More transfer students are applying to the University
March 31, 2015
More transfer students applied to the University during the 2014-2015 school year compared to previous years.
According to the Division of Management Information, 4,939 students applied to transfer to the University this year and 2,028 of them were admitted. Eventually, 1,331 of admitted students chose to enroll.
A total of 4,336 students applied to transfer and 2,031 were admitted during the 2013-2014 school year. Of those admitted, 1,343 chose to enroll. More transfer students are applying to the University, but a smaller percentage are being admitted and fewer are choosing to enroll.
In the 2013-2014 school year, 46.8 percent of transfer applicants were admitted and in 2014-2015 7 percent fewer — 41.1 percent — of transfer applicants were admitted. Additionally, the percentage of freshman applicants admitted was 18 percent greater, at 59 percent in 2014.
The admittance of fewer transfer students this year than in past years is unintentional, said Keith Marshall, associate provost and interim director of enrollment management.
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“As with freshman admissions, we strive to admit the most qualified transfer applicants to build an academically talented and diverse transfer class. How many transfer applicants we admit each year varies by space, availability and demand. Much of our recent increase in transfer applications has been for highly competitive programs that have limited capacity so we’re unable to meet all of that demand.”
Marshall said the University receives the most transfer applications in LAS, Engineering and Business.
Luke Luhrsen, senior in ACES, transferred from the University of Kansas. A former football player for the Jayhawks, he decided to transfer to the University to focus on his academics.
Nicole Burg, junior in LAS, is also a transfer student. However, she transferred from the College of Lake County, a community college located in Grayslake, Illinois.
Burg said she believes one reason she was admitted was because she was a transfer student and was surprised fewer transfer applicants were admitted in past years.
Luhrsen said saving money is an incentive for many transfers, while Burg said as an incoming junior, she felt like a freshman because she didn’t know anyone on campus or any locations, which made it difficult to assimilate.
