Students who are unhappy with their college experience may want to consider transferring to a school that’s a better fit.
While some colleges rarely admit transfer students, many routinely allow transfers and enroll a significant number.
Among the 1,070 ranked colleges and universities that provided fall 2023 transfer statistics in an annual U.S. News survey, the average number of new transfer students was 444. The average transfer acceptance rate at these schools was 64%.
[Transferring Colleges: 9 Frequently Asked Questions]
Meanwhile, the 20 colleges with the biggest transfer student populations each had more than 2,860 new transfer students. The average size of the transfer student body at these schools was large: 3,992 students.
Transfer acceptance rates varied widely, ranging from a low of 21% at Liberty University in Virginia to a high of 91% at California State University–Sacramento. Liberty reported the highest total number of transfer students enrolled, with 5,531.
Liberty is also the only private school on the list. All but three of these undergraduate programs are at National Universities, schools that are typically research-focused and offer a variety of college majors in addition to granting master’s and doctoral degrees in a wide range of academic disciplines.
[READ: What to Know About Transferring From a Community College]
The other three schools are California-based Regional Universities, which offer a variety of undergraduate programs and some master’s programs but few doctorates.
Below is a list of the 20 colleges that enrolled the largest number of new transfer students in fall 2023. Unranked schools, which did not meet certain criteria to be ranked — such as the requirement that they enroll at least some full-time, first-year students — were not considered for this report. Don’t see your school in the top 20? Access the U.S. News College Compass to find transfer statistics, complete rankings and much more. Sign up for the U.S. News Extra Help: College Admissions free email newsletter to receive expert advice twice a month.
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20 Colleges That Enroll the Most Transfer Students originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 10/22/24: This article has been updated with new information based on the 2025 Best Colleges rankings.
