Transferring to USC: your chances, deadlines and credits
Transfer acceptance rate: 27.1%
Transfer acceptance rate
Source: Official school data report, section D, 2025-2026
For fall 2025, USC admitted 2,929 of 10,827 transfer applicants (27.1%).
Checked November 9, 2026. Selective
- Fall 2027 deadline
- Feb 15, 2027Source, 2026-2027
- SAT or ACT
- Not requiredSource, 2026-2027
- Credits to apply
- No minimumSource, 2026-2027
- Lowest grade that transfers
- C-Source, 2025-2026
USC transfer acceptance rate
USC's transfer acceptance rate for fall 2025 was 27.1%. 1,544 transfer students enrolled. The first-year rate the same year was 11.2%.
Source: Official school data report, section D, 2025-2026
The Common Data Set is the official data report colleges publish each year.
Transfer and first-year applicants are different groups. Use the first-year rate as context only.
This rate covers everyone who applied. Your major can move it a lot, and the report does not split it by major.
USC's transfer count is one number for every school and major. Viterbi, Marshall, Cinematic Arts, Dance, Music and Architecture each have their own requirements, and some of them set the deadline and the course list before USC reads your file.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027; USC Viterbi transfer admission, 2026-2027
Our read: Look up the rules for your own school at USC before you read the overall count. The count is a blend of very different applicants.
Transfer requirements
USC requires college transcripts. It does not require SAT or ACT scores.
SAT or ACT scoresNot required
USC does not require SAT or ACT scores from 2027-2028 transfer applicants.
Source, 2026-2027Minimum credits before you applyNo minimum
USC does not require a minimum number of transfer units. Below 30 transferable semester units, the decision relies largely on the high school record and any SAT or ACT scores. The B.A. in Film and Television Production requires 48 units.
Source, 2026-2027
Recommendation letters are required only if your intended department asks for them. Some majors want a portfolio, résumé, writing sample or audition.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
The B.A. in Film and Television Production requires 48 transferable units. Several schools have extra transfer rules: Iovine and Young Academy, Roski, Marshall, Chan Division of Occupational Science and the Mann School of Pharmacy.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Some majors, especially science, engineering, architecture and business, expect lower-division major courses done before you transfer.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Transfer deadlines for fall 2027
For fall 2027 entry, the application deadline is February 15, 2027.
Source: University of Southern California transfer information, 2026-2027
- You send or do something
- The school answers
- December
- February
- March
The deadline is December 1, 2026 for BFA programs in Cinematic Arts and Dramatic Arts, the Kaufman School of Dance and the Thornton School of Music. It is February 15, 2027 for every other major. Extensions are case by case through an admission counselor.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Decisions come in late May. USC either decides or asks for your spring grades, and in that case you hear by mid-July.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Your fall-term grades must be posted before your college sends its transcript. Affirmations are done in the applicant portal after USC receives your application, and your signature can come after the deadline.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Our read: If you are applying to a creative school, the date that matters is December 1, not February 15. Check this before you plan your fall.
What GPA do you need?
USC lists no minimum GPA. It points to a Transfer Student Profile that shows the average GPA of recently admitted transfers.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Our read: No minimum is not the same as a low bar. Read the profile and compare your own GPA to the average, not to zero.
Pass/No Pass is allowed up to 24 units, but USC says competitive applicants usually take few or none. Remedial courses do not transfer. Repeating a course after a D+ or lower means both grades count in your transfer GPA.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
What USC looks for
USC wants at least one year of rigorous, full-time coursework by the end of spring term, with strong grades. It says that usually means 14 to 16 units a term.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Writing 130 or its equivalent is expected of California community college students. Math is a C or better in Algebra I, Geometry and Algebra II, or Intermediate Algebra in college. Many majors ask for more.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Viterbi asks for two math courses after high school, with Calculus II at least in progress when you apply, and two lab science courses taken in person for a letter grade. It says the most influential factor is your academic history. AP or IB credit alone does not meet the minimums.
Source: USC Viterbi transfer admission, 2026-2027
Marshall recommends applying after at least 30 transferable units, including its prerequisites. It also runs a Pathways Program that invites some near-miss first-year applicants to apply as sophomore transfers.
Source: USC Marshall transfer students, undated page
With fewer than 30 transferable semester units by the end of spring, USC says the decision relies mainly on your high school record and any SAT or ACT scores. SAT and ACT are not required for 2027-2028 applicants.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Transfer essays and supplements
Our read: USC's transfer page does not give an essay prompt, and we could not confirm one. Check the Common App transfer questions for USC when you apply.
Our read: Whatever the prompt is, it has to work with a file that is mostly grades and a course list. Name the school or program you are applying to inside USC and the courses you have already taken toward it.
The essay is where you explain why you are leaving and why this school. Get a free review before you send it.
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Will your credits transfer?
Each course needs a C- or better.
Lowest grade that transfers
C- or better
Lowest grade that can transfer, from the 2025-26 Common Data Set (p. 16). USC does not report a maximum number of transferable credits there.
Source, 2025-2026AP, IB and exam credit
Up to 32 units
Up to 32 units from AP, IB and other exams. College courses taken in high school count within this limit, up to 16 units.
Source, 2026-2027What you must finish there
Transfers must complete at least 64 units in residence at USC. Exceptions: 48 units for the Engineering 3+2 program and 80 units for the Bachelor of Architecture.
Source, 2026-2027
You must complete at least 64 units in residence at USC. For the Engineering 3+2 program it is 48 units, and for the Bachelor of Architecture it is 80 units.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
You must take all upper-division major and minor units, WRIT 340 and at least two Core Literacy courses from Dornsife at USC. After you enroll, fall and spring courses must be taken at USC. Other schools are allowed only for limited summer work.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Exam credit (AP, IB and similar) is capped at 32 units. College courses taken in high school count inside that 32, up to 16 units.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Online and other nontraditional courses need a petition. Online foreign language and lab science typically count only as electives. Placement-exam credit, remedial courses and graduate-level courses do not transfer.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
There are caps by subject: 4 units each for ESL, physical education activity and music ensembles, 8 for dance, 12 for physical education theory, and 16 for individual music instruction.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Our read: Dornsife general education is set by your start year, and the 64-unit residency rule is large. Use the articulation lists for California community colleges and the transfer planning tools that USC links before you pick courses, and keep your syllabi.
If it does not work out
The aid priority date is March 2, 2027. Need-based aid takes the FAFSA and CSS Profile by then. California residents should also file for Cal Grants by that date.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Undocumented and DACA applicants send their 2025 tax return and a third-party letter confirming status in place of the FAFSA.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Our read: If the answer is no, USC takes sophomore and junior transfers, so you can apply again after a full year of strong grades.
- University of VirginiaSimilar odds
- Boston CollegeSimilar odds
- Vanderbilt UniversitySimilar odds
- University of MichiganTakes more transfers
Questions students ask
Do I need a minimum number of units to apply?
No. But below 30 transferable semester units by the end of spring, the decision relies largely on your high school record and any test scores.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Do I need the SAT or ACT?
Not for 2027-2028 transfer applicants.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Do I need a minimum GPA?
USC lists none. Viterbi also says there is no minimum GPA to apply.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027; USC Viterbi transfer admission, 2026-2027
Do my recommendation letters matter?
Only if your intended department requires them. Check the page for your school inside USC.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
Can I apply as a sophomore?
Yes. USC accepts both sophomore and junior transfers.
Source: USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
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Sources
- Official school data report, 2025-2026
- USC transfer admission, 2026-2027
- USC Viterbi transfer admission, 2026-2027
- USC Marshall transfer students, undated page
- Official school data report, 2025-2026
Numbers come from official reports, read by our tools and checked. Notes were drafted with AI tools from the official pages linked beside them. A person has not reviewed this guide yet. Admission decisions belong to each college, and no one can promise one.