How to Apply to Psychology at Vassar College: No Admission by Major, Declare Psychological Science With a Faculty Advisor After Entry, and Requirements and Timeline for Chinese, Canadian High School and Transfer Students

Vassar College, a liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, teaches psychology through its Department of Psychological Science. Vassar does not admit by major: you do not apply to psychology, and you declare a major after entry. Here is what you need to know for fall 2027 entry, based on Vassar’s official information, for students at high schools in China, students at Canadian high schools (including BC and Vancouver), and transfer students.

1. The Psychological Science major

• What it covers: Vassar says its faculty cover cognition and perception, social and personality, developmental, experimental, behavioral and clinical psychology, statistical methods and experimental design, health, cross-cultural, sports, and genetic and comparative psychology. Faculty also take part in the interdisciplinary Neuroscience and Behavior program.
• Research: Vassar says students at all levels can work closely with faculty on research, including in the summer Undergraduate Research Summer Institute (URSI).
• How to declare: reach out to the faculty member you would like as your advisor and bring the major declaration form to fill out together.
• Major requirements: course requirements are listed in the Vassar College Catalogue. The catalogue’s program page returned a challenge page when this guide was written and could not be checked, so confirm the declaration timing and course count in the catalogue and the department’s handbook.
• AP and IB credit: scores of 4 or 5 on select AP exams and 5, 6 or 7 on select IB Higher Level exams earn credit, up to 2 units of pre-matriculation exam credit.

2. Deadlines

• Early Decision I: 15 November.
• Early Decision II: 1 January.
• Regular Decision: 1 January.
• Decision dates: Vassar’s application pages do not list release dates by round; decisions are posted on the applicant status site.
• Materials: Common App or Coalition App, a $65 fee (waivers available), the School Report and counselor recommendation, one teacher evaluation and a mid-year report. ED applicants submit a fall progress report.
• Optional: “Your Space” (poetry, art, video and the like) and music, art or dance portfolios.

3. Testing and English

• SAT/ACT optional: declare your choice on the applicant portal by 22 November (ED I) or 8 January (ED II and RD). If submitting, the latest test dates are November for ED I and December for ED II and RD; self-reported scores are accepted and superscored.
• English: if English is not your first language and not the main language of instruction at your schools for the last three years, an English test is required. Vassar accepts TOEFL iBT, PBT and Home Edition (not TOEFL Essentials), IELTS Academic (not General Training) and Duolingo. No minimum scores are published. Duolingo results must come directly from Duolingo at the time of application.
• Interviews: Vassar recommends that TOEFL and IELTS submitters also complete an interview to show English proficiency; Duolingo’s interview section is reviewed. InitialView and Vericant interviews are accepted.
• Transcripts: a complete, school-certified record of every marking period; non-English documents need a certified original and an English translation.
• Chinese and Canadian curricula: Vassar publishes no Gaokao policy and no grade requirements for Canadian or BC curricula.

4. Costs and aid

• 2026-27 (US$): tuition 76,140, housing and dining 19,800, fees 1,020; budget about 2,250 more for books, personal expenses and travel.
• Need-aware for international applicants: Vassar meets the full demonstrated need of all admitted students who apply for aid with their admission application, but it is need aware when reviewing international applicants.
• Apply at the start: students who are neither US citizens nor permanent residents must apply for aid together with admission to receive it at any point; those admitted without aid in the first year cannot receive Vassar funding later.
• Forms and deadlines: international applicants file the CSS Profile; aid deadlines are 15 November (ED I), 1 January (ED II) and 1 February (RD).
• No aid for international transfer applicants.

5. Transfer students

• Deadlines: fall entry 15 March, with decisions in early May; spring entry 1 November, with decisions in mid-December.
• When: you can apply as early as the first term of your first college year. Transfers must complete the equivalent of at least four full-time semesters at Vassar to graduate.
• Materials: Common App and $65 fee, all high school and college transcripts, the Transfer College Report, a Transfer Academic Evaluation with a recommendation from a college instructor, and a mid-term report if enrolled; SAT/ACT optional; the same English rule as first-years.
• Credit: liberal arts and sciences courses roughly equivalent in content, methodology and rigor to courses in the Vassar catalogue can transfer; no credit for physical education (except dance), pre-professional or vocational hours, courses under 2 semester hours, or distance learning.
• Need-aware: transfer admission is need aware with limited places, and international transfers receive no aid.

Checklist

Students at high schools in China:

• Apply with the Common App or Coalition App by 15 November (ED I) or 1 January (ED II or RD)
• Submit TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo; consider an InitialView or Vericant interview
• Decide on SAT/ACT and record your choice by the deadline
• If you need aid, apply with your admission application and file the CSS Profile

Students at Canadian high schools (including BC and Vancouver):

• Same deadlines; no English test needed after three years of English-medium schooling
• Non-US citizens and non-permanent residents must also decide on aid when applying

Transfer students:

• Fall deadline 15 March; you can apply from your first college term
• At least four full-time semesters at Vassar; no aid for international transfers

Sources: Vassar College, Application deadlines; How to apply; First-year requirements; International applicants; Transfer applicants; 2026-27 tuition and fees; Applying for financial aid; Psychological Science; Become a psychology major; Courses and requirements; College Catalogue. Information is for fall 2027 entry (costs are 2026-27 figures). Check Vassar for the latest details.