Samford Online offers six opportunities for undergraduate and graduate admission throughout the annual application cycle.

All students applying to undergraduate Samford Online programs are required to provide the following to accompany their completed application form.

Essay

• What influenced you to choose Samford University?
• How will obtaining this degree contribute to your future life goals?

• How do you plan to utilize this credential to enhance your work within your current role?
• How do you envision this credential contributing to your future career goals?

Each answer should be between 200–250 words typed.

Letter of Recommendation (Optional)

Request one letter of recommendation from a non-family member who is preferably a supervisor, employee, mentor, coworker, or spiritual leader. Requests to recommenders will be generated from the application form.

Professional Resume (Optional)

Submit an updated professional résumé with your educational and employment history. Résumés should not exceed two pages in length.

Academic Transcripts

Official transcripts from all colleges you attended are required. If you have earned less than twenty-four college credits, you must also submit your official, high school transcript. Official transcripts can be obtained by contacting the respective institution and are only considered official when they bear the issuing institution’s seal and arrive with the seal intact. Have official electronic transcripts emailed to admission@samford.edu or sent by postal mail to:
Samford Admissions
800 Lakeshore Drive
Birmingham, AL 35229

English Proficiency

English proficiency tests are required if your high school courses were not taught in English.
Favorable admission will be offered to students with the following recommended scores:

TOEFL/TOEFL iBT: Samford’s test code for TOEFL is R1302.
iBT: 90 or above
Computer: 232 or above
Paper: 575 or above
IELTS: 6.5 or above
Duolingo: 120 or above

Students transferring from other institutions must arrange to have official transcripts from each college/university attended be sent to Samford University. New students should have all official transcripts sent directly to the Office of Admission (admission@samford.edu); current Samford students who have taken transient coursework at other schools should have official transcripts sent directly to the Office of the Registrar (transfer@samford.edu).

While an official decision regarding the treatment of your transfer credit will not occur until after you have been accepted into Samford Online, our Director of Student Success can review your unofficial transcript to determine which courses are likely to transfer. Please contact the director at online@samford.edu, to request a review, or use the links below to view how your courses might transfer into Samford.

Transfer Credit Equivalents Alabama Community College Transfer Equivalents

Transfer by Institution Accreditation Status

Transfer work from institutionally accredited (formerly regionally accredited) colleges and universities will be accepted if the student has earned a grade of C- or higher (D grades will not transfer into Samford).

Coursework will be considered for transfer credit from postsecondary institutions that offer the baccalaureate degree or associate degree leading to the baccalaureate degree and are fully accredited by one of the six accrediting agencies below.

• Higher Learning Commission (HLC)
• Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE)
• New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE)
• Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU)
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC)
• Western Association of Schools and Colleges; Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC)

Non-Accepted Work

• Non-academic courses
• Remedial courses
• Highly technical courses
• Vocational courses
• Duplicate credit
• Pass/Fail graded courses, unless documentation is received from the awarding institution stating that a grade of P is equal to a C- or better.
• Participation beyond limits in sports and music ensembles. NOTE: Not more than eight credits in music ensembles, drama participation, and physical education activity courses may apply toward the minimum of 120 credits required for graduation. No more than two credits in physical education activity courses beyond those required for graduation may be part of the combined eight credits.

CLEP Credit

College-level credit is awarded for scores of 50 or higher in most subject areas; however, students should consult with their advisors or the Registrar before scheduling any CLEP examinations. With the sole exception of UCR 101, CLEP credit is not acceptable for university core curriculum courses.
CLEP Website

Military Credit

The Joint Services Transcript (JST), issued through the JST Operations Center, reports courses that may be considered for transfer credit from any of the military branches, one source for all. “The American Council on Education’s (ACE) Military Programs evaluates formal service courses and occupations approved by a central authority, employing the services of teams of subject-matter specialists from colleges and universities (professors, deans, and other academicians) that, through the discussion and the application of evaluation procedures and guidelines, reach consensus on content, description, and amount of credit to be recommended for selected courses and occupations.” (Quoted from the JST Official Transcript Explanation.)

Samford will consider for transfer credit any course reported on the JST that has potential for academic credit. Courses that fall into vocational/career/technical areas are not considered for transfer credit. The course description reported on the JST transcript is forwarded to the appropriate academic department chair for evaluation. If a comparable Samford equivalent is approved, credit is applied for the ACE recommended credit hours and level. If additional course information is needed, the online Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Services may be consulted.

In addition, the Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT) may be considered for world language credit if reported on the JST. The language and scores with ACE recommendations in listening, reading, and speaking are sent to the chair of the World Languages and Cultures Department for evaluation and assignment for comparable credit.