An application for admission to an undergraduate program (Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Fine Arts) is evaluated according to three important criteria:
- Interest: Does the application reflect an understanding of Goddard’s student-driven, low-residency model? Has the student articulated why Goddard is the right fit for them?
- Willingness: Has the student expressed a willingness to think critically about their personal and academic experiences? Has the student expressed a willingness to take responsibility for their learning?
- Readiness: Does the student’s academic record (high school or college transcripts, letters of recommendation, and reflections in the personal essay) demonstrate sufficient preparation for writing-intensive, independent, and critical work in the liberal arts and sciences?
Additional criteria are available for the Early College Program, homeschool applicants, and students being readmitted.
1. Online Application
If you have already started an application, please email your Admissions Counselor with the additional materials needed to complete your application.
If you would like to start a new application, please apply here:
Additionally, undergraduate applicants may apply using The Common Application:
No application fee
2. Official Transcripts
- Transcripts and other official records must be submitted by the credit-awarded institution directly to Goddard College, Office of Admissions, 123 Pitkin Road, Plainfield, VT 05667.
- Submit high school transcripts or other proof of successful completion of secondary education (such as GED record). Students who were homeschooled or unschooled should submit a secondary education report. You do not need to submit high school transcripts if you have completed two full years of undergraduate education.
- Submit all transcripts from previously attended colleges or universities.
- While test scores are not considered for admissions decisions, you are strongly encouraged to submit AP, IB and CLEP scores with your application as you may be eligible to earn college credit. If you are applying for admission to the BA in Education with Teacher Licensure, you must submit Praxis Core test results.
3. Recommendations
Two (2) letters of recommendation must be submitted in support of your application. At least one letter should address your ability to do college-level work. Letters can be from an academic or professional setting; or be from colleagues, advisors or mentors.
In lieu of the second letter of recommendation, you may substitute a Secondary School Report. (The Secondary School Report is a requirement for students applying for the Early College Program.)
If you are applying to the BA in Psychology (BA/MA Fast Track), three (3) letters must be submitted in support of your application. At least one letter should address your ability to do graduate-level work.
Letters can be from an academic or professional setting; or be from colleagues, advisors or mentors.
Recommenders may submit letters of recommendation online.
4. Essay and Supplemental Materials
Bachelor of Arts: Individualized Studies,
Health Arts & Sciences, Sustainability
ESSAY
Write no more than 1,000 words addressing the following:
Write about your readiness for undergraduate study in a program that is largely self-directed and writing-intensive. What life and academic experiences have inspired and prepared you to undertake undergraduate study? What do you intend to study? Please describe possible learning goals for your first semester. What resources might you turn to for grounding and guidance? What elements of your intended degree concentration are attractive to you?
Bachelor of Arts: Education
ESSAY
Write no more than 1,000 words addressing the following:
Your essay should address your reasons for applying to Goddard; your educational background in the field; what life experiences prepared you to reach your educational goals. If you are pursuing a teaching endorsement, please tell us how your undergraduate work to date prepares you to seek licensure and describe your “call to teach.”
NOTE: Students hoping to earn a Vermont Teachers License are required to submit Praxis CORE scores or a Praxis CORE Acknowledgement Form.
Bachelor of Arts: Psychology
ESSAY
Write no more than 1,000 words addressing the following:
Please address the following issues: What events in your life have led you to want to pursue studies in the field of psychology and/or counseling? Write about your readiness for undergraduate and graduate study that is largely independent, as well as your ability to motivate yourself and to advocate for your style of learning. What personal attributes provide the greatest challenges to your study in this program?
Bachelor of Fine Arts: Creative Writing
ESSAY
Write no more than 1,000 words addressing the following:
Please describe how you started writing, how your writing has evolved, your experience with craft and revision, and what you hope your writing will become. Also discuss why have you decided to pursue a BFA degree rather than working on your own to write, your thoughts on the relationship of the writer to the world, the texts that have inspired you, and how hope to grow as a reader.
CREATIVE PORTFOLIO
Submit two or three short pieces (no more than 20 pages; excerpts from longer pieces are acceptable) along with a one-page introduction to each piece explaining the process through which the piece came to be written: its genesis, any revisions it has undergone and why.
Bachelor of Fine Arts: Socially Engaged Art
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
PERSONAL ESSAY
Write maximum 1,000 words on the following:
Please describe your creative practice and its evolution. What ideas, questions, and issues are you engaged with in your community and/or in the world at large? How do these concerns motivate and inform your creative practice? What artists, thinkers, and movements inform your creative practice? Discuss your personal and artistic goals and the types of support and community you are seeking in a BFA program.
CREATIVE PORTFOLIO
Select 2-3 examples of creative work that represent the character and range of your existing practice, and provide a one-page statement explaining the idea and process in realizing each piece.
Please include visual and/or audio documentation of your work.
IMAGES
- No more than 12 digital images of 2D or 3D work (visual, performance, political action, installation, etc.)
- Images may be embedded in the document including the one-page statement, or this document can include links to image platforms (e.g. Flickr, Instagram, website, etc.). Make sure that images are clearly labeled.
- In the one-page statement, include: the names of the images, title, year of creation, medium, & approximate dimensions for static work or location for performative work.
VIDEO OR AUDIO FILES
- No more than two 10-minute files.
- In the one-page statement, include links to websites, SoundCloud, Youtube, Vimeo, etc. or attach .mov, .mp3, .wav, or .aif files.
- The one-page statement should also include: title and year of creation, running time, viewing instructions and format of documentation.
WEB-BASED FILES
- No more than 2 URLs or links to web-based works or new-media experiences.
- In the one-page statement, include: URL links, title and year of creation, & viewing instructions.
WRITING SAMPLES
- No more than 10 double-spaced pages of writing (ie: poetry, hybrid text, creative non-fiction, lyrics, zine, written materials designed to accompany or inform other mediums, etc.)
DO NOT SEND original work samples, they will not be returned.
5. Interview
All applicants to Goddard’s undergraduate programs are required to complete an interview with an admission counselor. The interview is designed to help the counselor assess your understanding and readiness or self-directed study. It also provides you with an opportunity to ask questions about the low-residency model or other aspects of the Goddard curriculum. Interviews are generally done over the phone and are 20-30 minutes in length.