Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law - Beus Center for Law and Society Snell & Wilmer Plaza
JD Enrollment Options

JD Transfer and Visiting

JD Transfer Applicant

ASU Law accepts transfer students who have completed one year in a full-time JD program or its equivalent. Students must have completed their first year at a law school accredited by the American Bar Association and be in good standing at their current law school. In order to transfer, students must have completed at least one year of law school. 

Only first-year coursework is eligible for transfer credit, which includes the standard ABA first-year requirements and ASU Law first-year requirements. A maximum of 29 transfer credits can be counted toward the 88 credits necessary for graduation.Transfer credit will not be granted for courses with less than a "C" grade for work completed at an accredited law school. ASU Law may also deny or reduce credit for particular courses. Grades received at another law school are not counted in determining a student's cumulative grade point average at ASU Law.

As is with many other law schools, ASU Law’s policy dictates that students who transfer into the college are not eligible to be ranked and are not eligible for the Order of the Coif. However, students who transfer and earn at least 40 graded credits at ASU Law are eligible to earn academic honors (cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude) based on their final cumulative grade point average at ASU Law. Students who transfer are also eligible to participate on ASU Law's Law Review, journals, and moot court teams. Students may also be eligible for externships and study abroad opportunities.

Please note: All students who enroll at the ASU College of Law must provide an official transcript (paper or electronic) from their undergraduate or previous law institution(s) verifying all academic credits undertaken and degree(s) conferred.

  • For students entering the Law School in the Fall semester, transcripts must be received by October 15.

Any student who fails to submit his or her official transcript(s) by the deadlines specified above may be subject to administrative withdrawal from the Law School.

Learn more about our Juris Doctor, JD program here.

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Request JD Transfer or Visiting Information

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Application dates and deadlines

Early Fall: March 15
Fall: July 31

Applicants who require a visa must complete all paperwork by June 1.

Early Fall applicants may apply with one semester of 1L grades and receive a decision by May 1. Early Fall applicants who are not offered admission may hold their application for regular Fall admission with two semesters of law school grades.

Application process

Completed applications for transfer admission must be received by the Admissions Office by the deadlines listed above and must include the following items.

  • The application fee is waived.
  • Complete Law School Admission Council (LSAC) Electronic Application, in addition to the following documents:
    • A statement (in place of personal statement) explaining the reason(s) for your request to transfer to ASU Law (limit two double-spaced pages)
    • Resume not to exceed two typed pages
    • Explanations to affirmative answers to any Character Fitness questions
  • Complete Credential Assembly Service (CAS) report. Please check your LSAC account to ensure that your Credential Assembly Service (CAS) report is complete and available to us.
  • Complete Transfer Application – Law School Information Form by current law school Registrar (A home law school transcript, or an individual grade report that includes final spring term grades, sent directly to asulaw.admissions@asu.edu. We will accept a student copy of your current term grades to expedite the review process, but a final official transcript must follow if you are admitted. If the school does not rank students, an official letter stating that the school does not rank must be submitted).
  • Letters of recommendation (optional - up to 2 accepted). Please have your recommender(s) send letter(s) to LSAC.

Questions

Contact ASU Law Office of Admissions or call 480-965-1474.


JD Visiting Applicant

A student in good standing at a law school accredited by the American Bar Association may be permitted to complete courses at the ASU Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law without being a candidate for the Juris Doctor degree awarded by ASU. Students who have completed at least one year of a JD program at an ABA accredited law school are eligible to apply to visit for up to two semesters (maximum 30 credits) at ASU Law. Applications for visiting student status must ordinarily demonstrate compelling personal reasons to attend and meet certain academic qualifications. All applicants must submit a completed application and visiting applicant approval form to be considered for admission.

As a non-degree or visiting student, your candidacy will be considered based on available space, as well as your class standing and performance in law school, the quality of the law school you attended, undergraduate/graduate academic performance, LSAT score(s), and any unusual personal circumstances that may suggest your need for visiting student status.

Application dates deadlines

Spring: January 5
Fall: July 1
Summer: May 12

Application process

Completed applications for visiting admission must be received by the Admissions Office by the deadlines listed below and must include the following items.

Questions

Contact ASU Law Office of Admissions or call 480-965-1474.


Frequently asked questions

Transfer students have essentially the same curricular opportunities and the same access to the myriad services we provide as students who began their JD program at ASU Law.

Our academic law journals may have supplemental acceptance processes available to incoming Fall transfer students, depending on journal membership needs. ASU Law has five academic journals – the Arizona State Law Journal, the Corporate and Business Law Journal, Jurimetrics, Sports and Entertainment Law Journal, and the Law Journal for Social Justice. The Arizona State Law Journal is our most competitive journal, and may accept 1-2 transfer students during the Fall acceptance process. Fall transfer admits interested in our academic law journals may utilize a special petition process that is available from May 1 to July 15. Regardless of admission date, ASU Law transfer students are encouraged to contact our law journals, to determine if there are spots and application processes available for membership consideration.

All transfer students will have the ability to take part in the normal journal write-on competition following Spring finals in their 2L year.

ASU Law recommends including with your application at least one Letter of Recommendation (LOR) from a professor you had while enrolled in a JD program. LORs should be submitted via LSAC. LORs are not required to complete your transfer application.

Generally speaking, credits earned through regular law school classroom coursework are eligible for transfer consideration. The eligible transfer credits usually correspond with the 1L curriculum offered at ASU Law. Transfer credits will be evaluated upon admission. Transfer credits will not be granted for courses with less than a "C" grade for work completed at an accredited law school. ASU Law may also deny or reduce credits for particular courses. Up to 29 total credits will transfer.

Eventually, all transfer students must provide the most up-to-date official transcripts, with proof of any applicable rank and good academic standing from the prior institution. Students who have completed one semester of grades may apply through the Early Fall option and be considered based on one semester of grades. If you are planning to apply for regular fall admission, you can submit your official transcripts reflecting all completed 1L grades and showing any coursework in which you are currently enrolled. Your current transcript will allow our Admissions Committee to begin reviewing your application. Depending on your admission program option and application status, the Admissions Committee will want to see updated transcripts to evaluate whether your academic performance has improved, regressed, or remained consistent over the course of the current semester.

Once admitted, it is fairly simple for our financial aid department to convert your aid and apply it to your new institution. The admission letter provides details for applying any awarded financial aid to ASU Law.

There is not a minimum GPA requirement in place for the transfer program. Our Admissions Committee reviews each applicant’s file based upon the entirety of their application in order to best predict that each of our accepted students will be successful while in our program and after graduation. That being said, your law school GPA is one of the most objective indicators of continued and future success in any JD program, including ours.

While transfer students are rank-ineligible, they are eligible to earn academic honors (cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude) based on their final cumulative grade point average at ASU Law. Additionally, transfer students can use their GPA at graduation to project where they would have been ranked if they had been eligible to be ranked after transfer.