New International Transfer Admits

After receiving your admission notification, international students holding, or applying for an F-1 visa will be contacted by the International Programs Office via email with instructions on how to upload their required documents for the I-20 or SEVIS transfer.

To prepare for the process, please have the following items available: (1) copy of your Passport Biographical Page and (2) Financial Sponsor information and a copy of their recent bank statement (or other official letters of financial support/guarantee/scholarship). If you are currently already studying in the US, please also plan to submit: (1) copy of current Visa stamp; (2) copy of I-94; and (3) copy of I-20 or DS-2019, and Employment Authorization Document (EAD), if any.

If you do not receive the instructions email within 2 weeks of admission notification, or if you have any questions about the I-20/SEVIS transfer process, please contact the International Programs Office at (323) 343-3170 or [email protected].

Transfer admission offers may be based on self-reported information provided in the Admission Application. This is called Conditional Admission, and those who are offered admission will need to submit official documents, including transcripts from all colleges/universities attended, and test scores, in order to verify the information reported. This will also allow us to begin the official evaluation process of all transfer credit in preparation for advising at orientation.

It is important to understand that admission to the University is a multi-step process. Some applicants who are transferring from a U.S. college/university may have been offered Conditional Admission because their admission was based only on the information reported in their admission application. If you were conditionally admitted, we will need to confirm your academic qualifications by reviewing official college/university transcripts, test scores, verifications of degree, or military records. It is your responsibility to submit these documents by the requested date in the conditional admission notification.

Once we receive your official documents, we will carefully review them to confirm that you accurately reported your qualifications, academic history, and your progress towards meeting the lower division preparation for your intended major. As part of the admission confirmation process, we may verify the following requirements:

• Transferable Coursework

We will review your transcripts (and test scores), to confirm that you have completed (or will complete) at least 60 transferable semester units (or 90 transferable quarter units), and the courses appropriate to meet CSU GE requirements, and if applicable, the Major-Specific Criteria for Admission. If used for admission eligibility, courses must be completed by the end of the preceding Spring term for Fall admission; or the preceding Summer term for Spring admission.

• Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT)

If an ADT (or an AA-T/AS-T) was reported on your admission application, we may need confirmation from your CA Community College that you will complete the appropriate ADT program by the end of the preceding Spring term for Fall admission, or the preceding Summer term for Spring admission. If for any reason you will not be completing your ADT as initially reported, please contact the Admissions Office immediately, as this may change your admission eligibility.  

• Grade Point Average (GPA):  Is the GPA you reported in your admission application accurate? 

After we receive your official transcripts, we will calculate your overall transferable GPA to confirm that it is the same, or higher than, what was reported on the Admission Application. If your final GPA falls below admission cutoffs, the admission offer will be rescinded. 

The admission offer is conditional until it is confirmed by the Admissions Office using your official academic records. After the admission confirmation process is completed, the Admissions Office will email you the outcome of the review.  Admission offers will be withdrawn for students who do provide the required information by the deadline, or for whom we cannot confirm their admission eligibility.

If the admission offer is confirmed based on submitted academic records, your status is either “Provisional” or “Clear.” Confirmed admission offers are almost always “provisional” because some admission requirements may still be in progress at the time of admission confirmation. Provisionally admitted applicants will be required to submit final copies of their college transcripts in order to confirm final completion of in-progress requirements, and academic standing at the last institution attended.

All requirements must be satisfied by the end of the preceding Spring term for Fall admission, or the preceding Summer term for Spring admission.

Admission offers are provisional until it is verified that all of the following requirements are met:

• Completion of at least 60 transferable semester units, or 90 transferable quarter units.
• Completion of a minimum of 30 semester units, or 45 quarter units, in courses approved to meet CSU General Education (GE) requirements.
• Completion with a grade of 'C-' or better by the end of the prior Spring term for Fall admission, or by the end of the prior Summer term for Spring admission, the CSU GE requirements in Written Communication, Oral Communication, Critical Thinking*, and Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning.  *The CSU Critical Thinking course requirement is waived for most Engineering and Computer Science majors.
• Overall final transferable GPA that is the same, or higher than, what was reported on the Admission Application. While some decrease in GPA may continue to meet admission eligibility, declines below admission cutoffs will result in withdrawal of the offer.
• Be in good standing at the last college or university attended in a regular session.
• Must also meet/complete the Major-Specific Criteria for Admission as planned, which may include the completion of an Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT).

Failure to meet these conditions will result in the rescinding of the admission offer. If readmission is desired for a future term, a new application must be submitted for that term, and applicants must meet all admission requirements in effect at that time.

Final college transcripts must be submitted by the following deadline:

• Fall Admission:  July 15 and must include grades earned through the Spring term
• Spring Admission:  November 1 and must include grades earned through the Summer term

After final academic records are reviewed, you will receive an email sharing that your admission has been finalized, or withdrawn for not meeting the conditions. Students are allowed to register for classes prior to the final audit of their admission decision. Some students may be required to self-report their Spring grades prior to advisement to ensure they are on track for completion of the admission requirements.

If the admission offer is rescinded after enrollment, the classes will be administratively dropped. Students with rescinded admission offers are responsible for following up with USCIS regarding the change to their student visa eligibility.

Please plan to meet the undergraduate admission deadlines for your admit term. To view the specific deadlines, visit the Admissions Deadline webpage.

Living on campus offers numerous opportunities for students to build lifelong friendships, develop as leaders and achieve academic success. We offer apartment-style residence halls that are a short walk to class, the University-Student Union, and various campus resources. To learn more, visit the Housing and Residence Life webpage.

Be aware: Before you apply for Housing, you must first submit your Enrollment Confirmation Deposit (ECD).

The average student expenses will vary from student to student, depending on his/her living arrangements and individual needs. For the estimated cost of attendance at Cal State LA, visit the Cost of Attendance webpage, and select the appropriate academic year. For specific information on tuition and fees, visit the One-Stop Financial Services-Student Fees webpage, and select the appropriate term. As an international student, please also include the CSU non-resident fee to your estimated attendance cost.

New and returning undergraduate students are required to attend Golden Eagle Orientation to prepare for the transition to the University, including academic advisement and help with first term class registration.

Additional information will be sent beginning in mid-April for Fall admission, and in November for Spring admission, to students who have accepted the offer of admission. Orientation sessions for fall admitted students will take place over the summer; and for spring admitted students, they will occur in December.

For more information about orientation, visit the Golden Eagle Orientation webpage.

The Cal State LA International Programs Office provides immigration and visa counseling for international applicants and students, including an orientation for new international students. For more information, visit the International Programs webpage.  

Cal State LA recognizes that some students may wish to use a Preferred First Name, other than their legal name, to identify themselves. The University acknowledges that a Preferred First Name can, and should, be used where possible in the course of university business and education. Information for students requesting a preferred first name is available on the University Registrar website. Please take a moment to review this webpage, and see if using a Preferred First Name is right for you.