Undergraduate Transfer Students
For information on how to transfer from outside of the University, please visit the University's Transfer Application Process page.
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External Transfer Students (New Incoming Students)
Welcome to the Elliott School of International Affairs (ESIA)! This page is designed to help external transfers (students who are coming into ESIA from another university) plan out the transition and find resources and support. Use this checklist as you navigate declaring a major, transferring credit, satisfying requirements, and refer back to it often.
Checklist for New Transfers
Meet with Academic Advisor
All transfer students accepted into the Elliott School will have the support of a primary academic advisor throughout their time at GW. At the Elliott School, advisors are assigned in alphabetical order by the first letter of the student’s last name. Meeting regularly with your primary advisor is the best way to stay on track academically. Book an appointment online with your advisor or contact [email protected] with questions.
Complete Pre-Orientation Online Module
Incoming students should complete the required Pre-Orientation Online Module (POOM) before arriving on campus and participating in Orientation. Students need their UserID and password to access the POOM. The online module will help answer a variety of questions about GW’s different departments and campus life.
Send transcript to GW & Additional credits
To get the most accurate picture of what classes you are bringing to GW, please make sure to transfer all AP, IB and High School dual enrollment credits. You will also want to send your latest official transcript to [email protected] once your current coursework at your prior institution is complete.
Review GW’s standard scores accepted for AP and IB credits. More information about GW’s transfer credit policy can be found on the Registrar’s website.
Review Requirements
To get an accurate understanding of the Elliott School requirements, please review the Bachelor of Arts or the Bachelor of Science academic pages on our website. You can also review all approved courses for requirements via the Bulletin on the Bachelor of Arts or the Bachelor of Science pages.
Access DegreeMap & Review Transfer Credits
DegreeMap is the tool our students and advisors use to (M)easure (A)cademic (P)rogress toward completion of a student's degree. More information can be found on the how to access DegreeMap page.
Once in DegreeMap, you’ll want to review how your past classes are counted toward the University and Elliott School requirements. This is where you will double check all your credits you sent into GW are showing up and transferred into our systems. If your classes are not counting where you think they should, you can learn how to petition to move the classes to fulfill a requirement on our transfer credit page.
Prepare to Register
See the “Prepare to Register” Page!
Review Resources and Ways to Get Involved on Campus
During your orientation modules you should have received information about a variety of campus resources. Your academic advisor can always help connect you to these resources throughout the semester, here are a couple you might be interested in right now:
- Career Services & Elliott School Career Industry Coach
- DSS (Disability Support Services) for any accommodations needed
- Tutoring & Academic Support
- Elliott School Research Opportunities
There are hundreds of student organizations on campus, so you're sure to find something that suits you! For instance, check out the International Affairs Society. Participation in student organizations is a great way to meet new people and get involved in the GW community. Visit the Office of Student Life and GW Engage for more information.
Internal Transfer Students
Current GW students wishing to transfer into the Elliott School from another school within GW must meet the following minimum requirements before submitting an Internal Transfer Request to the Office of the Registrar.
Minimum Requirements to Transfer
- Complete 24 semester hours in residence at GW with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0
- Complete four of the following five courses: ECON 1011, ECON 1012, HIST 1011, PSC 1001, and PSC 1003 (in lieu of IAFF 1005)*
- Complete or waive the first year of a modern foreign language
*AP or transfer credit will be accepted in lieu of the above courses.
Please review the Registrar's Internal Transfer page for more information on forms and deadlines.
You can stop by our Drop-In Advising hours for quick questions related to your internal transfer. For more in depth information, you can schedule an appointment with the appropriate advisor (based on last name).
Registering for Classes
- Recommended courses
As a new transfer student, we recommend you complete a combination of these your first semester if you have not already done so:
- Courses that satisfy a GPAC requirement.
- UW1020, to begin the writing in the disciplines sequence
- Courses that satisfy an intro to the major requirement:
- IAFF 1001 – First Year Experience (optional)
- IAFF 1005 – Introduction to International Affairs
- ECON 1011 and ECON 1012 - Principles of Micro and Macroeconomics
- HIST 1011 – World History (1500 to Present)
- PSC 1001 – Introduction to Comparative Politics
- And an Introductory anthropology or geography course (ANTH 1002 or ANTH 1004 or GEOG 1001 or GEOG 1003)
- Courses that satisfy a major requirement
Only register for courses in the 1000-4000 level range. Introductory courses are often at the 1000 level. 2000-4000 are considered upper-level courses and often have prerequisites. Do not register for any graduate level courses, which are 6000 and above.
Do not take any course you have already taken at your previous institution(s) as you cannot count credit for the same course twice; this includes AP credit.
- How to browse current semester offerings
Visit the Schedule of Classes. Log in with your UserID and password. The University Bulletin is a useful source to have open while searching in the Schedule of Classes as it provides detailed course descriptions.
- Add/drop a course
- Visit the Registrar's website for a guide on how to register for classes.
- Then log into the GWeb information system with your GWid and password to add/drop courses.
Be mindful of the registration schedule, which lists the last day to add/drop online, the last day to drop without a "W" on your transcript and the last day to withdraw from a course with a "W."
- How many credits to take
Most students register for around 15 hours per semester (5 courses at 3 credits each) to ensure they are on track towards reaching 120 hours needed for graduation. A full-time course load is 12 - 18 credits. If a student registers for over 18 hours, they will be billed per credit hour above the flat tuition rate. If a student registers for less than 12 hours, they are considered a part-time student which can affect housing, financial aid, scholarships, insurance and the projected graduation date.
- Review Language Requirements
To earn an International Affairs degree, students must attain third-year proficiency in a modern non-English language. We encourage you to begin to take language classes the semester you start at GW, depending on course offerings. All Elliott School students fall into one of four categories:
- IF you are planning to learn a new language at GW, THEN you will register for the introductory beginner course in that language. Typically, you will need to complete six semesters of language study to satisfy the third year proficiency requirement.
IF you have studied a language before and would like to continue with that language at GW, THEN you must take a language placement test prior to registration to indicate which class in the language sequence is appropriate for your level of knowledge.
*Note: Please read the language website carefully as some languages (like Chinese) require you to go through the registration transaction form (RTF) process to be signed into the appropriate level or have specific instructions.OR
Note: For Chinese and ___ languages, you will need to contact their department and go through a registration process (RTF) to be signed into the appropriate level of language course after taking the placement test.
We recommend that you take the placement test as soon as possible as it may take a day or two for your placement exam scores to be processed and satisfy the prerequisite for the section you placed into.
If you are concerned about the language level you place into, please contact the respective language department.
- IF you were required to take the TOEFL or IELTS exam as part of your admissions application to GW, then this fulfills the 3rd year proficiency requirement for the International Affairs major.
- IF you believe you are already beyond third year proficiency in a language other than English (even if it is not taught at GW), you can talk to your academic advisor about our proficiency exam process.
- Review University Writing Requirements
[Optional] submit UW1020 exemption
All GW students are required to pass an introductory writing course called UW 1020. The requirements for UW 1020 are particularly strict and transfer students are often required to take UW 1020 despite having taken first-year writing at their previous institution. If you believe that your previous writing course should be counted toward this requirement, you can read more about the UW 1020 exemption process. You are able to petition the university to have your course meet the requirement but must submit writing samples and a syllabus to do so. Please note: most writing courses do not satisfy the requirements of UW 1020 and you should be aware that most UW 1020 exemptions are denied before you decide to complete one.
- Math & Econ placement exams
All Elliott School majors require completion of an ECON sequence (micro, macro and international). The ALEKS Math Placement Test is the placement tool GW uses to assess a student’s readiness for Math and Econ and to place them in the appropriate class. To register for ECON 1011, Principles of Microeconomics, you need a score of 61 on the ALEKS exam. Please reference the ALEKS information page for additional details on the exam process.
*Note some AP test scores will exempt you from needing to take the ALEKS exam. Please check the website to see if you need to take the test.
If you don’t get a 61 ALEKS Math Placement score, don’t worry! You can take ECON 1001. Principles of Math for Economics during your first semester prior to beginning ECON 1011. ECON 1001 is a preparatory course for ECON 1011 and can also satisfy your quantitative math reasoning general education requirement.
- Useful registration tips
- "Linked" tells you there is a discussion, lab or recitation linked to the course that you must also add to your schedule.
- To get signed into a course or to add/drop after the online period, you will need forms found on the GW Registrar's website.
- Allow for 30 minutes of travel time between courses taught at Mount Vernon (MV) and Foggy Bottom.
- If you are not able to get into a course you want this semester, you will likely be able to take it another time. Be flexible and work with the courses that are open!