Easiest Ivy League To Transfer Into

Good news! You can transfer to an Ivy League school such as Harvard, Princeton, or Yale. As a result, you shouldn’t get discouraged if you’ve received a denial letter after your first application, especially if you applied to one of the Ivies with a lower acceptance rate than others. Easiest Ivy League to Transfer Into has a unique system that helps you choose your favorite or least favorite schools. It takes into account what it would be like to attend each school in the fall, winter and spring. It factors in ratio of males to females, campus size, campus safety and exciting activities choices.

Getting accepted into an Ivy League school for your undergraduate degree can be an extremely competitive process. If you don’t get into an Ivy League right away, you may have a chance to attend one of these schools for your graduate degree.

Collegelearners affords you unrestricted access to a plethora of valuable information on Cornell transfer, easiest top schools to transfer to, easiest Ivy League to get into for international students, and so much more. Be sure to visit our catalog for more information on related topics.

This list shows the easiest colleges to transfer into if you’re a student who wants a Ivy League education.

What is the Ivy League

Known for containing some of the United States’ oldest, most well-known and well-respected institutions in the northeast, the eight schools of the Ivy League were originally grouped together as an athletic conference. And while these schools have histories dating back hundreds of years, the Ivy League itself was only formed in 1954. Despite its underpinnings in athletics, the Ivy League today is better known for its scholars more than its sports, as admission into these institutions is highly competitive.

Here are the schools in the Ivy League and some more basic information about them.

School Name	Location	Acceptance Rate	Undergraduate Enrollment
Cornell University	Ithaca, New York	10.6%	15,043
Dartmouth College	Hanover, New Hampshire	7.9%	4,417
University of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	7.7%	6,311
Brown University	Providence, Rhode Island	6.6%	6,752
Yale University	New Haven, Connecticut	6.3%	5,964
Princeton University	Princeton, New Jersey	5.7%	5,267
Columbia University	New York, New York	5.2%	9,001
Harvard University	Cambridge, Massachusetts	5.1%	6,699

easiest ivy league to get into for masters

Transferring to an Ivy League school is even more difficult than being accepted as a freshman applicant. For students who aspire to attend Princeton, for example, it hasn’t even been possible to transfer to the school in recent decades. The university recently announced that in 2018 it will offer admission to a small number of transfer students as part of the university’s strategic plan to seek greater diversity.

“Princeton is planning for the reinstatement of a small transfer admissions program as a way to attract students with diverse backgrounds and experiences, such as military veterans and students from low-income backgrounds, including some who began their studies at community colleges,” the university announced earlier this year.

In an important recent development for students who may be planning to transfer, the Common Application organization has announced plans for a new application specially customized for transfer students. Jenny Rickard, the Common App’s chief executive, said that the move to a special application for transferees would help “a very important but under-recognized group of learners . . . by actually acknowledging their diverse backgrounds and experiences.”

At this time, transfer students complete only about 4% of the total applications that are submitted through the Common App platform. The new transfer application will allow transfer students to apply to multiple schools with the new special-purpose application and will also waive certain fees.

IvySelect college admissions counselors take pride in their ability to help high school students applying to college as freshman applicants to construct a target list of 12 or 13 schools of which even the schools at the bottom of the list are attractive to the student. We develop the list so that the student will be happy to attend any of the target schools, not just the ones at the top of the list. However, if a student didn’t use IvySelect initially or if they didn’t anticipate how much they would dislike, say, cold weather, large class sizes, a rural setting or any of the other features of the college they’re attending, then IvySelect is highly qualified to offer expert assistance in transferring to a more desirable school.

There are other reasons why a student may prefer to transfer aside from those characteristics of their current school that they dislike (which go unmentioned in the transfer application to avoid being perceived as a malcontent). A student may be seeking to attend a college from which they were previously rejected or which offers a more challenging educational experience. IvySelect will work with the student to distill a compelling message that clarifies the reasons that your current school doesn’t meet your academic needs and why the transfer school is a better fit.

Some students seek to transfer so that they can participate in specific programs that aren’t offered at their current college or are offered at a much higher quality and breadth at the transfer school. This rationale offers the most frequently successful case for acceptance as a transfer student. IvySelect enables you to articulate this rationale so that the admissions office will view your transfer application positively.

Again, we emphasize that students hoping to secure a spot at a top-tier university face even tougher odds as transfer students than they do as freshman applicants, as seen in the Table below from The Washington Post. The columns show the top national universities listed according to their US News & World Report rankings, the number of transferees entering in a recent year, the number of new freshmen, the total of newly admitted students, and the percentage share of transfers in the total. Schools that do not permit or report transfers are omitted.

Note that, among Ivy League schools, Cornell accepts the largest share of transfer students at 15% and Harvard and Dartmouth the lowest at 1%. Princeton is not shown because their new transfer program won’t begin until next year. The seven branches on the University of California on the list accept a remarkably high average of 33% of students who apply as transferees, due mainly to their commitment to the State’s community colleges.

easiest top schools to transfer into

Table: Transfer Students as a Percent of Total Admissions at Top-Tier Schools

SCHOOL	TRANSFERS	FRESHMEN	TOTAL	TRANSFER % OF TOTAL
Harvard University	12	1659	1671	1%
Yale University	29	1360	1389	2%
Stanford University	29	1678	1707	2%
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	16	1043	1059	2%
Duke University	13	1721	1734	1%
University of Pennsylvania	150	2425	2575	6%
California Institute of Technology	3	226	229	1%
Johns Hopkins University	40	1414	1454	3%
Dartmouth College	14	1152	1166	1%
Northwestern University	55	2005	2060	3%
Brown University	51	1561	1612	3%
Cornell University	554	3225	3779	15%
Vanderbilt University	207	1605	1812	11%
Washington University in St. Louis	110	1734	1844	6%
Rice University	31	949	980	3%
University of Notre Dame	118	2011	2129	6%
University of California-Berkeley	2187	5466	7653	29%
Emory University	105	1365	1470	7%
Georgetown University	148	1578	1726	9%
Carnegie Mellon University	20	1474	1494	1%
University of California-Los Angeles	3167	5764	8931	35%
University of Southern California	1435	3098	4533	32%
University of Virginia	665	3709	4374	15%
Tufts University	22	1348	1370	2%
Wake Forest University	30	1287	1317	2%
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	1041	6505	7546	14%
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill	886	3976	4862	18%
New York University	854	5913	6767	13%
Brandeis University	60	859	919	7%
College of William and Mary	157	1511	1668	9%
Georgia Institute of Technology	499	2809	3308	15%
Case Western Reserve University	38	1282	1320	3%
University of California-Santa Barbara	1592	4747	6339	25%
University of California-Irvine	2024	5424	7448	27%
University of California-San Diego	2461	4921	7382	33%
Boston University	478	3915	4393	11%
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	121	1331	1452	8%
Tulane University	116	1647	1763	7%
University of California-Davis	3138	5377	8515	37%
University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign	1331	6937	8268	16%
University of Wisconsin-Madison	770	6264	7034	11%
Lehigh University	29	1299	1328	2%
Northeastern University	460	2944	3404	14%
Pennsylvania State University	425	8183	8608	5%
University of Florida	1968	6537	8505	23%
University of Miami	592	2076	2668	22%
Ohio State University	2606	7079	9685	27%
Pepperdine University	106	656	762	14%
University of Texas-Austin	2325	7285	9610	24%
University of Washington	1730	6360	8090	21%
Yeshiva University	31	809	840	4%
George Washington University	492	2416	2908	17%
University of Connecticut	805	3588	4393	18%
University of Maryland at College Park	2004	4129	6133	33%
Worcester Polytechnic Institute	42	1056	1098	4%
Clemson University	1293	3475	4768	27%
Purdue University-West Lafayette	586	6372	6958	8%
Southern Methodist University	287	1459	1746	16%
University of Georgia	1116	5261	6377	18%
Brigham Young University-Provo	734	4072	4806	15%
Fordham University	343	2258	2601	13%
University of Pittsburgh	762	3847	4609	17%
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities	2175	5530	7705	28%
Texas A&M University-College Station	2525	10835	13360	19%
Virginia Tech	958	5494	6452	15%
American University	287	1787	2074	14%
Baylor University	454	3625	4079	11%
Rutgers-New Brunswick	2541	6412	8953	28%
Clark University	52	547	599	9%
Colorado School of Mines	159	999	1158	14%
Indiana University-Bloomington	912	7716	8628	11%
Michigan State University	1668	8055	9723	17%
University of Delaware	426	4179	4605	9%
University of Massachusetts-Amherst	1158	4642	5800	20%

The Easiest Ivy League Schools to Get Into

The eight schools of the Ivy League are some of the most hallowed institutions in the United States, counting presidents, Nobel Prize winners, founders, and CEOs among their alumni. Because of this, the best and brightest minds from around the world compete for admission into the Ivy League. While no Ivy League school is easy to get into, gaining admission into some Ivies is easier than others. Keep reading to learn about the easiest Ivy League Schools to get into. 

3 Easiest Ivy League Schools to Get Into

Note: We want to reiterate that no Ivy League is “easy” to get into, but some historically have higher acceptance rates than others. This is the case for these 3 schools.

1. Cornell University 

• Location: Ithaca, New York
• Acceptance rate: 10.6%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 15,043

Founded in 1865, Cornell University’s motto, “I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study,” is as relevant today as when the words were first uttered by its cofounder, Ezra Cornell. The easiest Ivy to get into based on acceptance rate, Cornell offers over 4,000 courses through its seven undergraduate schools, meaning that students are sure to find a subject of interest to study. Cornell was the first university to offer a degree in journalism and the first to teach modern Far Eastern languages. Students will find more than academics to interest them at Cornell—start with these 161 Things Every Cornellian Should Do. Set in the Finger Lakes region of New York, the 2,300-acre campus is replete with green space and natural beauty. 

Note on Cornell’s Acceptance Rate: Cornell requires students to apply directly to one of their eight undergraduate colleges. While the overall acceptance rate at Cornell makes it the easiest Ivy League school to get into, the acceptance rates vary quite a bit by college. For example, below are the acceptance rates for the eight undergraduate colleges in 2019:

• College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: 11.38%
• College of Architecture-Art and Planning: 10.25%
• College of Arts and Science: 9.87%
• Cornell SC Johnson College of Business: 6.4%
• College of Engineering: 10.53% 
• Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration: 24.17%
• College of Human Ecology: 18.34%
• School of Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR): 15.89%

Explore the different acceptance rates between Cornell’s Colleges further on their website. 

2. Dartmouth College 

• Location: Hanover, New Hampshire 
• Acceptance rate: 7.9%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 4,417

The second-easiest Ivy League school to get into, Dartmouth College was founded in 1769. Dartmouth is the smallest Ivy League school, but don’t be fooled by its diminutive undergraduate class size—the school has a large number of offerings. The university is notable for its outstanding faculty, small class sizes, and incredible research opportunities—the Carnegie Foundation has classified Dartmouth as a university with “very high research activity.” Dartmouth is also home to the nation’s oldest and largest outing club, which provides students the opportunity to explore and enjoy the beautiful natural landscape surrounding the school’s rural campus. 

3. University of Pennsylvania 

• Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 
• Acceptance rate: 7.7%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 6,311

Founded in 1740 by Benjamin Franklin, University of Pennsylvania seamlessly blends its rich history with the innovative spirit it was founded on: Franklin believed that higher education should focus not merely on the education of the clergy, but on teaching knowledge of arts and humanities, plus the practical skills needed to make a living and to do public good. The University of Pennsylvania is home to the world’s first collegiate business school (the Wharton School), as well as the oldest medical school in the United States. On campus, students can take in a game at Franklin Field, the nation’s oldest operational football stadium. 

Note on UPenn’s Acceptance Rate: When applying to the University of Pennsylvania, you don’t apply to the school as a whole; rather, you apply to one of its four schools: the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Nursing, Penn Engineering, and the Wharton School of Business. If you’re interested in a dual-degree program and that program falls under the umbrella of two schools, you need to get accepted by both. Acceptance rates for the individual schools aren’t available, but acceptance rates for specialized schools are likely lower than that of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Not sure which schools to consider for your list

When you’re ready to apply, you’ll want 8-12 schools varying from safety to reach schools. Start looking for schools now that best fit your needs and achievements.

The Rest of the Ivy League Schools

Here are the rest of the Ivy League schools, listed in order of highest to lowest acceptance rate.

1. Brown University

• Location: Providence, Rhode Island
• Acceptance rate: 6.6%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 6,752

Founded in 1764, Brown is another Ivy League institution with a long and storied history. Known for its unconventional approach to education, Brown’s “Open Curriculum” allows students to develop their own core curriculum and explore more than 80 academic programs before choosing to focus on a particular field of study. Brown’s picturesque 150-acre campus is within easy walking distance of downtown Providence, and provides easy access to the vibrant Thayer Street, which offers numerous shopping, dining, and entertainment options. 

2. Yale University 

• Location: New Haven, Connecticut 
• Acceptance rate: 6.3%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 5,964

One of the leading U.S. institutions of higher education since its founding in 1701, Yale is a beacon to a wide variety of scholars, as it’s equally well-known for its drama and music programs as its more than 800 science, math, and engineering labs. Students are housed in residential colleges, each with their own head and dean who live and eat with the students. This structure creates a unique social system at Yale and a sense of community. The city of New Haven, Connecticut, is often called the “Cultural Capital of Connecticut,” but students looking to escape enjoy easy access to the big cities of Boston and New York. 

3. Princeton University 

• Location: Princeton, New Jersey 
• Acceptance rate: 5.7%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 5,267

Founded in 1746 as the College of New Jersey and renamed in 1896, Princeton University is among the oldest and most renowned institutions of higher education in the United States. Well known for its stunning ivy-covered campus that sprawls across 500 acres and is set in the idyllic town of Princeton, it’s no wonder that almost all undergraduate students choose to live on campus, creating a well-connected and vibrant community. While there are a plethora of restaurants, shopping, art, and culture surrounding Princeton, big cities like New York and Philadelphia are only about an hour away and easily accessed via the “Dinky” train which provides regular service.

4. Columbia University 

• Location: New York, New York
• Acceptance rate: 5.2%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 9,001 

Established by the royal charter of George II as King’s College in 1754 and renamed Columbia College following the American Revolution, Columbia is the fifth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and the oldest in New York. At the heart of Columbia’s academics is their common “Core” curriculum—a set of classes ranging from literature and humanities to the sciences that every student must take. Outside the classroom, students live and learn in one of the world’s great cities, New York, where they have unparalleled access to leading institutions of media, science, education, health, politics, finance, and technology.

5. Harvard University

• Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
• Acceptance rate: 5.1%
• Undergraduate enrollment: 6,699

The oldest institution of higher education in the United States, Harvard University was founded in 1636 and remains at the forefront of education today—almost 400 years later. Located in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston, Harvard students can take advantage of the university’s world-class resources while surrounded by some of the globe’s most talented and intellectual students, from Harvard as well as neighboring schools like MIT, Boston University, Boston College, Tufts, and Northeastern. 

How Can I Increase My Chances of Getting Into an Ivy League School

1. Take Rigorous Classes and Get Strong Grades

It should come as no surprise that a common characteristic shared by students accepted into all eight of the Ivy League schools is a strong GPA—just read our blog post, What Are the Average High School GPAs of Admitted Students at Ivy League Schools?, to get an idea of the type of awesome academics you’ll need. None of the Ivy League schools have a minimum required GPA; however, the higher your GPA, the better your chances are at admission.

Although the Ivies don’t have a minimum GPA, many selective schools use the Academic Index as part of the admissions process, which places considerable weight on your grades. Academic Index (AI) is a calculation of a student’s overall academic performance combining factors like GPA, SAT or ACT score, and SAT Subject Test scores into a single metric. This allows admissions offices to establish a minimum AI threshold, where applicants who don’t meet that threshold might be automatically rejected. A good AI will get your foot in the door (it won’t get you automatically accepted!), but a bad one could keep you out. Learn more about the Academic Index in our article, What is the Academic Index? How is it Calculated?

2. Pursue Quality Extracurriculars

In addition to fantastic grades and challenging coursework, you’ll also need impressive extracurriculars to get into an Ivy League school—in some cases, a truly extraordinary extracurricular activity may even help you overcome an underwhelming GPA. An easy way to judge the value of an extracurricular activity in admissions is to use the four tiers of extracurricular activities. 

All extracurricular activities are good—they show depth and paint a more personal portrait of yourself that grades and test scores cannot—but some activities are more impressive than others. The tiers are set up from the extraordinary to the ordinary; the rarer and more distinguished the achievement, the more value placed on it. For example, Tier 1 is reserved for activities such as being selected to play in the McDonald’s All-American basketball game, or winning first prize in the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO). Conversely, Tier 4 activities are for more common activities like being a member of your school’s debate team. 

One way that students can improve their extracurricular profile during high school is to take on leadership roles in the clubs and organizations they belong to. The more a student uses their position in a club to guide and shape its future, the more impressive it will be in admissions.

3. Write Engaging Essays

Along with extracurricular activities, the essay is the other way in which admissions departments learn about a student’s interests and life outside of the classroom. All eight Ivy League schools accept the Common Application, so understanding how to write the Common Application essays is a vital skill for those with Ivy aspirations. 

What Is The Easiest Ivy League School To Transfer Into

If you were to find out which Ivy League university is the easiest to transfer you, would you consider that valuable information? Will you be transferring from community college or another university? Let me be the first one to tell you that transferring to any Ivy League university isn’t easy, but there are some that are significantly more accessible than others. For a list of Ivy League schools that accept transfer students, see this post.

Before I tell you which universities are easier or harder to get into, understand that you should not let this effect your decision. The most important factor in your decision for transferring should be if the school is a good fit for you or not. Will that school help you fulfill your career goals? Will you thrive in the school’s unique culture? Will you be comfortable in a small town or large city? Does this university have clubs that you’re interested in? These are all factors that your decision should be based on, not just which university is easier to get into.

With the right steps, you can transfer to any university (regardless of the numbers). See this community college guide for proof.

The Hardest Universities to Transfer Into

As you might expect, transferring to Harvard University, Yale University, and Brown University are of the hardest to get into. This is mainly because, as they openly state, transfer admissions is more competitive than freshman admissions, posting transfer acceptance rates as low as 1%. They attribute this low acceptance rate to their high retention rates (meaning that students come back for their sophomore and junior years). Universities with lower retention rates have more spots to fill the next year. Don’t be fooled though; a low retention rate does not have a direct relationship with how good the school is, but we’ll get back to that later.

That being said, to find the easiest university to transfer into, you’ll want to look at the university with the most spots available to transfer students. The more spots available, the better chances you have.

The Easiest University to Transfer Into: Cornell University

Having a lower retention rate, Cornell University accepts the most transfer students out of all the Ivy League schools. Cornell is the easiest to get into because they have more spots available. However, Cornell is not the easiest Ivy League school to do well in. Keep in mind that many students drop out because they are not able to keep up with the intense academic requirements. Aside from being very competitive, it’s also located in up-state New York, distant from major cities.

So just because Cornell University is the easiest Ivy League school to transfer into, that doesn’t mean you should only apply there. Research which schools are best for you. This way, you’ll have more options that you’ll be happy with. Then, once you’re accepted into UPENN, Cornell and Dartmouth, you can decided which school to transfer into.