The Idaho State Board of Education is implementing the Direct Admissions initiative to provide more Idaho students with the opportunity to obtain a postsecondary certificate or degree.
Direct Admissions proactively admits Idaho public high school seniors to the state’s public higher education institutions based on each student’s grade point average (GPA) and college entrance exam score.
The State Board of Education has received student’s grades from district uploads to ISEE and their test scores from the test providers. This data will be used only for the Direct Admissions letters and will not be retained by the State Board of Education.
A Board-approved benchmark GPA and college entrance exam score will determine a student’s admission eligibility. Students at or above the benchmark will be admitted to Idaho’s eight public universities and colleges: Boise State University, Idaho State University, the University of Idaho, Lewis-Clark State College, College of Eastern Idaho, College of Southern Idaho, College of Western Idaho and North Idaho College.
Students not meeting the benchmark will be admitted to the six public higher education institutions that offer certificate or associate degree programs: Idaho State University College of Technology, Lewis-Clark State College, College of Eastern Idaho, College of Southern Idaho, College of Western Idaho and North Idaho College.
Students and their families will be notified separately of the student’s acceptance and encouraged to research the academic and professional-technical programs offered throughout the state’s community colleges and four-year institutions. Students will be required to complete an admission application to the institution of their choice as a next step in the admissions process. Students can submit applications to one or all of Idaho’s colleges and universities without having to pay any application fee – using Apply Idaho.
As an educator, you can help your students by understanding the process and helping students find the information they need to accept this offer. Your school administrators will be receiving a list of your seniors that will tell you whether they were accepted to all eight colleges and universities or the six colleges. You’ll find links to the side to download the information that is being sent to students and parents.
Next Steps Links:
- Direct Admissions Letter Calculator (Help students figure out what letter they should have received, in case they did not get one)
- Apply Idaho
- Direct Admissions Letter – What do I do next? (Information for students)
- Direct Admissions Guide for Families
- Idaho Schools Directory
- Things to Consider When Choosing a College
- FAFSA on the Web Worksheet
- Direct Admissions: Frequently Asked Questions