriptions from your institution’s course catalog and paste into a Word document. Be sure to label this document with your full name and birth date, and email it to transfer.admissions@tufts.edu. 
7. A list of courses in progress (if not listed on the transcript) on Transfer College Report.
8. English proficiency test scores: Required only for applicants whose primary language is not English, unless they have been enrolled in an institution or institutions where English is the language of instruction for at least three years. Students enrolled in ESOL classes during secondary school or college may be asked for proof of proficiency. Click here for additional information. 
9. Transfer Mid-Term Report form available to download via the Common Application - a spring mid-semester update from each of your current professors. This report should be prepared and uploaded using the link on your status page between March 18th and April 10th. 
10. Visual Art Portfolio: Required only for all students applying to the BFA or Combined Degree (BFA+BA/BS) programs, a visual art portfolio should consist of 15-20 images and/or up to 10 minutes of time-based work. The ideal portfolio will demonstrate your conceptual development while highlighting your technical abilities. We encourage you to submit work that you believe to be the strongest representation of your skills and experiences to date, regardless of medium. You will upload your visual art portfolio after submitting your application by logging in to your Tufts applicant portal. The visual arts portfolio submission deadline for transfer applicants is March 20th. Find more information and resources about portfolio guidelines here.   
11. $75 application fee.

Please Note: Tufts does not offer mid-year or January admission. Sophomore and junior transfer candidates are considered only for fall enrollment.

Please also note: Applying for financial aid is a separate process, with its own required documents.

These additions to the application is optional, meaning they are not required:

• Standardized Testing. Beginning with students applying for Fall 2021 admission, applicants have a choice about whether or not to submit SAT or ACT scores to be considered for undergraduate admission to Tufts University. If applicants would like us to consider their exam results as one component of their candidacy, we will do so in a nuanced and contextual way. If students choose not to submit exam results, we will evaluate their candidacy in a nuanced and contextual way without scores. Our holistic, committee-based approach to application review provides us with the flexibility to evaluate academic and extracurricular accomplishments within a student’s individual context. We do not require SAT Subject Tests, the SAT Essay, or the writing section of the ACT and will not consider them in our process. Tufts accepts self-reported testing on the Common Application when students are applying. Students who are admitted and choose to enroll at Tufts will be required to send their official scores. 
• Arts or Maker Portfolio: As the Application Checklist indicates above, the Visual Arts Portfolio is required for students applying to the BFA or Combined Degree BFA + BA/BS programs at SMFA at Tufts. Students applying to the School of Arts and Sciences or the School of Engineering may submit an optional arts or maker portfolio to highlight talent in studio art, drama, dance, music, or engineering. After submitting your application, you will receive a link to your applicant portal. Submit your portfolio by selecting the “Digital Portfolio” tab in your Tufts applicant portal, choosing a portfolio category from the drop-down menu, and uploading your media. Information about the optional engineering Maker Portfolio can be found here.