3359-60-02. Undergraduate admissions

(A) Admissions process.

The university of Akron operates under a policy of "rolling admissions" which means that successful applicants for admission receive a letter of admission as soon as all credentials are processed and have until May first to accept the offer of admission. The application/admission process may be through online or other mechanisms appropriate at the time. The university reserves the right to enforce a deadline for applications and admission, and to not consider applications received after such deadline. The university reserves the right to require official high school and prior college transcripts, and/or G.E.D./home-school documentation, before enrolling any applicant. The university reserves the right to require placement testing and/or advising of admitted and/or enrolled students. Admission procedures will vary for: recent high school graduates, home-schooled students, adult students, transfer students, postbaccalaureate students, special students, guest students and international students. Students shall be charged fees and/or tuition and other fees in accordance with schedules adopted by the board from time to time, and through online or other billing mechanisms appropriate at the time.

(1) Prospective in-state and out-of-state students who have graduated from a regionally accredited secondary school and have taken one of the college entrance tests are eligible to apply. An applicant may submit scores from either the "American College Testing Program" ("ACT") or from the "Scholastic Aptitude Test" ("SAT") of the "College Entrance Examination Board." Applicants may be admitted on the basis of the quality of the secondary schoolwork and scores on the entrance tests.

(2) Admission is necessarily limited by the university's capacity to provide for student's educational objectives. The university reserves the right to approve admission only to those individuals whose ability, attitude and character promise satisfactory achievement of university objectives.

(B) Admission requirements.

(1) Recent high school graduates.

Students who have not attended other regionally accredited higher education institutions, and who, within five years of date of application to the university of Akron, have either graduated from high school, or obtained an equivalent home-schooled education, or earned a G.E.D., are in this category. Effective September 1, 2013, all successful applicants will be admitted as follows:

A student's status as college-ready, emergent, or preparatory will be determined on the basis of the student's high school grade-point average (HSGPA) and ACT (or converted SAT) score using the following formula:

I = a(HSGPA) +b(ACT) + c

Where I is an admissions index score used to determine the student's status and a, b, and c are constants. The constants a, b, and c will be determined by an analysis of data from previous cohorts of entering students so as to maximize the accuracy with which the admissions index score (I) predicts students' first-year college grade-point averages.

Students whose admissions index score predicts a first-year college grade-point average of 2.5 or greater will be considered college ready. Those whose admissions index score predicts a first-year college grade-point average of less than 2.5 but greater than 2.0 will be considered emergent. Those whose admissions index score predicts a first-year college grade-point average of less than 2.0 will be considered preparatory. Students with an admissions index score that is slightly below the cut-off for college-ready status and documented extenuating circumstances may, at the discretion of the admissions office, be granted college-ready status. Students with an admissions index score that is slightly below the cut-off for emergent status and documented extenuating circumstances or extraordinary talent not reflected in the admissions index score may, after a holistic review and at the discretion of the office of academic affairs in consultation with the appropriate academic units, be granted admission to the university with preparatory status.

(a) College-ready status.

Students admitted and enrolled on college ready status may be eligible for direct admission to a degree-granting college. Individual degree-granting colleges may have established college-wide or individual department-wide, or program-level criteria for direct admission. These criteria may include but are not limited to minimum high school grade point average, entrance test scores, high school class rank, and curriculum pursued. Such criteria shall not be less stringent than the university-wide criteria.

College-ready students who are not directly admitted may, after meeting established admission standards for individual degree-granting colleges, transfer to the degree-granting college, per paragraph (C) of this rule.

(b) Emergent status.

Students admitted and enrolled on emergent status will be required to complete a set of prescribed courses and/or activities during the first year of enrollment as a condition for further enrollment. Such prescribed courses and/or activities may include, but need not be limited to, completion of college success coursework, tutoring, advising sessions, and achievement of standards for progress.

Students admitted and enrolled on emergent status are not eligible for direct admission to a degree-granting college.

Emergent students may, after meeting established admission standards for individual degree-granting colleges, transfer to the degree-granting college per paragraph (C) of this rule.

(c) Preparatory status.

Most applicants that would be placed on preparatory status will be referred to a community college or branch campus to begin their academic pursuits. They will be advised to apply to the university of Akron as transfer students after having successfully completed coursework elsewhere and having maintained an academic status commensurate with transfer to a college as noted in paragraph (B)(3) of this rule. The number of preparatory status students enrolled by the university of Akron will decrease by approximately twenty-five per cent each year so that by the year 2017, few if any additional preparatory status students will be admitted.

Students admitted and enrolled on preparatory status will be required to complete a set of prescribed courses and/or activities each semester of enrollment as a condition for further enrollment. Such prescribed courses and/or activities may include, but need not be limited to, completion of college success coursework, tutoring, advising sessions, and achievement of standards for progress.

Students admitted and enrolled on preparatory status are not eligible for direct admission to a degree-granting college.

Preparatory status students may, after meeting established admission standards for individual degree-granting colleges, transfer to the degree-granting college per paragraph (C) of this rule.

(2) Adult students.

Students who have never attended other regionally accredited higher education institutions and who, more than two years prior to the date of application to the university of Akron, either graduated from high school, or obtained an equivalent home-schooled education, or earned a G.E.D., are in this category. Admission and enrollment status decisions will be based on placement exams and individual advising.

(3) Transfer students.

A student applying for admission who has attended other regionally accredited higher education institutions following high school graduation is considered a transfer student. Such students are ordinarily eligible to transfer to the university if the student is eligible to re-enter the last institution from which transfer is desired or is a graduate of such institution. Transfer students with fewer than twelve earned credit hours (excluding developmental credits) will be evaluated for admission based on high school academic credentials. Transfer students with twelve or more earned credit hours (excluding developmental credits) will be evaluated for admission based on post-secondary academic credentials. A transfer student on probation or dismissed from another institution will not be considered for admission until the combined post-secondary grade point average reaches 2.0 or higher, or until a two-year waiting period (without post-secondary enrollment) has been satisfied. A transfer student that has satisfied the two-year waiting period must submit a written statement outlining the causes of poor academic performance and steps taken toward improvement. A student dismissed from another institution for disciplinary reasons will not be admitted unless changes in the student's circumstances indicate a strong likelihood that the student will abide by the university's code of student conduct.

The student must present scholastic records judged to be satisfactory by university of Akron officials. The assessment of scholastic records may include consideration of prior courses, grade-point average, credit value and other such factors which the university or individual colleges use in evaluating, ranking, or otherwise determining admissibility to the university or to specific programs. Admission and enrollment status decisions will be based on these scholastic records, placement exams and individual advising.

(4) Postbaccalaureate students.

A student who holds a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university and desires to obtain further education but has not been admitted to the graduate school should apply as a postbaccalaureate student.

(5) Special students.

A special student is enrolled as a non-degree seeking student to participate in a special short-term program. A special student may not take more than fifteen credits unless official status as a regular student is gained.

(C) Transfer admission into degree-granting colleges, certain departments/schools and certified programs.

(1) Admission procedures and requirements vary for each of the university degree granting colleges, some departments within the degree-granting colleges and certain certificated programs. Information about these admission procedures and requirements is available in the dean's office of the various degree-granting colleges.

(2) Except as otherwise stated herein, admission to the university of Akron does not, per se, entitle a student to admission into a degree-granting college, any department which has admission procedures and requirements, or certain certificated programs. Students seeking admission into these colleges, departments or programs must meet the requirements of the respective college, department or program as the situation may warrant.

(3) Admission procedures and requirements of the degree-granting colleges, any departments which have admission procedures and requirements, or certain certificated programs are subject to change from time to time when recommended by faculty senate and approved by the board of trustees. Students are advised to consult advisers within these colleges, departments or programs, the general bulletin, and other university documents that may apply to the discipline or program in which they seek admission to ascertain the current admission procedure and requirements for the college, department or program in which they seek admission.

(4) Unless explicitly stated otherwise in college - or program-specific criteria for inter-college transfer, only the university of Akron grade point average after successful completion of fifteen or more credits will be used to determine eligibility for students to inter-college transfer into their desired degree-granting college and major.

(D) International student program.

(1) The university of Akron welcomes qualified students from other lands and seeks to make their educational experiences pleasant and meaningful. These students represent numerous countries, and they pursue studies in a number of major fields.

(2) Admission procedures for international undergraduates.

(a) Applicants may be accepted for any academic term. All admission requirements should therefore be completed at least forty-five days prior to start of the term for which the student wishes to enroll.

(b) The following application procedures should be followed:

(i) Apply through online or other mechanisms appropriate at the time.

(ii) Submit official transcripts from all secondary or middle schools and all universities/colleges previously attended. Original academic records in languages other than English must be accompanied by exact English translations and certified by the school, an official translator or by a U.S. consular officer, and accompanied by appropriate verifications.

(iii) Degree conferral.

Applicants must submit supporting documentation for all earned degrees indicated on the application. Provisional certificates may be accepted pending the award of a degree. High school/secondary school students must show proof of graduation before they will be permitted to register for their first semester.

(iv) Proof of English language proficiency.

The university of Akron requires all students for whom English is not the native language to take the "Test of English as a Foreign Language" ("TOEFL") the "International English Language Testing System" ("IELTS"), or the "Michigan English Laboratory Assessment Battery" ("MELAB"). "TOEFL" applications may be obtained from bi-national agencies, "United States Information Service" ("USIS") offices, or from the "Educational Testing Service" ("ETS"). The "IELTS" is jointly administered by Cambridge ("ESOL"), British council and IDP education Australia. The "MELAB" is a secure test battery, and is administered only by the ELI-UM and ELI-UM authorized official examiners in the United States and Canada. Undergraduate students must achieve a minimum "TOEFL" score of seventy-one (internet-based test) or a corresponding minimum "IELTS" or "MELAB" score. "TOEFL", "IELTS", and "MELAB" scores older than two years are invalid and unacceptable.

(v) Proof of adequate financial support.

An international student is required to submit a "Declaration and Certification of Finances" and official documents showing that the student has sufficient funds to cover the cost of the student's education, living expenses, and health insurance while attending the university of Akron and that these funds will be available to them in this country. Immigration regulations prevent the student from earning any substantial portion of these funds while studying in the United States. Each international student will be held responsible for obtaining and maintaining appropriate health and accident insurance coverage while enrolled at this institution. This insurance coverage is mandatory as described in the following paragraph.

(vi) Student health insurance.

All international students will automatically be enrolled in the student major medical health insurance available through the university, the cost of which will be assessed as a fee and applied to the student's account unless prior to enrollment the student provides proof, as proscribed by the university, and maintains in full force and effect during enrollment, major medical insurance that meets or exceeds requirements established by the university.

(3) Orientation.

The international student is required to attend a special orientation program which is held prior to the beginning of fall/spring semester classes. A student admitted for summer semester must attend the fall semester orientation. The schedule for orientation will be mailed with the "Certificate of Eligibility" from the office of international programs' immigration specialists. During orientation, the international student is given an English language placement examination. This is in addition to the international proficiency examination. The student may be required to participate in noncredit English classes if it is felt the results of this placement examination warrant such action.

(4) English language institute.

The university of Akron offers an intensive English language institute program for the international student whose command of the English language has not reached the level of proficiency to enable the student to begin full-time coursework. The English language institute operates on a schedule of two fifteen-week semesters and a summer session. An applicant is required to pass a language proficiency test before being fully admitted for academic study. An international student enrolled in the English language institute may not enroll for undergraduate coursework at the same time.

Effective: 6/20/2020
Promulgated Under: 111.15
Statutory Authority: 3359
Rule Amplifies: 3359
Prior Effective Dates: 11/04/1977, 08/30/1979, 01/30/1981, 05/15/1982, 01/30/1987, 05/22/1991, 08/31/1992, 09/11/2000, 10/30/2005, 06/25/2007, 06/30/2011, 05/23/2013, 06/27/2014, 02/01/2015, 12/22/2019, 02/24/2020