Sometimes students are overwhelmed with their many college options. If this feels familiar or you just do not know how to narrow down your transfer options, we recommend you use two college search programs. These two search tools allow you to choose from a series of categories. Each will sort your criteria and develop a list of colleges and universities that meet them. 

Note: no search tool is completely accurate. Students should visit the transfer institution’s website to learn more.

And like all webpages, please beware of advertising that might highlight some institutions and/or will try to get you to pay for services. These College Search Tools are free:

Big Future
Search criteria categories to the left when you’re in the search page.  You can create an account but don’t have to.

CHOICES Planner
At the Student sign In, select Site ID and login using Site ID 25500 and Password u1200ps2. Access school finder on the right under LEARN.

To consider

As you explore your transfer institution of choice or use these College Search Tools, consider the following categories.

• Academic studies - Do they offer your intended academic program/major? Will they accept transfer students for this major? How do they accept CCP credit for this specific major?
• Location - Do you prefer an urban, suburban or rural setting? Do you plan to move there? If not, can you easily commute if you do not have a car?
• Type of institution – Is it a public or private institution? Do they have a religious affiliation? Or maybe you are specifically looking for a Pennsylvania State System (PASSHE) or Historically Black College and University (HBCU)? How would these options influence your experiences?
• Types of program and offerings – Do they only offer traditional full-time daytime bachelors programs? What if you need something that is non-traditional such as part-time in the weekend or evenings? How about online options?
• Size – Your experiences and opportunities such as the typical class size (student to teacher ratio), academic programs and student activities offered can be influenced by the size of the institution.
  • Small - from as little as a few hundred to 2 to 3 thousand students.  With a small institution, you may have closer, more intimate contact with professors and other students.  A small institution may not be as overwhelming as a large one but they may not offer everything you seek. Examples of small institutions are Cabrini University, Chestnut Hill College and Cheyney University.
  • Medium - from about 4,000 to 10,000 students. These institutions are likely to offer a wider array of academic programs including links to graduate programs at the institution and possibly more activities. On the other hand, the personalized attention may decrease as compared to a smaller institution.  Examples are La Salle University, Saint Joseph’s University and Kutztown University.
  • Large - more than 10,000 students. Large institutions offer more majors and graduate programs as well as more activities. The disadvantage is that overall intimacy tends to decrease. Examples are Drexel University, Temple University and West Chester University.
• Demographic information - How diverse is the student body: as in race, age, gender, sexuality, or ableism? How about international students, students who are parents, or veteran students? How about the number of transfers they admit? Is it a large population or will you be one of the few transfer students attending? Essentially the question is, how comfortable would you feel attending that school? (You may need to visit their campus to get a better “feel” of the environment.)
• Support services - How accepting is the institution to your specific needs? Do they offer academic tutoring support? What do they have for transfer students and/or commuter students? Do they have a Center on Disability? A Veteran’s Center? International Student Center? And if not a whole “center” for each of these, do they at least acknowledge and offer support for what you want or need?
• Cost – Of course, how much it costs to attend the institution will greatly influence your final decision. The cost of tuition is typically determined by whether an institution is public or private; and if it is a public institution, whether you would be considered an Instate or Out-of-state student. How about where you will live? If you plan to commute, you need to consider the cost of transportation. But if you plan to move, would you live in the schools’ Residence halls or apartments for transfer students? Or maybe live on your own? All of these costs add up.
• Agreements - Does this institution have an agreement with Community College of Philadelphia? Dual admissions, Program-to program, Core-to-Core (or Gen Ed-to-Gen Ed)? While students are able to transfer to institution with whom Community College of Philadelphia does not have an Agreement, check out some of the benefits of transferring to a “partner” institution.