October 21-25, 2024
National Transfer Student Week (NTSW) is a nationwide initiative organized by the National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students (NISTS). Each year, during the third week in October, NTSW aims to
- Celebrate the transfer student experience and the professionals who support them
- Enhance institutional support for transfer students
Join us in recognizing and celebrating the contributions and successes of our transfer student population at UW–Madison.
Ways to Get Involved
Transfer Students
- Attend transfer student events
- Show your transfer pride & share your story using #UWTransfer
- Connect with the Transfer Transition Program (TTP) throughout your time at UW–Madison
Student Allies
- Recognize a transfer student
- Challenge the issues facing transfer students on our campus
Faculty & Staff
- Recognize a transfer student
- Review & share the “Guide to Working With Transfer Students”
- Learn more about transfer student identity
- Promote NTSW using the 2024 media toolkit
Who are UW–Madison Transfers?
Compared to “traditional” first-year students, UW–Madison’s transfer student population consists of more:
- Low-income college students
- First-generation college students
- Returning adult and non-traditional students
- International students
- Student-veterans
- Student-parents
Transfer students’ diverse range of experiences, knowledge, language, culture, critical thought, and ways of being enrich classroom learning and campus culture at UW–Madion.
Issues Impacting Transfer Students
Transfer Invisibility
Promote transfer student awareness to bring to light & clear the obstacles of transfer students and their multiple, marginalized identities
DYK: 15-20% (4,000-4,500) of UW–Madison students are transfers?
In other words, 1-in-5 of your fellow Badgers are UW Transfers!
Transfer Stigma
Faculty and staff might assume that transfer students are less academically competitive than students who have not transferred. Challenge these assumptions in your own views and others’.
Myth: It's easier to get into UW–Madison as a transfer student.
In fact, admission rates for transfers and freshman are nearly identical, with it being slightly more difficult for UW Transfers (49% vs. 53%).
“Transfer Shock”
While well-meaning, the concept of “transfer shock” can also perpetuate the idea that transfer students are less academically inclined than first-year students (despite studies showing similar performance levels amongst the groups).
DYK: Graduation rates are nearly identical.
On average, 86% of UW Transfers and 89% of students admitted as first-year students graduate from UW–Madison.
Recognize a UW Transfer
Do you know a transfer student that deserves to be recognized?
Or a “Transfer Champion” who has gone above and beyond to support transfer students?
Send them a shout with a “Transfer Act of Kindness.” You can submit as many folks as you’d like, remain anonymous if you wish, and are welcome to leave comments for your nominees to read. We’ll send them a message letting them know they were recognized.
UW Transfers in the News
Defining Your Own Badger Identity: Miguel Pingol, Transfer and Student Veteran
Whether you’re in a lecture hall, library, or coffee shop, odds are: You have a transfer student in your midst. In fact, one in five UW–Madison students have transferred to our university. However, this identity is often tricky to spot.
Kindred spirits: Senior class president, vice president bonded over similar experiences
Sam Mahlum, UW–Madison Senior Class President (2024-25) is a transfer student who attended Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, her freshman year. In high school, she was a power lifter who competed on the national level (personal record: 303 lbs. in the 114-lb. weight class).
National Transfer Student Week Events
No events returned.