Admissions information
Application for Admission
Application for admission instructions and links to the college and university eApplication process and the Universal Application for Admission PDF
Community and Technical College Requirements
The state's community and technical colleges have an open admissions policy. This means:
- You can enroll if you have a high school diploma or a GED. Even without those, you may be admitted if you demonstrate potential for success in college.
- No standardized tests are required for admission to the two-year state colleges, and your high school grades and class rank are not considered.
- After you have been admitted, you will be required to take a test for placement in the appropriate courses based on your reading, writing and mathematics skills.
- You are more likely to do well on the placement test if you complete a "college prep" curriculum in high school, including four years of English and three years of mathematics, science and social studies. If you did not, or if you had minimum passing scores on the Minnesota Basic Standards test, you may not be admitted to certain programs. Most likely, you will have to take developmental or remedial courses that will not count toward a degree before you can take college-level courses.
State university requirements
The seven state universities generally will accept you if you can answer yes to at least one of these questions:
- Did you graduate in the top half of your high school class?
- Did you score 21 or higher on the ACT standardized test?
- Did you receive a combined score of 1,000 or higher on the SAT standardized test?
Admission to some of the seven state universities may require meeting slightly different requirements. Check with the university admissions office for details. Even if you don't meet minimum requirements, you may be considered for admission under special provisions.
Apply early for the best chance at being admitted. Some universities and programs do not have room for all qualified applicants. For admission to a state university, you also should have completed these courses in high school:
- Four years of English, including composition, literature and speech
- Three years of math, including two years of algebra, one of which is intermediate or advanced algebra, and one year of geometry
- Three years of science, including one year each of a biological and a physical science, all with significant laboratory experience
- Three years of social studies, including one year each of geography and U.S. History
- Two years of a single world language, including non-English native languages and American Sign Language
- One year of arts (visual arts and the performing arts of theater, music, dance and media arts)
Minors, special options and preprofessional programs
Our state universities offer many ways
to pursue interests through minors,
emphases and preprofessional programs. Check with the university
admissions office for details.
Graduate programs
Our state universities offer graduate
programs leading to master's degrees
and other advanced degrees and
certificates. Call the office of
graduate studies or the admissions
office for information and a graduate
program application.
Online learning
You can take individual courses or complete an entire program online. Visit www.minnesotaonline.org to search for online programs and courses offered at Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.
Other helpful resources
Campus map and institution profiles
College-prep checklists for high school students
Information for international student
