Hello, I am a freshman at the Air Force Academy, and I am looking to transfer. For context, I have a 2.5 GPA here. I am a business management major, and in the first two years at the Academy you take a rigorous STEM/engineering curriculum. I am also a division one athlete who had multiple D1 offers in high school. I do not think I want to continue my sport. I had a 30 ACT and a 3.94 in high school at a competive private school. Will I be able to get in anywhere given my freshman GPA at USAFA? Some of the schools I am applying to are UVM, UMass, Boston College, Providence College, Santa Clara, GW, and a few more. What are some schools that would be in my range and is this possible?
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What can you afford?
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State of residence? Your in-state options should be possible. Is there a transfer counselor at the academy?
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I am thinking you are in Massachusetts based on your school list? (total guess). You could also try U Mass Lowell (ranking 149 I think this year on US News), Suffolk University- good business school, Wheaton, Stonehill (Catholic, I see Providence College) and Merrimack. Bryant is a strong business school in Rhode Island, Bentley which might be more competitive. UNH? I think most admissions know that military academies have much more rigor, or at least I would hope they do (and I say that as someone with no connection to the military at all).
That said, my cousin was a D1 athlete, chose one school in the south and hated it, called up the coach at her state school who had recruited her and they took her right away. (I think it was like 2 weeks already into the semester) She did continue the sport however.
You should be accepted at all of your listed schools as you are coming from the USAFA in Colorado Springs. You have had to deal with altitude, discipline, physical fitness requirements, and a rigorous first year curriculum. Don’t sell yourself short !
Add some reaches: Wake Forest University, Davidson College, U Richmond.
P.S. Adjusting to living at 7,258 feet elevation above sea level is not easy for those coming from much lower altitudes.
I think that you underestimate the respect accorded to service academy students.
This is key. If accepted, nearly all of those private schools will expect you to be full pay. (I believe BC meets full need of transfers, however.)
Personally, I’m a little less optimistic. A 30 ACT would not have made you very competitive for BC’s business school out of HS, so not sure your transfer app will fare much better.
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My state of residence is Massachusetts.
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Hello,
I am transferring out of the Air Force Academy after I finish my second semester in May. I am a Business Management Major, but I am taking Calculus 1 and 2, Chemistry, Computer Science, Behavioral Science, History of Modern Warfare, English, Russian, Leadership, and Aviation. This courseload is because every student takes two years of STEM courses before starting their major classes. This is partially causing my 2.5 GPA. Additionally, the average GPA sits around a 3.0. I am also a division one athlete, so I juggle military training, academics, and division one athletics. I am applying as an Economics/Global studies major. What are my chances of getting in? Thank you!
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Your situation is a challenging one to chance. If you were applying straight from high school, I think most of the schools you mentioned would be in the toss-up category or higher (though BC still would have been low probability). A 2.5 college GPA is concerning, but coming from the Air Force Academy is definitely something to respect, especially if you were doing everything while also participating as a D1 athlete. How much additional respect that will bring to help your shot at admission though is a big question mark, which is part of the reason why it’s hard to guess at your chances.
Also, you never answered the question about affordability which will also impact your chances. If your family can afford to be full-pay (and most families cannot), then that could be favorable for your application.
Below are my guesses as to what your chances might be at these schools:
Extremely Likely (80-99+%)
Likely (60-79%)
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U. of Massachusetts (70% transfer admission rate)
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U. of Vermont (74% transfer admission rate)
Toss-Up (40-59%)
- Providence (66% transfer admission rate)
Lower Probability (20-39%)
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George Washington (34% transfer admission rate)
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Santa Clara (45% transfer admission rate)
Low Probability (less than 20%)
- Boston College (14% transfer admission rate)
Have you applied to any schools that are extremely likely to admit you? George Mason might be a possibility if you’re wanting to be in the D.C. area.
If you’re looking for something smaller, you might want to consider Richard Bland College which is a residential community college affiliated with Wiliam & Mary, and there are pathways to a guaranteed acceptance at William & Mary.
You may also want to consider Bentley (MA) which has about 4100 undergrads, a super strong business reputation, a 54% transfer admission rate, and I think it would fall somewhere between toss-up and likely for you. Bryant in Rhode Island would be another one to consider with strong business offerings, and I’d put it in the likely category for you. Seconding Stonehill for you (52% transfer admission rate…probably would put in the likely bucket for you).
If you’re interested in the west coast, U. of San Francisco with around 6k undergrads would probably fall in the likely bucket as well (60% admit rate).
Transfer rates were sourced from this aggregator.
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I agree, but the poster has not indicated the reason for leaving USAFA which may be relevant if the reason is separation rather than voluntary and, if voluntary, why? The civilian colleges will want to know. The OP may not want to share this information here, but service academy attendance does not guarantee a plus on a civilian college application.
That assumes you finish. My own personal experience tells me leaving less than half way in any program actually raises a red flag. All of my employment applications have asked “have you left any training program / school prior to completion, if so explain why.”
Sorry to hear the USAFA is not a good fit. Have you spoken to the financial services office there? While there is no charge for the service academy, you may have to reimburse the government if you transfer. A friend’s child became a conscientious objector two years into her USAFA education and was told she could transfer/leave, but she would have to reimburse the government for those two years. The cost at the time was 40k/yr. She opted to stay and fulfill her service commitment.
If you have not already done so, you should have a conversation with the academy and your parents regarding any financial commitment you may have because If you have to reimburse the government, your options may be limited. Best of luck to you.
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Each of the service academies allows cadets/mids two full years to freely walk away with no financial or service obligation (if separation is voluntary). The commitment begins when they take the oath of affirmation the first day of junior year. The OP has not yet completed the first year:
Per the USAFA website:
After commitment, if a cadet leaves or is disenrolled from the Academy they may incur an active duty service commitment and be responsible for reimbursing the government for their educational costs either monetarily or by serving as an enlisted member in the Air Force or Space Force.
…
First-class cadets who complete the entire academic program and then resign or refuse to accept a commission may be ordered to active duty for four years as enlisted Airmen .
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Thanks for the clarification and additional information. If what you say is true about the financial obligation, then I must be mistaken and the child was probably in her third year. The family was told reimbursement would be required and it was the factor in their child fulfilling her commitment. They could neither reimburse the government nor pay for another university.
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Two responses so far: Got accepted into UVM and Santa Clara.
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