»Frequently Asked Questions about Applying to Chapman

For the 2024-25 school year, there were 7,713 undergraduate students and 2,47 graduate/professional students (9,760 total students).

The average class size is 23. Most undergraduate courses will range from 10-29 students.

Some of our most popular undergraduate programs are:

• Business Administration
• Psychology
• Communication Studies
• Computer Science
• Biological Sciences
• Film and Television Production
• Health Sciences

We offer more than 100 areas of study. You can search all majors/minors on our Degree & Program Finder.

Chapman is also proud to have a large Undeclared population, as we allow and encourage exploration across subject areas.

Chapman University has a number of exciting opportunities for our students to become involved and enrich their experience on campus, including:

• Clubs & Organizations: We offer around 190 academic, professional and special-interest clubs on campus.
• Greek Life: Our fraternities and sororities are focused on academic achievement, philanthropic and services opportunities; and providing leadership opportunities, all in a fun and inclusive environment.
• Athletics: There are club sports and intramural teams organized through Chapman Athletics.

You can register for both in-person or virtual tours of Chapman's Orange Campus:

• In-person Guided Tours
• Virtual Tour and Discussion with Current Students

Please review our Tuition and Services here.

Applicants are also encouraged to apply for financial aid by filling out the FAFSA; they will be automatically considered for merit scholarships just by applying. For more information, visit our Financing Your Chapman Education page.

Housing is required for three years for all incoming first-year students. You can opt-out of this housing requirement if you will be living with a relative close to campus. Learn more about housing here.

Chapman housing is not required for incoming transfer students, though it is guaranteed for incoming transfers who apply by the housing deadline.

For seniors, housing is available on a space-available basis. Many students work with the office of Housing and Residence Life to secure off-campus housing.

If you are interested in competing on a Chapman Athletics  team we recommend contacting the appropriate coach. Initiating contact will allow the coach to communicate with you directly about your talents, visit opportunities, walk-on and try-out opportunities.

You can find more information about athletics at Chapman on our Resources for Student Athletes page.

The only mandatory class for first-year students is the First Year Foundation Course (FFC). You can learn more about this course and our General Education requirements on our General Education page.

Many AP and IB classes count for credit. Please check the International Baccalaureate equivalencies and Advanced Placement equivalences to view if your scores met the minimum requirements for course credit.

In the interest of the environment, we only print a limited number of course catalogs for the university. If you would like to look at the courses offered, we recommend browsing the online catalog. This will have the most up-to-date information available.

If you are applying for Fall 2026, the deadlines are:

November 1, 2025: 

• Early Action (non-binding) 
• Early Decision (binding) 
• Film and Television Production 
• Dance (priority)
• Pre-Pharmacy Program (priority)
• Theatre Performance (priority) 
• Screen Acting (priority) 

January 15, 2026: 

• Regular Decision 

February 15, 2026*: 

• Transfer applicants 

*Applications received after February 15 will be reviewed on a rolling basis. 

---

If you are applying for spring the deadline is: 

October 15*: 

• First year and transfer applicants 

*Applications received after October 15 for the spring are reviewed on a rolling basis. 

Chapman University's Early Decision program is binding, and if you are admitted, you must enroll at Chapman University. Please visit the How to Apply section on our website, where you will find important information about this process.

Please note that Early Decision applicants looking to apply for need-based aid must submit their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Chapman's Federal School Code is 001164.

Yes, Chapman's Early Decision is non-restrictive, which allows applicants to apply Early Action or Regular Decision to other institutions. However, if an you are admitted to Chapman via Early Decision, you must promptly withdraw your other applications and attend Chapman.

Early Decision is a binding agreement which requires you to withdraw all other applications and attend Chapman if admitted.

Early Action is a non-binding program. If admitted Early Action, you are not obligated to withdraw all other applications, and can still choose which school you want to attend.

Both have admission deadlines of November 1.

Yes. Early Decision is a notification plan that is available for all academic programs at Chapman, including any program that has a priority deadline of November 1.

However, a student may choose to apply to any of those talent programs under Early Action or even Regular Decision as long as they submit on or prior to the November 1 deadline.

Only students who are certain that Chapman University is their top choice should consider applying Early Decision.

Furthermore, if you want to have your first-term grades from your senior year included in application, you may want to consider holding off until the Regular Decision deadline of January 15.

Chapman strives to award the best possible financial aid and scholarship packages to each admitted student. However, if we do not meet full need, you can request a financial release from the binding contract. You can contact your assigned Admission Counselor and your request will be reviewed by the Admission Committee.

No, students can only apply to Chapman under one of the three notification plans.

The Admission Committee might roll an Early Decision or Early Action applicant into the Regular Decision pool in effort to gather more information from the student, but students are not able to apply again under a new notification plan to the same term.

You can learn about this on our Application Review Process page.

Chapman University has a test-optional admission policy. Learn more about the test-optional admission process here. 

• For Early Decision and Early Action applicants: The latest testing dates that can be considered are in October. It’s ok that your scores may not be in your file until after the November 1 application deadline, as they will still be received in time for review.
• For Regular Decision applicants: The latest testing dates that can be considered are test dates in December.

Please alert the Admission Committee of any future testing dates you plan to sit for by indicating it in the "Testing" section of your Common Application.

With the exception of certain talent-based majors  that have additional requirements, the Admission Committee asks that students refrain from submitting any additional application materials.

We do not require any additional documents or forms. However, we strongly advise all students applying to Business Administration complete at least four years of math in high school, with the apex of their math studies in a calculus or statistics course.

Transfer students do have specific transfer requirements and should refer to the Transfer Prerequisites page.

Please visit the department’s respective websites for admission information, including the audition process and Creative Supplement requirements:

• Dance
• Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music
• Theatre

Deposited students should contact their Admission Counselor to request a deferral to a future term. Please note that: 

• You can request an application to defer admission from the point of admission until the first day of class.
• Deferrals can be approved for one semester or one academic year.
• Students on a deferral are not permitted to earn credit from another university or program that grants college credit.
• Students should submit an enrollment deposit before requesting an application to defer admission (only deposited students can request an admission deferral).
• Those considering deferring admission should also review Chapman's policy on interrupted enrollment. You can learn more about both options on our Deferment and Interrupted Enrollment page.

If your deferral is approved, you will not need to apply for admission to enroll in your new approved entry term.

We regard an admission deferral as a mutual commitment. We agree to hold a spot for you at Chapman, and you agree to attend at the time of your new entry term. If you are planning on applying to other colleges during your deferment period, you should not seek a deferral. 

Provisional admits are just like any other admitted student, but have additional requirements for enrollment. They also have resources available to them to help ensure academic success on campus.

After course registration, provisionally admitted students meet with Academic Advising to develop an enrollment plan that best meets their needs. Provisional admits are limited to 15 semester hours of credit during their first semester at Chapman. After completing this initial semester with a minimum of a 2.0 GPA, these credit restrictions are lifted. 

Our experience has shown that these efforts are incredibly effective at aiding students as they begin their college experience. We also recommend visiting our Tutoring, Learning and Testing Center either in-person or via the website, to explore the resources available to aid in your academic success.

Applicants are rolled from Early Decision or Early Action to the Regular Decision admission cycle either because their file remains incomplete, or the admission committee is requesting additional information prior to rendering a final admission decision. This may include information such as updated test scores or the Common Application Mid-Year Report form, including mid-year transcript.

Applicants who receive notification of being deferred to the Regular Decision cycle should follow the instructions in the communication by the given deadline, and provide the necessary documents so we can complete and review your file.

As a reminder, the committee will only review deferred applicants who have completed the call-to-action listed in the notification. 

A waitlist is a university’s way of adding to the incoming class based on those who did not submit a deposit.

Typically, students find out if they are pulled from the waitlist after the May 1 National Deposit Deadline.