First-year or transfer students who have been admitted to the University of Rhode Island may request to defer their enrollment for a future term by completing the Deferral Request Form (log-in required). Deferrals are reviewed and granted on a case-by-case basis, and if granted, are for up to one (1) year.

• To start the deferral process, submit your enrollment deposit to confirm your intent to enroll at URI. Deferred admission will only be granted to admitted students who have paid the non-refundable $300 enrollment deposit. If a deferral is granted, the deposit reserves your spot in your new term of entry.
• Students are only eligible to defer to the same undergraduate school/college and major into which they were originally admitted, with the exception of Pharm.D and Nursing (deferral requests for those majors are based on space availability). Changes in major may require a new admission review as well as a new merit scholarship review.

URI will not consider deferrals for the following reasons:

• Application to, or educational study at, another domestic college or university (including non-credit coursework).
• Attending another university with a lower cost of attendance (i.e, living at home while taking classes at your local community college).

Requirements for deferring enrollment to the University of Rhode Island

• You must complete the Deferred Enrollment Request Form by August 25 if you were admitted for fall, January 20 if admitted for spring. 
• Students who are found to have applied to, or enrolled at, other colleges or universities during their deferment will have their admission revoked.
• For a first-year student, approval is contingent upon the successful completion of any high school coursework in progress. The same holds true of college coursework in the case of a transfer student requesting a deferral.
• First-year students are required to submit an official final high school transcript before the start of the new term. Transfer students are required to submit an official transcript from the most recent school attended.

Communications from the Office of Undergraduate Admission

• If your deferral is granted, you will receive communications based on your new entry term.
• Information about housing, orientation, and other “new student” information will be forthcoming in the semester prior to entry.

Financial Aid

• If your deferral is granted, you must submit a new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at the appropriate time for the new term in which you are enrolling, unless you are deferring from fall to spring in the same academic year and have already filed the FAFSA.
• International students who require an F-1 Student Visa must resubmit documentation that demonstrates the ability to fund their education for one full academic year.
• Scholarships are awarded only for a specific admission term and may not be deferred to a different entry term.  Merit award structures are not consistent for fall and spring admission. 

Exceptions