Transfer & Visiting Students FAQs

Are there minimum grade point average requirements for transfer admission?
While the Admissions Committee does not have strict GPA minimums, it strongly considers applicants who are in the top half of their 1L class.

What is the minimum number of credits required to transfer?
Transfer applicants must have completed their first year at an ABA accredited law school. 

What is the maximum number of credits that will transfer?
Up to 35 credits will be accepted. A minimum of two thirds of the required credits must be taken at the University of Minnesota Law School to receive a diploma from the Law School.

How will my law school GPA be calculated?
Your GPA will be based solely on the grades earned at the University of Minnesota Law School.

How many transfer students are admitted each fall?
The number varies from year to year. Please consult our ABA 509 disclosures for the most recent data.

Are transfer students eligible for scholarships?
We are unable to offer scholarships to transfer students at this time.

Can transfer applicants petition for journals or participate in moot court?
To satisfy the 2L legal writing, all students must participate in either a journal or a moot court.

Transfer applicants who wish to petition for the journals must submit their applications no later than May 1. Journal membership will require participation in the Law School’s legal writing journal petition process. Most transfer applicants will not have an admissions decision by mid-May. Therefore, if you are interested in petitioning for journals, you must submit your petition by the deadline even if you have not received an admissions decision yet. Journal petitioning transfer applicants are responsible for obtaining petition packets on their own. Contact lawpetitioning@umn.edu for detailed information.

Transfer students automatically have the opportunity to participate in the Civil Rights Civil Liberties Moot Court. This moot court introduces students to practical writing and oral argument exercises common in modern litigation. There are also a limited number of spots reserved for transfer students in our specialty moot courts -- Environmental, I.P., and National Moot Court. You can read more about each course right here

Once we've accepted our entire class of transfer students, we will work with you to enroll you in moot court. Enrollment will depend on open seats, and interest, in each of our moot courts. 

Can transfer students participate in On-Campus Interviews?
Yes. Admitted transfer students will work with the Career Center to participate in Off-Campus and On-Campus Interview Programs. See deadlines on the Apply page.

How long can I spend as a visiting student?
Visiting students may spend one or two semesters at the Law School, with the approval of their current ABA approved law school Registrar or Dean of Students.

Do I need to apply through LSAC to be a visiting student?
It is preferred that students interested in visiting apply through LSAC and have an up to date CAS registration. 

Visiting students submit all the same information as transfer students, including an up to date law school transcript.

Visiting student deadlines to apply are: August 1 for fall semester; December 1 for spring semester.  

Can an LL.M. student apply to transfer to the J.D. Program?
Only those students with an LL.M. degree from the University of Minnesota Law School are eligible to apply as J.D. transfers. In order to apply to transfer into our J.D. program, an LL.M. student must complete the same procedure as other transfer students.  View more information on the LLM to JD transfer application procedure