Choosing the right school as an international student can be a daunting task, but having a list of the top schools can help make the decision easier. The 2023 Top Schools for International Students includes prestigious institutions such as Princeton University, Yale University, and Harvard University. These schools are known for their academic excellence, diverse student body, and numerous opportunities for international students to thrive.

When it comes to admission requirements for these top schools, international students are typically required to submit standardized test scores such as the SAT or ACT, academic transcripts, letters of recommendation, and a personal statement or essay. English proficiency exams such as the TOEFL or IELTS may also be required for non-native English speakers. Additionally, some schools may require a minimum GPA and specific course prerequisites for admission.

The admission process for these top schools can be highly competitive, with low acceptance rates for international students. It is important for applicants to start preparing early, research the specific requirements for each school, and submit a strong application that highlights their academic achievements, extracurricular involvement, and personal qualities. Seeking guidance from school counselors or admissions consultants can also be beneficial in navigating the complex application process.

Best Universities For International Transfer Students

We begin with Best Universities For International Transfer Students, then universities that accept international transfer students, international transfer student requirements, do international transfer students get financial aid and international transfer student meaning.

To put together our best schools for international student ranking, we used experts’ insights and our philosophy of “outputs over inputs.” We weight school quality at 60%, based on our Top Colleges rankings’ methodology. Drawing from the federal government’s IPEDS database, we weigh international student six-year graduation rate at 15% of our ranking. We reward schools with full-need aid or need-blind admission policies for international students, data we draw from schools’ websites, with 5% of our ranking each. Schools with high enrollment figures in international students’ most popular majors like engineering, business and math are rewarded up to 5% (per the IIE and the government’s College Scorecard database). The size of schools’ international student body (measured as a percentage of undergrads and calculated by IPEDS) accounts for 5% of our score. The remaining 5% of the score is based on the number of foreign-born workers in the college’s combined statistical area, from the U.S. Census.

Here is the full list of the 2023Top Schools for International Students:

1. Princeton University
2. Yale University
3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
4. Harvard University
5. Columbia University
6. California Institute of Technology
7. Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art
8. Amherst College
9. Stanford University
10. Babson College
11. University of Pennsylvania
12. Claremont McKenna College
13. Georgetown University
14. Brown University
15. New York University
16. Pomona College
17. Cornell University
18. Johns Hopkins University
19. Lafayette College
20. University of Chicago
21. Dartmouth College
22. University of California-Los Angeles
23. University of Notre Dame
24. Harvey Mudd College
25. Barnard College
26. Northwestern University
27. Carnegie Mellon University
28. Rice University
29. Swarthmore College
30. Tufts University
31. Williams College
32. Vassar College
33. University of Southern California
34. Vanderbilt University
35. Bowdoin College
36. Haverford College
37. Pitzer College
38. Washington University in St Louis
39. Bates College
40. Wesleyan University
41. Wellesley College
42. University of California-Berkeley
43. Boston College
44. Middlebury College
45. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
46. Carleton College
47. University of Maryland-College Park
48. Grinnell College
49. Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
50. Colgate University

Universities That Accept International Transfer Students

Next, we review universities that accept international transfer students, international transfer student requirements, do international transfer students get financial aid and international transfer student meaning.

ransferring to another institution can be intimidating and isolating. Some colleges and universities recognize the difficulty of adjusting to a new school, making new friends, and finding your way around a new campus; they work to make the experience easier. Transfer-friendly schools have clear pathways for transferring credits and offer support for transfer students even after enrollment.  

10 Transfer-friendly colleges in the US – (Updated for 2021)

Florida and California’s extensive articulation agreements amongst community colleges in their respective states mean they dominate the list of most transfer-friendly colleges. However, there are still many colleges across the country that offer excellent opportunities for transfer students.

University of California – Los Angeles (UCLA)

Los Angeles, CA

25% Acceptance Rate 

While UCLA does not accept transfers with less than 60 credits, the school’s transfer acceptance rate is significantly higher than their regular admission rates. UCLA has tons of resources to ease the transfer application process, including ASSIST, which provides articulation agreements, and the Center for Community College Partnerships, which has dedicated faculty for underrepresented students. Although the school is transfer-friendly, students must still be competitive. The average GPA for transfer students sits around 3.7. 

Florida International University

Miami, FL 

76% Acceptance Rate

Located in sunny Miami, Fl, Florida International University is no stranger to transfer students. The school accepts the most number of transfer students in the country. In addition to a culture of transfer students, FIU also offers generous financial aid for transfer students. In fact, they have specific scholarships for transfer students.

California State University

Various locations

40% Acceptance Rate 

California State University’s Educational Opportunity Program helps transfer students and other disadvantaged students with academic advising, financial aid, and personal and career counseling.

University of North Carolina

Chapel Hill, NC

26% Acceptance Rate 

UNC works with the Carolina Student Transfer Excellence Program (C-STEP), which helps low and middle-income high school and community college students apply to college. C-STEP prepares students academically for their transition to college. UNC’s transfer program is so good, they accept more transfer students than freshmen. 

University of Michigan

Ann Arbor, MI

UMichigan is a very transfer-friendly campus. The school has a transfer student center, which offers resources specifically for transfers. They also offer a mentoring program aimed at helping students feel at home called Transfer Connections. 

University of North Texas

Denton, TX

UNT’s Transfer Assistance Program helps students who don’t yet qualify for transfer admissions. Students with under 30 credits can receive personalized assistance from a transfer counselor, who will help them select the correct coursework that will transfer to UNT. They also offer an Eagle Bound program that helps students through the transfer college admissions process.

University of Central Florida

Orlando, FL

The University of Central Florida is no stranger to the transfer process. UCF will accept transfer students in the thousands each year. The school offers a specialized program for transfer students called Transfer Knights. The organization hosts events, socials, and meetups to facilitate community among transfer students.

College of William and Mary

Williamsburg, VA

The College of William and Mary offers tons of resources to ensure students understand the processes at the school. Each student will enroll in a mini-course, College Studies, to help them understand how to register for classes. They will also receive a pre-major advisor, who will help them through their registration.

New York University

New York City, NY

New York University has an active transfer student organization as part of its Student Life Center. Students are matched with a previous transfer student who will mentor new students through the acclimation process at NYU.

international transfer student requirements

More details coming up on international transfer student requirements, do international transfer students get financial aid and international transfer student meaning.

International Undergraduate Transfer Requirements

Undergraduate Admission Requirements for International Applicants Seeking a Bachelor’s Degree as a Transfer student (Students who have completed a minimum of 12 credits at a post-secondary institution.)

1. Submit a complete Online Application for International Undergraduate Students or apply through the Common Application.

2. Submit all official post-secondary school (university/college) transcripts as well as certified copies of senior secondary/high school transcripts and diploma. International transcripts which are not in English must be accompanied by a certified evaluation by one of the 4 professional credential evaluation agencies listed below:

• World Education Services
• Educational Credential Evaluators
• SpanTran Education Services
• World Education Services

In addition: Possible transfer credit for any college-level courses completed outside of the United States will not be evaluated without an official course-by-course evaluation. Please contact one of the agencies listed above and request a comprehensive course-by-course with GPA evaluation for your university or college level academic transcripts.

3. Submit at least one letter of recommendation from an academic source (teacher or guidance counselor).

4. Submit a personal essay. The essay is an opportunity for us to get to know you as a person, not just your grades and test scores. It also gives us an example of how you express yourself and demonstrates your ability to organize your thoughts. The personal essay should be between 250 and 650 words on a topic of your choice.

5. If you have not attained a minimum of 12 credits from a regionally accredited college or university in the United States, you must submit one of the following standardized exams: TOEFL, PTE, IELTS, Duolingo, SAT or ACT. The University of New Haven School CEEB Code is 003663 and the ACT code is 0576.

Application Deadlines:

• Fall semester, priority deadline of June 1st
• Spring semester, priority deadline of November 1st

Sending Your Documents:

Please email all of the above-mentioned documents as soon as possible to IntUGAdm@newhaven.edu. You can also mail your documents to the following address:*

Office of International Undergraduate Admissions
University of New Haven
300 Boston Post Road
West Haven, CT 06516
U.S.A.

* We recommend you use a special courier such as FedEx, DHL, or UPS.

do international transfer students get financial aid

International Transfer Student Scholarships and Need-Based Financial Aid

Whitworth scholarships are available to cover Whitworth tuition costs only.

2022-23 Academic Scholarships: $17,000 to $25,000

The following scholarships are determined at the time a student is accepted to Whitworth University. Transfer scholarships will be offered to students who are enrolled full time, who have completed one or more terms at an accredited college or university, and who are working toward their first bachelor’s degree. The scholarship amount will be determined from the student’s official college transcript(s). If the student has attended more than one university, Whitworth will calculate a combined cumulative GPA. If the student has completed less than one full term of college work, the scholarship will be determined based on the student’s high school cumulative GPA.

Scholarship	Amount	GPA
Provost’s Scholarship	$25,000 per year	3.75 or higher cumulative college GPA
Deans’ Scholarship	$23,000 per year	3.50-3.749 cumulative college GPA
Faculty Scholarship	$21,000 per year	3.25-3.499 cumulative college GPA
Pirate Scholarship	$19,000 per year	3.0-3.249 cumulative college GPA
Crimson & Black Scholarship	$17,000 per year	2.5-2.999 cumulative college GPA

Students who enroll at Whitworth full time in 2021-22 will automatically receive the highest scholarship for which they qualify (based on information received in the admissions office by July 15, 2021). These scholarships are available to cover Whitworth tuition costs only. Whitworth will renew the academic scholarship each year a student is enrolled full time and maintains satisfactory academic progress.

These scholarships are offered automatically at the point of admission and can be renewed up to four years for students making satisfactory academic progress. Students who submit updated transcripts or test scores by April 1 will be considered for scholarship upgrades. Students who are home-schooled or who choose on their admission application to request an interview instead of submitting test scores should contact their admissions counselor regarding their academic scholarship offer.

Visit Scholarships: $1,000 (one-time)

Offered to students enrolling in fall 2022 who complete a qualifying 2022-23 Whitworth admissions visit program.

Need-Based Financial Aid

If you are an international student planning to apply for need-based aid, you must submit the College Board CSS Profile application.

• Create your CSS Profile Account and apply: student.collegeboard.org/css-financial-aid-profile
  • Whitworth CSS Profile Code: 4953

Please scroll down on the CSS PROFILE homepage and download the instructions. We encourage you to print the instructions and to view the interactive tutorial.  Whitworth does not provide fee waivers for the CSS Profile.

If you experience technical difficulties with the CSS Profile, please contact their support services:

CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE Support
Students
Phone: 844.202.0524
FAQ: cbprofile.desk.com
Web: CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE

Representatives are available Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time. Service hours are extended January through April to 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern time, and are subject to change.

Please note: Whitworth requires applicants (who file) and their parents to submit their most recent tax return(s)/form(s) to Whitworth. Whitworth aid does not offer scholarships or other financial aid that covers the full cost of attendance, and we do not guarantee need-based aid to applicants. All applications are carefully reviewed based on need and overall academic profile. Need-based aid is given in the form of international grants. Whitworth does not offer loans.

If we receive your CSS Profile application by Nov. 15, you will receive a financial aid offer as early as mid-February. CSS Profiles received after Nov. 15 will be processed on a rolling basis.

If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Office of International Admissions at wuintladmissions@whitworth.edu.

Other Sources of Support

Whitworth International Grant – amount varies based on need

Whitworth EducationUSA Scholarship

To encourage students to take advantage of the resources EducationUSA offers to prepare students for study in the United States, Whitworth University is offering a $1,000 scholarship to any student who is registered at an EducationUSA center around the world and is admitted to Whitworth and enrolls. This scholarship would be in addition to any academic scholarship and/or need-based institutional grants (amounts vary) for which the student qualifies and is renewable.

On-Campus Student Employment

On-campus part-time job opportunities are also available to international students with F-1 and J-1 visas. A student working just 10 hours a week, for example, could earn about $4,000 in a nine-month academic year.

international transfer student meaning

5 TOP TIPS FOR AN INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER STUDENT

International Students who are attending one university and want to transfer to another university are called International Transfer Students. They could be students who are currently in the USA on F1 visa or students enrolled in a university in another country. The blog gives the 5 top tips for an International Transfer Student looking to transfer universities.

1. CONSIDER TRANSFERRING UNIVERSITIES
2. PREREQUISITES FOR INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER STUDENTS
3. KNOW ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS FOR AN INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER STUDENT
4. ENQUIRE ABOUT TRANSFER OF CREDITS
5. FIND BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER STUDENTS
6. New England College
7. Monroe College
8. Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
9. Wesctliff University

Once you secure I-20 from a University, you need to transfer SEVIS to the new University. Counselors from skoolvlle.com can help you with submitting your transfer application and guide you through the SEVIS transfer process.

If you’ve been considering studying abroad, but feel like you missed the boat—we have great news for you. The decision to study abroad can happen at any point in your life or educational experience. You can be a first-year student or well into your third year of college, and with the right research, it could still be possible to study abroad at a university in another country.

It’s important to note that studying abroad is not just for undergraduates. In fact, many universities offer programs for both undergraduate and graduate transfer students.

And in terms of the benefits of studying abroad as a transfer student, there’s really no downside. It’s a chance to continue your studies while experiencing a new culture, making friends from around the world and gaining valuable professional contacts. Many universities even offer financial aid to help cover travel expenses. So if you’ve been thinking about studying abroad as a transfer student, now is the time to take action!