International Transfer Students

Georgia Tech considers any student who has attended another college of university after completion of a secondary school (or left a secondary school before graduating to enroll full-time in a college or university) to be a transfer student. An international transfer student is one who meets these criteria and is neither a US Citizen nor a US Permanent Resident card holder.

A student may not disregard his or her college or university coursework to apply to Georgia Tech as a freshman applicant.

Transfer Admission to Georgia Tech is selective as more applications from qualified students are received than can be accommodated. All applicants must meet the following minimum requirements by completing the specific courses by intended major, total number of credit hours, and minimum Grade Point Average (GPA), all at another institution, in order to be considered for possible admission to Georgia Tech. Successful candidates for admission will be selected from the pool of applicants that meet or exceed these requirements, which vary by major. A transfer applicant must apply for one specific major and will be evaluated based on the criteria for that major.

Transfer applicants may apply for any of the three semester terms (Fall, Spring, or Summer) if all minimum admission requirements are completed by the Document Deadline for that term. The completed transfer application must be submitted by the Application Deadline and all other required documents must be submitted by the Document Deadline. It is in the best interest of all students to submit as much of the required documentation as early as possible, saving only the final transcript or foreign credential evaluation for the Document Deadline.

*Document Deadline refers to the date by which ALL required courses (see Course Requirements by Major chart) must be completed and the official documentation of such submitted. No REQUIRED courses may be completed in the term immediately preceding the application term, but other courses beyond those required for admission can be completed in the interim term and are eligible for potential transfer credit.

Should a student apply for a term for which he or she is unable to meet the Document Deadline, the Office of Undergraduate Admission can change the potential enrollment term to another in the future without the student needing to submit another application. To change the potential term, the student must submit a written request. Otherwise, the application will be placed in an inactive status for one year and then destroyed. An inactive application can be reopened within that year (also with a written request), but afterwards a new application will be required.

International students are required to pay out-of-state student costs and no financial aid is available for these students. Students who need an F-1 student visa to enroll in a US institution must provide proof of financial ability. See the Immigration Information section below for details.

International students must provide one of the following with their applications:

• Proof of current legal immigration status (for example, H-4 visa or a copy of Permanent Resident card).
• Sufficient financial documentation as described below for use in applying for an F-1 student visa.

F-1 Student Visas

Most international students applying from outside the US enter the country with an F-1 visa. Unless otherwise indicated on the admission application, it is assumed that an international applicant will need to obtain an F-1 visa.

Those who need to apply for an F-1 student visa must submit both the International Applicant Financial Statement Form and supporting bank documents as described on the form. All of this information must be submitted in order to demonstrate your ability, or the ability of an individual or government sponsor, to finance your education at Georgia Tech. To apply for an F-1 visa with the US government, you will need an I-20 issued by Georgia Tech. An I-20 will be issued only if a student has been admitted, pays the $250 admission deposit (freshmen applicants only), and has submitted all of the aforementioned financial documentation. Due to possible changes in the financial status of the applicant or sponsor, Georgia Tech will not issue an I-20 more than six months prior to the potential enrollment date. Once an I-20 is issued, Georgia Tech has no involvement with or influence on the US government visa process.

Students may contact the Georgia Tech Office of International Education for more detailed information. Please see www.oie.gatech.edu for details and contact information.

Georgia Tech generally grants credit for any course, from an accredited college or university, that corresponds to a course in our curriculum in content and credit value when the student has achieved a "C" or higher in the course. For a list of schools and courses that have been evaluated by Georgia Tech, please see the Transfer Equivalencies table at https://oscar.gatech.edu.

To have coursework from non-US colleges and universities reviewed for potential transfer credit, a Course-by-Course With GPA evaluation from a professional foreign credential evaluator along with detailed course descriptions must be submitted so that the various academic departments at Georgia Tech can determine whether the coursework corresponds to our curriculum in content and credit value. (See How to Apply for International Transfer Admission , Step 4, below for how to obtain a Course-by-Course With GPA evaluation.)

Due to the complexity of evaluating non-US institution coursework, the admission process and timeline may be extended to the point that an applicant is unable to be considered for the initial term requested. All Georgia Tech personnel work as diligently as possible to expedite the evaluation process, but delays may be unavoidable. In this case, the Office of Undergraduate Admission will keep an applicant's file open for a future term and no new application will need to be submitted if applying within one year of the original application.

Students are not likely to receive transfer credit for some sophomore, junior, or senior level Electrical and Computer Engineering courses.

Courses taken at technical/vocational institutions and in programs called “engineering technology” are not transferable for credit toward Georgia Tech's professionally accredited engineering degree programs.

Transfer applicants are reviewed for one major only and may not apply as “undecided.” Applicants must meet all minimum course, GPA, and other requirements for the specific major in order to be considered and potentially admitted for that major. An applicant may request a change of the prospective major after applying and prior to enrollment by submitting a written request to the Office of Undergraduate Admission. Applicants must meet the criteria for the new major in order to be considered for potential admission.

If the applicant does not currently meet the minimum requirements for the newly requested major, the Office of Undergraduate Admission may change the application term for the applicant so that the student can complete any remaining requirements. The student will not be required to submit another application or application fee.

After actual enrollment, change of major requests must be submitted to the individual academic departments and may not be approved. Some majors have very competitive criteria for admission and those departments normally prohibit transfer students from changing majors into their programs.

Georgia Tech defines a Second Undergraduate Degree applicant as one who has completed a bachelor's degree from another accredited institution and who is seeking enrollment at Georgia Tech to obtain another undergraduate degree in a different major or field of study. A student may not apply or be accepted for a second undergraduate degree in the same or very closely related field of study.

All admission requirements for students seeking a second undergraduate degree are the same as for regular transfer applicants, including specific courses, hours, and GPA by major.

The following items need to be submitted to:

Office of Undergraduate Admission

Georgia Institute of Technology

• The Georgia Tech Application for Transfer Admission . Apply online or download and print a paper (.pdf) copy at www.apply.gatech.edu .
• The $65 non-refundable application fee. If applying online, this fee must be paid via credit card. If mailing a paper copy, attach a check or money order drawn on a US bank for the full amount in US Dollars.
• For US college or university coursework, official transcripts from all schools ever attended sent directly to the above address.
• For non-US university level coursework, contact a professional foreign credential evaluation service and have a Course-by-Course With GPA evaluation sent directly to the above address. THIS IS MANDATORY FOR ALL NON-US COURSEWORK FOR ALL STUDENTS.
  •  We recommend both World Education Services ( www.wes.org ) and Josef Silny & Associates ( www.jsilny.com ). If using World Education Services, a comprehensive Course-by-Course evaluation must be ordered. If using Josef Silny & Associates, both a Course-by-Course AND Grade Point Average Equivalent evaluation must be ordered.
• Official high school (secondary school) transcript with English translation, if necessary. (The high school transcript is used for record-keeping and not for admission decision purposes.)
• Financial documentation or proof of other legal immigration status as described in the Immigration Information section above.

NOTE: Faxed or other photocopies of applications and transcripts are not acceptable. All documents must be original and certified as appropriate. Transcripts must be sent directly from the other institution or submitted in sealed envelopes, if sent with other application materials.

Admission decisions for transfer applications are made on a rolling basis and only after all documents have been submitted. To be competitive for admission, all requirements must be met and the documents showing completion of all requirements must be submitted by the Document Deadline for the particular term.

Due to the volume of applications received for any given term, please allow 4-6 weeks for initial processing and acknowledgement. Students may use the online status check system to verify application data and receipt of various documents. However, please note that admission decisions are sent only via US mail and are not posted online nor given via e-mail or telephone.

Please note that some applicants may not be considered for the initial term requested due to the complexity of evaluating non-US coursework (See "Transfer of Academic Credit" for further explanation). Please also note that as a result of the extended timeline, some applicant may receive notification of their admission decision with little time to complete the US visa application process. If this situation occurs, an applicant may request in writing that the office of Undergraduate Admission keep the application open for a future term.

For detailed information on the status of an application, please contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission at 404.894.4154 or admission@gatech.edu and ask for a transfer admission counselor.