Applying for Undergraduate Admission

Students desiring admission must meet the following requirements and also any special requirements for the college or curriculum of their choice.

Applicants must submit an application form for admission, together with a $20 application fee ($30 for international students), and have their secondary school provide an official transcript of their academic record, including credits and grades, rank in class, and certification of graduation.

Applicants must also arrange to have their scores from either the American College Test (ACT) or the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) reported to Iowa State directly from the testing agency (ACT is preferred). The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is required of international students whose first language is not English.

Applicants may be required to submit additional information or data to support their applications.

Graduates of approved Iowa high schools who have the subject-matter background required by Iowa State University and who rank in the upper half of their graduating class will be admitted unconditionally. Students who do not rank in the upper half of their graduating class may be admitted to the university if they achieve the following combination of high school rank and ACT composite score (a comparable index is available for students who submit SAT scores):

High School Rank with ACT Composite Score
(99% is high)

Those who do not meet these requirements but who have a high school rank of 20% or above may be given the opportunity to enroll for a trial period during a preceding summer session to establish their qualifications for fall admission. Those who have a high school rank below 20% (and an ACT below 24) will be denied admission.

Admissions policies are established by the Faculty Senate. Admission decisions are made by the admissions officers in accordance with these policies.

Nonresidents of Iowa , including international students, may be held to higher academic standards, but must meet at least the same requirements as resident applicants.

Applicants who are graduates of nonapproved high schools will be considered for admission in a manner similar to applicants from approved high schools, but additional emphasis will be given to scores earned on standardized examinations.

Applicants who are not high school graduates, but whose classes have graduated, may be considered for admission. They will be required to submit all academic data to the extent that it exists and achieve scores on standardized examinations which will demonstrate that they are adequately prepared for academic study.

Students with superior academic records may be admitted, on an individual basis, for part-time university study while enrolled in high school or during the summers prior to high school graduation.

Exceptional students may be admitted as full-time students before completing high school. Early admission is provided to serve persons whose academic achievement and personal and intellectual maturity clearly suggest readiness for collegiate level study.

For more detail about undergraduate admission, please visit ISU's Admission page

Updated 12/27/07-08:49 PID:917