Thinking about a middle or high school transfer? Learn some key tips to ensure you know how to transfer schools successfully. Whether you are considering a transfer to a private school, boarding school, or military school, these tips are applicable.
Bear in mind, some schools, in particular military boarding schools, may have limited spaces for transfer students during fall and spring rolling admission timeframes. To clarify, secondary school transfers are sometimes referred to as mid-year enrollment, second semester transfer, spring semester admission or rolling admission.
4 Tips on How to Transfer Schools:
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Make Sure Credits Transfer
- Transfer Credits – Before you think about a school transfer, you may be concerned about whether your high school academic credits transfer. No need to be overly concerned as most high schools will accept and transfer credits from other high schools across the U.S. This is true for all types of secondary schools, both public and private.
- Transcripts – When you apply to any type of private school, the admission office will ask for a copy of your academic transcript and then will require an official transcript at some point. Private school registrars typically handle the requests for the official copies from the current school.
- Freshman Year – If the student is a middle schooler planning to enter a high school, private school admission offices will require middle school transcripts primarily to determine placement in high school freshman classes. As you probably know, middle school classes are not part of college transcript requirements; however, a success plan for college should begin early.
- Middle School Transfers – If your plan is to change schools during middle school, there are many school types: K-8, middle school for 7th and 8th graders, junior boarding schools and combination middle school/high schools. Attending a private school for grades 7-8 offers the ease of moving into the high school program without transferring or reapplying.
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Talk to an Advisor
- Find the Best Schools – To find the best schools to transfer to, it is important to consult with advisors and do your research. An academic counselor at your current school could offer some school transfer suggestions, but also speak with admission professionals at secondary schools of your choice. Think about preferences to pin down 3-5 transfer schools of interest based on key criteria such as: location, coed or single gender, denominational or non denominational.
- Admission Office – Request information from the admission office to address questions and learn about how to transfer schools. They will also address rolling admission or mid-year transfer deadlines, how to apply, and how to schedule a tour or campus visit.
- Academic Counselors – To view curriculum details, speak with your current academic counselor or check school websites under academics / curriculum. Some private school admission offices will connect you with their academic counselors or deans if needed. Ask schools various questions about their high school and college prep requirements, electives of interest, sports and other co-curriculars. If you intend to take honors and/or advanced placement (AP) classes, ask schools about their offerings.
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Look for Recommendations and Testimonials
- School Websites – After you have found some schools to transfer to, you will want to check out their school websites, but you can also check out recommendations from students who have attended those schools, as well as read over testimonials on some of the review sites below.
- Google Business Profile – When you search by the name of school, you will see some details about the school such as an overview and reviews.
- Private School Review – This site could be useful to help you develop a short list of schools by location that offer school transfers and see comparison data and testimonials from alumni, students and parents.
- Boarding School Review – If you’re considering a boarding school, this site can be very helpful to see overviews, reviews, and comparison information. .
- Niche, Great Schools, and Yelp – Niche and other review sites can be useful to find schools, read reviews, as well as check rankings.
- Social Media – For events and happenings on campus, social media sites for schools can be a good way to see current happenings and student comments.
- Educational Consultants – If you think you may require some help to find and/or apply for a school transfer, IECA (Independent Educational Consultants Association) do help some families find the best school.*
*Note: They do charge fees to assist families with school searches and placements. IECA members often specialize in helping students find schools for learning differences, international placements, and help high school students with college applications.
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Attend Orientation or Tour
- Open Houses or Orientation Events – Some private schools do offer open houses or other types of orientation events, but keep in mind, you will most likely be in a group during these events.
- Personalized Appointments – Most boarding and private schools offer personalized appointments for tours, interviews, consultations, financial aid questions, and sometimes shadow days or lunch on campus.
- Special Events and Programs – If you want to know more about specific programs, attending special events can be helpful. Think about your interests and ask about upcoming sports, arts, or other programs open to prospective students.
After visiting school campuses, if you apply and are accepted, it is important to respond quickly in order to secure the space as many schools have limited spaces for rolling admission or transfers. Make sure you complete the enrollment contract and any other registration requirements.
In summary, you should now have a good handle on how to transfer schools successfully. There are some additional resources below and contact information if you have any questions.
Additional Resources:
Reasons Why Students Transfer Schools
Benefits of Switching Mid-Year to a Boarding School
Tips for How to Apply to Boarding School
Questions: As a public service, the Army & Navy Academy, a college preparatory school for boys in grades 7-12 is happy to address questions. Even if we are not the right fit, we may be able to offer other resources.
Admission Office: tel: +1-888.762.2338