How to Fill Out the USF Undergraduate Application Update Form

The USF undergraduate application update form lets you change your entry term, major, or campus on an application you’ve already submitted, without paying a second application fee or starting over. You access it through your Applicant Portal, and USF typically takes four to six weeks to process the request.¹ One firm limit shapes everything else: you have to submit the form within 12 months of your originally requested entry term. Miss that window and you’ll need a brand-new application with a new $30 fee.²

What the Form Can Change

Three changes are on the table, and you can request more than one at the same time:¹

Entry term. Switch to a different Fall, Spring, or Summer, and select the year.
Major. Move to another undergraduate program. You’ll need the exact program name or code from the USF catalog for both your current and your new major.
Campus. Shift your application between USF Tampa, USF St. Petersburg, and USF Sarasota-Manatee.²

The form also asks you to pick a reason: required courses not yet complete at your current school, financial reasons, courses unavailable at USF for your desired term, or an open “Other” field for anything that doesn’t fit.²

Who Can Use It, and the 12-Month Deadline

The form is open to first-time-in-college applicants, undergraduate transfer applicants, and former USF students returning to the university. You have to still be in pre-enrollment status, meaning you haven’t matriculated and started classes. Students who have already enrolled need a different path, such as a readmission application or an academic department petition.

The 12-month cutoff is strict. If your original entry term was Fall 2025 and Fall 2026 arrives without an update on file, USF treats the application as expired, and you’ll pay the $30 nonrefundable application fee again on a fresh submission.² The original fee is nonrefundable no matter what, so staying inside the window is the only way to avoid paying twice.³

What to Have Ready Before You Open the Form

Pull these together first so you can finish in one sitting:

Your USF University ID (U-Number), a nine-character identifier starting with “U” that USF assigned when it acknowledged your original application.⁴
Your date of birth, used as a secondary identifier.
The exact name or code of your new major from the current USF undergraduate catalog. Some departments run multiple concentrations with similar names, so precision matters.
Any updated academic history. If you’ve taken college courses since your original application, you’ll list each institution, its location, your dates of attendance, degree information, and credit hours earned, and send official transcripts from every school you’ve attended since applying.²
Current mailing address, phone, and email. If your address has changed, mark it as new, permanent, or local.

How to Submit and What Happens Next

Log into your Applicant Portal at discover.usf.edu/apply/status with the credentials you created when you first applied. The update form sits inside the portal.¹ Check the box for each change you want. For a term change, mark both the original semester and year and the new one. For a major change, enter your current major and the one you’re moving to. For a campus change, pick the new campus from the three options.

Fill in your reason, add any new academic history, confirm your personal information, and sign. USF sends a confirmation email once you submit. That email means the request is in the queue, not that the change is done.

Processing takes roughly four to six weeks from the day the Office of Admissions receives the form.⁵ During that time, admissions staff verify that your requested changes fit program capacity and prerequisites. Check your Applicant Portal regularly; your checklist updates there once the change goes through.¹

When a Major Change Needs More Than the Form

Not every program accepts you just because the form routes your application there. Some USF majors are “limited access,” meaning admission to the university doesn’t automatically admit you to the program. Nursing is the clearest example: you can declare Pre-Nursing as an intended major, but entry to the College of Nursing requires a separate application.⁶

Music adds another layer. Every prospective music major must complete an audition and be accepted into a performance studio, and specific concentrations carry their own portfolio, score, video, or interview requirements.⁷ Submitting the update form points your application at the new program; it doesn’t waive the audition or portfolio steps.

If You’re Moving Your Start Date

Florida law requires 12 consecutive months of legal residence in the state before initial enrollment to qualify for in-state tuition.⁸ Pushing your entry term later can help if you’re still building toward that 12-month mark; moving it earlier could put you under the line. If your residency is in question either way, expect USF to ask for updated documentation, and note that each Florida university sets its own deadlines for residency materials.⁹

A term change also affects housing and orientation. USF charges a $50 housing application fee, and orientation reservations for Summer and Fall 2026 are already open. If you’ve reserved orientation or applied for housing under your original term, contact USF Housing and Residential Education and the Orientation office to adjust those bookings rather than waiting for the update to process.

One more thing worth watching: if you shift to a more competitive major, your application will be measured against that program’s GPA and other standards, not the ones for your original choice. If you’re transferring, USF’s final materials deadline for Fall 2026 is June 15, 2026, so any new transcripts need to arrive by then.¹⁰

Extra Steps for F-1 Students

If you’re on an F-1 visa, a major change or a term change touches your SEVIS record, the federal database that tracks your enrollment. A new major requires a new Form I-20 from USF’s international student office reflecting the updated field of study, and that I-20 generally can’t be issued until the new major appears in USF’s student information system.¹¹

For a term change, your Designated School Official manages your program dates in SEVIS, and the system limits how far those dates can shift.¹² Contact USF’s International Services office before submitting the update form so your DSO can confirm the new term works within federal rules. Fixing the SEVIS side after the fact creates avoidable compliance problems.

1
University of South Florida. Freshmen Applicant Next Steps
2
University of South Florida. Instructions for Updating an Undergraduate Application
3
University of South Florida. How to Apply | Freshman Students
4
University of South Florida. Your USF College Admissions Questions Answered
5
University of South Florida. Transfer Applicant Next Steps
6
University of South Florida. Majors | Academics | Health Professions
7
University of South Florida. Audition Requirements
8
Florida Senate. Florida Code 1009.21 – Determination of Resident Status for Tuition Purposes
9
Cornell Law Institute. Florida Administrative Code R. 72-1.001 – Residency for Tuition Purposes
10
University of South Florida. Transfer Admission Dates and Deadlines
11
Study in the States. Change Education Level
12
Study in the States. Manage Initial Program and Session Dates