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Admission Requirements for Transfer Students

Admission Requirements for Transfer Students

  • Common App
  • Transcripts
  • Portfolio
  • SAT/ACT Scores *Optional
  • Letter(s) of Recommendation *Optional

Admission Requirements

  • Submit a completed Common Application Form along with a nonrefundable $70 application fee. Ringling College does not accept fee waivers for transfer applicants. If you select the fee waiver option, you will still need to send a check/money order for the $70 application fee to the Office of Admissions. This is an application requirement.
  • Ask your high school and each college you have attended for credit to send an official copy of your transcript. A minimum 2.0 combined academic grade point average from all previously attended institutions is required to be considered for admission. You must also be in good academic standing (not on academic probation or dismissal) at your last attended institution. A high school transcript is not required if you have earned 24 or more semester hours credit at a regionally accredited college.
    • Important: We only accept official transcripts sent in the following ways:
      1. A sealed, official copy sent via mail or courier
      2. E-transcripts
      3. Parchment
      4. The Central Application Service in CommonApp
  • Submission of a visual art or written portfolio is required for all majors. For art majors, an art portfolio will be required to receive credit for studio art coursework. All portfolios, both visual and written, must be submitted digitally through the Portfolio portion of the Common Application. Please see our Portfolio Prep page for more details on what your portfolio should contain.
  • Letters of recommendation are *optional. You may complete a recommendation request through the CommonApp, or submit a letter of recommendation. Recommendations must be submitted to Ringling College via the Common Application, mail, email or courier.

Transfer Credits and Placement

Ringling College will consider for transfer any liberal arts or studio art credit that meets our academic requirements and where a grade of C or better was earned from an accredited college or university. Studio art credit will be awarded based on the criteria above and a portfolio review. All of Ringling College’s studio courses are sequential and have prerequisites. Students have to complete the first-year studio courses before taking second-year studio courses; second-year studio courses before taking third-year studio courses; and third-year studio courses before taking the fourth-year capstone/thesis courses.

Students are limited to a total of 66 semester hours of transfer credits. A minimum of 54 semester hours must be taken at Ringling College of Art and Design. The last two academic years of study for a Ringling College of Art and Design degree must be completed in courses of study within a major of the College. Ringling College of Art and Design reserves the right to decline credit for coursework that is more than 10 years old.

If you have taken Liberal Arts courses at another college/university, those courses will be evaluated by the Academic Advisors in the Office of Advising, Records, and Registration Services to determine if they meet the degree requirements for the Bachelor of Fine Arts or Bachelor of Arts Degree.

The number of Liberal Arts classes completed has no bearing on your class level. Only studio classes determine your class level. Students enrolling with an Associate of Arts or a Bachelor of Arts degree from a regionally accredited college or university will be considered to have met the Liberal Arts requirements for the BFA degree. Please make sure you have requested a final transcript from all colleges/universities you have attended so you can receive the appropriate transfer credit.

Please note that admission to upper-level studies is contingent on space availability and portfolio review.

*Ringling College accepts liberal arts transfer credit from institutions that are accredited by: Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, Higher Learning Commission, Middle States Commission on Higher Education, National Association of Schools of Art and Design, National Association of Schools of Dance, National Association of Schools of Theatre, New England Commission of Higher Education, Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, WASC Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, WASC Senior College and University Commission. Other institutions accredited by agencies other than the above may be evaluated through an appeal.

Transfer Credits for Military Applicants

Transfer credit may be awarded for military courses based on ACE Guidelines. If the student’s military course has an ACE recommended equivalency, and the recommended equivalent is a course that Ringling offers, transfer credit may be given at the discretion of the Registrar with as needed consultation with Academic Affairs administrators and Department Chairs/Program Directors. All other transfer credit must be from a regionally accredited institution. Ringling College of Art and Design does not award credit for non-credit work or for experiential learning.

Transfer Credits from International Institutions

International students who have attended a college/university outside the United States and are requesting transfer credit must have their academic credentials evaluated by a Foreign Credential Evaluation Service. This evaluation must include a “course by course” evaluation with grades or marks and credits or hours equated to the U.S. system. The official and sealed credential evaluation must be submitted directly to the Office of the Registrar at Ringling College of Art and Design. International students must have their transcripts evaluated by World Education Services (WES) or Joseph Silny & Associates International Education Consultants.

Spring Semester Applicants

In order to be eligible to enroll in the Spring Semester, you must have previously completed specific college-level courses. These course requirements vary by major. Please note that spring semester admission is NOT available for the Department of Computer Animation. For information about Spring Semester admission, please contact the Admissions Office at 941-309-0195 or  admissions@ringling.edu.

Transfer of Credit Policies and Articulation Agreements

Advanced Placement Credit

Ringling College must receive the official Advanced Placement (AP) Transcript within the first year of the student’s matriculation if credit is to be awarded. No AP credit will be awarded after the student has completed one full year at Ringling College.

Studio Transfer Credit

Students who have taken studio art courses at another regionally accredited institution of higher education may have those courses and a portfolio reviewed by the department head or Academic Affairs designee to determine if the credits can apply to the degree requirements for the Bachelor of Fine Arts or Bachelor of Arts degrees. Requests for studio transfer credit must be supported by a sufficient number of portfolio submissions that demonstrate the competencies associated with those required by the majors.

Permission to take courses at other colleges during the summer is granted through the Office of Advising, Records and Registration Services. Students must meet with their Academic Advisor who will consider all aspects of the student’s request, including the quality and level of the proposed course and its role in the student’s program of study before completing a Transient Student form. Courses intended to fulfill major requirements must also be approved by the department head.

Students entering with an Associate of Arts or Bachelor of Arts degree from a regionally accredited college or university will be considered to have met the liberal arts requirements for the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree or Bachelor of Arts degree. Students entering with an Associate of Science or Bachelor of Science degree from a regionally accredited college or university will have their liberal arts credits evaluated to determine if they fulfill the distribution requirements for the B.F.A. degree or the B.A. degree. Additional coursework may be required.

Art History Transfer Credit

Students who have taken art history courses at another regionally accredited institution of higher education may have those courses evaluated by the Academic Advisors in the Office of Advising, Records, and Registration Services to determine if they meet the degree requirements for the Bachelor of Fine Arts or Bachelor of Arts Degree. Departments at Ringling College may have specific art history requirements such as a history of the discipline. The proposed transfer credit will be reviewed by the Academic Advisor and/or an Academic Affairs designee to determine if the credit meets institutional standards for course equivalence.

Liberal Arts Transfer Credit

Consistent with the requirements for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), Ringling College will accept for credit courses drawn from the following three areas of knowledge: humanities and fine arts; social and behavioral sciences; and natural sciences and mathematics.

Admission to Advanced Standing by Portfolio Review

A portfolio of work is internally reviewed by the department head or designee for advanced standing in the student’s selected program of study. The portfolio must demonstrate mastery of skills and sufficient knowledge of content in the college level course for which placement is being sought. Students demonstrating competence beyond that required for entrance may be exempted from one or more college-level courses in the subject or subjects covered by the portfolio review, provided that such demonstration of competence is confirmed by further successful study in residence in the same field. Credit is not awarded for advanced standing and students will be expected to complete a minimum of 120 credit hours for graduation. Transfer credit is granted only when the coursework is externally validated through a regionally accredited institution of higher education with a C or better or through programs such as IB and AP.

Residency Requirement

Students are limited to a total of 66 semester hours of transfer credits. A minimum of 54 semester hours must be taken at Ringling College of Art and Design. The last two academic years of study for a Ringling College of Art and Design degree must be completed in courses of study within a major of the College.

Dual Enrollment

Courses taken in high school on a dual enrollment basis with a regionally accredited college or university will be considered for transfer credit.

Articulation Agreement

Florida transfer students who complete the AA Degree in studio art or photography from select Florida community colleges are eligible to apply to the 2 + 2 BFA in Fine Arts or the BFA in Photography & Imaging. Once accepted to the program, students are enrolled at the junior level and complete an additional two years in residency at Ringling College to complete the B.F.A. degree.

Participating Community Colleges:

  • State College of Florida: AA with an emphasis in Studio Art or AA with an emphasis in Photography
  • St. Petersburg College: AA with an emphasis in Studio Art
  • Valencia College: AA in Fine Art/Studio Art

Veterans

Ringling College is approved for veterans’ study under several GI bills, and participates in the Yellow Ribbon Program. Veterans should contact the Veteran Certifying Official in the Office of Advising, Records and Registration Services for more information.

International Students

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