Transfer Admissions

Students desiring to transfer to Northwestern State University with less than 12 hours of course work will be eligible for admission to a degree program if they meet the requirements as an entering freshman, and be eligible to reenter the institution from which they are transferring.  Transfer and re-entry applicants who have attended other colleges and universities must have official copies of all college work submitted to the University Registrar & Admission Office before the credentials deadline. 

Transfer applicants may not disregard previous college work and apply as freshmen.  Transcripts should be requested from the Registrar at each institution attended and mailed directly to the Registrar's Office.  Transfer applicants who do not plan to pursue a degree at NSU may submit a Letter of Good Standing from the last institution attended in lieu of an official transcript. 

 Accreditation status of transfer institutions is confirmed through the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) publications Transfer Credit Practices of Designated Educational Institutions and Accredited Institutions of Postsecondary Educations.  Transcripts are only accepted from institutions that are regionally accredited by Southern Association of College and Schools/Commission on Colleges, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada, and Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Students (in-state and out-of-state) desiring to transfer to Northwestern State University must have a transferable Associate Degree or higher from an accredited institution.  Transfer students who have not earned the Associate Degree or higher from an accredited institution will be eligible for admission to a degree program if they meet the following Minimum Admission Criteria:

  • Students must have earned at least 12 hours of College Level Courses (non-developmental
  • Students must have earned a 2.0 minimum GPA on College Level Courses (non-developmental)
  • Students must be eligible to return to the institution from which they are transferring
  • Students desiring to transfer with the minimum GPA on College Level Courses , but fewer than the minimum College Level hours earned, must ALSO meet the Freshman Admission Criteria in order to be admitted as a transfer student
  • Students desiring admission as transfer students and in need of more than one developmental course will not be eligible for transfer to NSU

Evaluations concerning probation, suspension, grades, grade point average, and hours earned are based on NSU standards regardless of prior determinations at the other institution that the student has attended.  No student will be admitted if under scholastic or disciplinary suspension from another college or university.  A suspended student will not be considered for admission until the suspension period has been completed; where such period is not clearly defined, it will equal a period comparable to rules in place at NSU.

No credit will be granted to a student by Northwestern for academic work earned while the applicant was suspended or dismissed from any institution.

For online admissions, click here.