My son (a geology major at Alfred University) has applied to transfer to Univ at Buffalo in the fall. I have several questions that I can’t find the answers to on the UB website and was hoping for some insight. Very few of his completed college courses “match” a UB course on their transfer articulation website - TAURUS. This looks very discouraging to me. He is hopeful that they will accept his completed coursework and that it will apply toward the geology program at UB. Is he supposed to send his college transcripts to UB or will they request them after his application is received and reviewed? Will he be advised regarding which course credits are accepted before accepting an offer of admission? And lastly, what are his chances of being accepted as a transfer student with a 2.43 GPA?
THis is something your son needs to discuss with someone at UB. If he finds the person who can review transcripts and do an assessment, sending them to such a person would be useful. An interview with the dept chair is a good idea if possible.
Usually a 3.0 is the dividing line for many transfers. A 2.43 with an upward trend would get decent consideration along with strong case for admission to this major with interest and courses supporting his case.
Thank you for your response, cptofthehouse. He said he was referred to the TAURUS course articulation tool to check his courses for matching UB courses. I will suggest to him (again) that he meet with someone to review his transcripts. Would the appropriate person be an advisor in the Geology Department? Or someone in the admissions department?
I would go with an advisor in the Geology dept. It could also help his admissions chances if he could personally convey interest and promise as a student there. His gpa is truly borderline for transfer admissions and a personal phone call from the dept to admissions would go a long way to boost his chances.
Thank you again for your help and advice. I will share this with him.
He might need to provide a course syllabus for any course they don’t have listed. If they read the description, they might be able to determine what UB courses are similar.
Thank you for this tip, mom2twogirls
I assume 2.43 is his overall GPA. Is his GPA in the major higher? If yes, that could be a selling point.
I also suggest that he meet with someone from the geology department at Buffalo, as well as a transfer admissions counselor. Now that the admissions process for the incoming September class is done, they may have time to speak/meet with a prospective transfer.
Has he looked at any other SUNY programs with his proposed major?
My daughter took 3 courses at a local university and wanted to transfer them to her home university. One was on the transfer program but the other two were specific history courses and not offered at her home school. She had to send the course description and syllabus to both the registrar and to the history dept (her adviser happened to be the chair). Other than a delay because it was over the summer, no problem getting credit.
Because your son is trying to transfer a number of courses, he should find a contact person in the registrar’s office and arrange to have his transcript reviewed. The more info he has about the courses, the better. It is HIS responsibility to get the transcripts to UB - they will not request them.
Thank you for your reply, techmom99. UB is the only school he is interested in transferring to at this point. He hasn’t mentioned any interest in other SUNY programs.
Thank you for your helpful reply, twoinanddone. He did have his transcript sent to UB last week. I will share your tips with my son.
Just wanted to update my thread with the results… Univ at Buffalo has offered my son admission as a transfer student. They accepted all of his course credits! Half of his courses articulated to UB courses. The AU courses that did not match a UB course in TAURUS were articulated as electives. His high school dual enrollment courses were included in the calculation of his transfer GPA, which brought his GPA up to 2.54.
Congratulations. Make sure he has a passport. My son is at Fredonia and we have gone over to Canada a couple of times.
techmom99 Thank you! He does have a passport ~