The general rule for all transfer student-athletes is that the transfer has to sit a year-in-residence at the second institution before being eligible to compete.  This rule applies to Division I student-athletes who wish to transfer to another Division I institution or to a Division II institution.  However, there are exceptions to this rule for student-athletes who meet the NCAA transfer requirements.

The NCAA transfer requirements mandate that a student-athlete average at least 12 hours of transferable semester hours per full-time semester enrolled and maintain a 2.0 GPA.  For example, if a Division I student-athlete wishes to transfer to a Division II institution after one academic year (two full-time semesters), then he or she must be able to transfer in at least 24 semester hours with a 2.0 GPA to be eligible to use an exception to the year-in-residence requirement.

Another step in bypassing the year-in-residence requirement is that the first institution must offer a permission to contact release to the second institution before the transfer student-athlete can have any contact with coaches or staff members from that school.  Once the permission to contact release has been sent and the transfer student-athlete meets the NCAA transfer requirements, then the second institution can determine whether the student-athlete can use an exception to the year-in-residence requirement. 

The most common exception is the one-time transfer exception.  Here, the first institution has to agree to waive the year-in-residence requirement.  This exception can only be used for student-athletes who are transferring from one four-year institution to another four-year institution for the first time.  The first institution is not obligated to release the student-athlete from the year-in-residence requirement.  Often, institutions will agree to a conditional release; for example, the student-athlete will not have to sit a year-in-residence if he or she transfers to a Division II institution rather than a Division I institution.  This can be the determining factor in why some transfer student-athletes decide to compete at a different level.

The above rules are general to NCAA member institutions; however, each institution or conference can set different standards for its transfer student-athletes.