Take the leap. Rip off the band-aid. Pull the plug. Get on the horse.

No matter how you say it, it’s time. YOUR time. Time to go back to school, and get the education that could completely change your life.

The first step? Sending in that application.

Applying to WGU is different than applying to other schools. With other schools, applying is in some ways a commitment to attend. You may have to pay part of your tuition, sign up for courses, or something similar as part of your application.

That’s not the case at WGU.

Applying to WGU is a discovery process, that ends in an admissions decision on our end, usually within 4-6 weeks. When you apply, you learn about WGU and we learn about you, and together we can decide if it’s a compatible fit.

Applying at WGU is a quick, easy process. It takes 10 minutes of your time! You’ll be asked simple questions like your name, address, and about your previous schooling. The application is not an automatic acceptance into WGU, and you can also cancel your application, walk away from the process, and come back later to finish.

You will just need to know your personal information, like your social security number, and the information about your previous schooling in order to apply.

Financial aid isn’t part of our application, you fill out a separate FAFSA form to determine your financial aid eligibility. Financial aid works per school year, so you can apply at any time to determine what you’re eligibility may be.

If you don’t yet have an associate’s degree, the WGU Readiness Assessments will be required to help us know where you are with your education. These assessments determine readiness in the areas of language, math, essay writing, and admissions information. An average score from the assessments is used for admissions decisions. These assessments don’t need to be stressful; they are open book and are graded ‘pass’ or ‘no pass,’ with the option to retake them.

The admission team will look at both your prior college and the readiness assessments to make a decision on your official acceptance.

There is no obligation to investigate transfer credits and take the assessments to determine eligibility with WGU. But the application alone does not complete the process. Once all steps are complete, students will get the Official Admissions Decision from our Admissions team about their acceptance into WGU’s programs. Once students are officially accepted, they get to choose their own start date with absolutely no obligation to enroll if you change your mind.

After you finish the application, you can get more information about specific programs. An enrollment counselor will help answer all the questions you have. Learn about what your interaction with an enrollment counselor will look like once you finish your application.

You do have to submit an application before we can evaluate your transcripts, look into transfer credits, or help you map out a degree. Calling or chatting our team won’t be helpful until you’ve sent in your application.

Once you apply to WGU you can have a transcript evaluation to help you determine which program is best for you. Getting this evaluation doesn’t obligate you to enroll in any way, and you don’t have to do a transcript evaluation unless you’d like to.

Again, applying doesn’t mean that you’re committed to attending WGU! If you get information about your program and your transfer credits, and don’t think it will work for you, that’s ok. You have nothing to lose by applying to WGU, and everything to gain.

After applying you’ll follow up on financial aid and with your enrollment counselor to continue the process. Your enrollment counselor will be working with you closely on every update, so every question you have will be answered and you won’t be alone in the process. You just have to apply to WGU to get connected with your enrollment counselor, who will make the rest of the process much easier.

Applying to WGU is all about the discovery process. We want you to be comfortable and in control of the whole process. That’s why you shouldn’t hesitate to apply; you don’t have to worry that an application is anything permanent or intimidating. It’s a simple process that will help you be ready for a potential future at WGU.