III.Q. – Admission Standards – 06-2026
III.Q. – Admission Standards
1. Institution Policies
Each postsecondary institution must establish institutional policies which meet or exceed the following minimum academic and career technical admission standards. Additional and more rigorous requirements also may be established by the institutions for admission to specific programs, departments, schools, or colleges. Consistent with institutional policies, admission decisions may be appealed by applicants to the institutional admissions committee. Career Technical Education program admission requirements apply to all technical colleges, including the College of Eastern Idaho, the College of Southern Idaho, the College of Western Idaho, Lewis-Clark State College, Idaho State University College of Technology, and North Idaho College.
2. Institutional Academic Admission
a. Direct Admission
Students attending an Idaho public school, or Idaho private school that has entered a Direct Admission participation agreement with the Board, may be notified of their admission to an Idaho public college or university through the State Board’s Direct Admission Program. Direct admission offers are based on the following criteria:
| Verified Achievement | Institution Admission |
|---|---|
| ISAT Math level ≥3 and ELA/Literacy level ≥3 OR Unweighted GPA = 3.0 | Admission to all Idaho public institutions. |
| Unweighted GPA between 2.25 and 2.99 | Admission to Idaho’s public community colleges, Lewis-Clark State College and Idaho State University. |
| Unweighted GPA < 2.25 | Admission to Idaho’s public community colleges. |
Admission awarded though the program is contingent on the verified level of achievement in high school curriculum (grade point average), performance on the 11th grade Idaho Standards Achievement Test (ISAT), and successful completion of Idaho high school graduation requirements. Direct admission decisions apply only to offers of admission to Idaho public institutions made between October 1 to June 30 of the senior year of high school.
b. Academic Regular Admission
An applicant who is not admitted under the Board’s Direct Admission Program must graduate from a high school accredited by a body recognized by the Board and complete the Admission Standards Core Courses with a minimum 2.00 cumulative grade point average. The Board office maintains a list of approved high school accreditors. Applicants who graduated from high school prior to 1995 will be subject to the admission standards at the time of their high school graduation.
Each institution may develop a separate policy for the admission and placement of international students.
Admission Standards Core Courses
| Subject Area | Minimum Requirement | Select from These Subject Areas |
|---|---|---|
| Secondary Language Arts and Communication | 8 credits | Composition, Literature, and Oral Communication |
| Mathematics | 6 credits | A minimum of six (6) credits. Secondary Mathematics includes Integrated Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Business Mathematics, Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Fundamentals of Calculus, Probability and Statistics, Discrete Mathematics, and courses in Mathematical Problem Solving and Quantitative Reasoning. A total of 8 credits are strongly recommended. Four (4) of the required mathematics credits must be taken after 9th grade. Courses not identified by traditional titles (i.e., Algebra I or Geometry) may be used as long as they contain all of the critical components of higher math functions prescribed by the State Mathematics Content Standards. Institutions may recognize other Mathematics courses as meeting this requirement if those courses are taken in compliance with the Idaho state minimum graduation requirements. |
| Social Studies | 5 credits | American Government (state and local), Geography, U.S. History, and World History. Other courses may be selected from Economics, including Consumer Economics, if it aligns to the state content standards, Psychology, and Sociology. |
| Science | 6 credits | Secondary sciences include instruction in Applied Sciences, Earth and Space Sciences, Physical Sciences, and Life Sciences. Institutions may recognize other Science courses as meeting this requirement if those courses are taken in compliance with the Idaho state minimum graduation requirements. Must have laboratory science experience in at least two (2) credits. A laboratory science course is defined as one in which at least one (1) class period per week is devoted to providing students with the opportunity to manipulate equipment, materials, or specimens; to develop skills in observation and analysis; and to discover, demonstrate, illustrate, or test scientific principles or concepts. |
| Arts and Humanities (including world languages) | 2 credits | Humanities courses include instruction in Visual Arts, Music, Theatre, Dance, or World Language aligned to the Idaho content standards for those subjects. Other courses such as Literature, History, Philosophy, Architecture, or Comparative World Religions may satisfy the humanities standards if the course is aligned to the Interdisciplinary Humanities Content Standards. History courses beyond those required for state high school graduation may be counted toward this category. World Language is strongly recommended. The Native American Languages may meet the world language credit requirement. |
| Other College Preparation | 3 credits | Speech or Debate [no more than one (1) credit]. Debate must be taught by a certified teacher. Studio/Performing Arts (art, dance, drama, and music). Foreign Language (beyond any foreign language credit applied in the Humanities/Foreign Language category). Secondary Career Technical courses. |
If the student graduated from a high school that does not offer a required course, applicants may contact the institutional admission officer for clarification of provisional admission procedures.
High school credit counted in one (1) category (e.g., Humanities/World Languages) may not also count in another category.
c. Academic Alternative Admission
- Degree-seeking applicants who do not qualify for admission based on subsection 2.b. above may be granted alternative admission if they satisfy one (1) or more of the criteria below:
- Graduated from a secondary school accredited by a body recognized by the Board but has not completed the Admission Standards Core courses set forth above;
- Did not graduate from a secondary school accredited by a body recognized by the Board, [e.g. home-schooled students, General Educational Development (GED) diploma holders], and have acceptable predictive indicators of academic success approved by the institution;
- Deserve consideration by the institution because of special status (e.g., returning veterans, gifted and talented students wishing to enter college early, or other students in unique circumstances as determined by the institution). Each institution may develop a separate policy for the admission of special status students.
- Students granted alternative admission may have conditions placed on their admission, subject to institutional policies. Students may be granted admission and be required to satisfactorily complete up to fourteen (14) baccalaureate level credits, twelve (12) of which must be general education credits. Regular admission status must be attained within three (3) registration periods or the student will be dismissed, subject to institutional committee appeal procedures.
d. Academic Transfer Admission
- A degree-seeking student who, after graduating from high school or earning a GED, has earned at least fourteen (14) or more semester hours of transferable academic college level credit from an institutionally accredited college or university with a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00 may be admitted.
- A student not meeting the requirement in subsection 2.b. may petition the institutional admissions officer to be admitted. If admitted, the student may have conditions placed on their admission, subject to institutional policies as described in subsection 2.c.ii.
d. Academic Program Placement
Placement assessments indicating potential for success may be required for some academic programs. Placement requirements vary according to the program. Each institution shall establish academic program placement policies and publish these policies in an accessible manner on the institution’s website.
3. Career Technical Program Admission
Institutional academic admission standards apply to individuals who seek a technical certificate or Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree through a career technical program. The admission standards and placement criteria do not apply to workforce development or short-term training programs. Career technical programs employ program admission and student advising/navigation processes in addition to institutional academic admission.
Admission to a specific career technical program is based on the capacity of the program and specific academic and/or physical requirements established by the technical college/program.
a. Career Technical Program Placement Criteria
Placement test scores indicating potential for success may be required for enrollment in a career technical program of choice. Placement score requirements vary according to the program.
Each institution shall establish career technical program placement policies and publish these policies in an accessible manner on the institution’s website.
Specific career technical programs may require different levels of academic competency and admission requirements. Students must also be familiar with the demands of a particular occupation and how that occupation matches individual career interests and goals. Therefore, before students can enroll in a specific program, the following placement requirements must be satisfied:
- Specific program requirements (including placement exam scores) established by the technical program. A student who does not meet the established requirements for the program of choice will have the opportunity to participate in remedial education to improve their skills; and
- Formal procedures and definitions for program admission employed by the technical college. Program admission requirements and procedures shall be clearly defined and published for each program.