Transfer applications will be considered only when the student has successfully completed all the courses required in the full-time 1L year of the home school.
Application Requirements
The law school from which the applicant seeks to transfer must be able to certify that the applicant has completed all requirements and credits for that school's full-time first year program.
Transcripts reflecting grades for all courses taken must be submitted to the Admissions Office by July 15.
Transfer applicants must be in good standing at a law school that is both a member of the American Association of Law Schools (AALS) and approved by the American Bar Association (ABA). Applicants will not be reviewed until we have received transcripts for both fall and spring semesters of the first year of law school. Decisions are made on a rolling basis. You must apply online.
Transfer applicants are required to provide the same documents that are required for first year applicants (i.e. completed application form, application fee, personal statement(s)); Credential Assembly Service Law School report; academic transcripts from all institutions attended; and one letter of recommendation - preferably from a law professor). Additionally, transfer applicants must provide a letter from the appropriate dean or administrator at the home law school indicating they are in good academic standing and eligible to continue their studies.
Transfer of Credits and Course Work
Villanova Law will only accept credit or credits for a course in which the student receives a grade of C, its equivalent, or better.
The number of credits transferred will equal the number of credits successfully completed in that program.
If there are differences in the 1L curriculum between the home school and Villanova Law, transfer students will be required to complete any required Villanova Law 1L coursework as part of their upper-level coursework, with the exception that students do not need to take Professional Development I or the IL elective. Unless a comparable financial literacy course was taken at the home school, as determined by the Academic Dean, transfer students will be required to take the 1L module in their 2L year and the 2L module in their 3L year.
Eligibility for Honors, Awards, Journals, and Moot Court
Transfer students are eligible for participation in journal and moot court competitions provided that they are able to meet the established deadlines.
Transfer students may participate in OCI (On Campus Interviews) provided that they have been admitted and have committed to attend the Villanova Law School before interview deadlines.
Transfer students are eligible for graduation honors and Order of the Coif.
Academic Rule 16 requires that "A student admitted with advanced standing (transfer students) will not be given a class rank based on cumulative weighted average and will not be eligible for prizes or awards based thereon. Transfer students will be eligible for summa, magna, and cum laude honors at graduation, applying a formula that compares the lower of either the student’s three year GPA (original school plus Villanova Law) or the student’s two year GPA (only the Villanova GPA) to the cut off GPA of cumulative ranked students awarded honors."
Except as provided under Summer Abroad Programs, the Law School does not accept transfer credit for courses taken by Villanova Law School students at other law schools. This does not apply to students accepted with advanced standing (transfer students).
Students considering transferring after the first year are strongly encouraged to consult with the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs to discuss the consequences of transferring.
All Requests for transfer documentation must be submitted to the Office of Academic Affairs by filing a Transfer Request Form. The Law School will complete the transfer packet including official transcript, letter of good standing, and any forms required by the transferee school. Individual letters of recommendation must be arranged by the student and are not part of the package. The student must include all forms required by the transferee schools with the Transfer Request Form, and must be sure to complete the student-supplied information and signatures as required. All letters of good standing issued to educational institutions for transfer will state that the student is actively enrolled in the Law School. Packets will be sent directly to the schools, using the address supplied by the student. An administrative fee of $35 will be charged for each packet (that is for each school to which the student applies). The usual turn-around time for transfer packets is 5 full business days. The student must complete one (1) Transfer Request form per school, must include a check for $35 made out to Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law for each school to which the student is applying and submit their completed Student Records Release Form (one form for each school to which the student is applying). The Request form(s), check(s) and Student Records Release Form(s) must be submitted along with any additional forms needed to be completed to the Office of Academic Affairs, Suite 370.
Students who have accepted judicial externship placements for either the summer or the upcoming academic year commit to fulfilling those placements and therefore cannot transfer from the Law School. Students who have accepted judicial externship placements for the summer and fail to return to the Law School for the Fall Semester for any reason will not receive credit. Federal regulations require the termination of work study funds once a student decides to transfer, and Research Assistantships, as a form of financial aid, will also be terminated as soon as a student formally notifies the Law School that the student is transferring.
There are other issues and consequences that may apply for students applying for transfer so it is important to discuss plans to transfer with the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.
Students who apply to transfer must notify the Office of Academic Affairs in writing within 3 days of accepting the other law school’s offer. A student is considered registered until written notification to the contrary is received by the Office of Academic Affairs.
Students considering transfer must inform programs in which they are involved such as journals, moot court, clinics and the on-campus interviewing program of their plans, and must be considerate in giving timely notice of decisions to such programs.