Transfer Admissions Requirements

Transfers students are strongly encouraged to finish lower division courses at a community college prior to transferring to San José State University.

Many of the degree programs in the Davidson College of Engineering are impacted, meaning that there are more qualified students applying than we can accommodate. For these programs, a higher Cumulative GPA for transferable courses will be required to be admitted than the campus minimum.

To see if the program you are applying to is currently impacted, please check the Impaction Results for the most recent admissions cycle: SJSU Undergraduate Degrees and Impaction

The GPA threshold for a given year may differ from the GPA threshold in the year you apply, depending on factors such as number of applications and competitiveness of the applicants in the pool.

If you do not meet the GPA threshold for the program listed as your first choice, but do meet the GPA threshold for Undeclared, you'll have the option of being admitted Undeclared. This will require you to undergo a Change of Major into your intended major.  

Required Coursework for Admission as Transfer Students 

Some majors require certain coursework to be completed before admission as a transfer student, as outlined below.

  • BS Aerospace, Biomedical, Chemical, Materials, Civil, Industrial and Systems, Interdisciplinary, and Mechanical Engineering: Math 30 Calculus I, Math 31 Calculus II, Physics 50 General Physics/Mechanics
  • BS Computer Engineering: CMPE/EE 30 Programming Concepts and Methodology
  • BS Software Engineering: Math 30 Calculus 1, Math 31 Calculus II

Required courses must be completed by the end of the spring term (not summer) for fall admission and fall term for spring admission.

Supplemental Course Criteria

Additional preference for admission will be gained by completing some or all of the coursework shown below.

  • BS Aviation, BS Technology: (Math 71 or Math 30), (Phys 002A or Phys 50)
  • BS Aerospace Engr:  Chem 1A, CMPE 30, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Biomedical Engr: Chem 1A, Chem 1B, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Chemical Engr: Chem 1A, Chem 1B, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Civil Engr: Chem 1A, CE 95, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Computer Engr: CMPE 50, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Electrical Engineering:  Chem 1A, Math 32, Phys 51, EE or CMPE 30 (Satisfying this requirement with a course that is based on C/C++ programming is strongly recommended)
  • BS Industrial & Systems Engr: Chem 1A, CMPE 30, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Interdisciplinary Engr: Chem 1A, CMPE 30, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Materials Engr: Chem 1A, Chem 1B, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Mechanical Engr: Chem 1A, CE 95, Math 32, Phys 51
  • BS Software Engineering: CS/SE 46A, CS/SE 46B, Math 42 or an AS-T in Computer Science

For more information visit the SJSU Transfer Admission Requirements page and in particular the Transfer Impaction Criteria page.