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Adult Admission

Students who are 21 years of age or older or on active military duty may be admitted based on established criteria (has a high school diploma or GED certificate).  If the student has not taken an ACT or SAT within the last 5 years ,they must participate in an Academic Intake Survey and assessment tests in English, mathematics, and science.  The results of these tests are used to determine admissibility and course placement.

International Students, First-Time Admission follow this link for additional information.

  • Summer provisional admission
  • Summer curricular deficiency
  • Alternative admission
  • Home study or unaccredited high school admission
  • Concurrent high school enrollment
  • Opportunity admission
  • Transfer admission
  • Adult admission
  • International student admission
  • Special non degree-seeking students
    1. Be a first-time-entering student.
    2. Graduate from an accredited high school or have earned a GED certificate. GED recipient's high school class must have graduated.
    3. Meet the curricular requirements.
    4. Have a minimum ACT score of 17 or a minimum high school GPA of 2.5.
    5. Participate in a comprehensive assessment battery. If the need for remedial coursework is indicated, the student must successfully complete the required developmental coursework prior to entering this provisional program.
    • Have a reasonable chance for academic success, usually based on one of three:  ACT composite score, high school GPA and class rank, or GPA in the 15-unit core, or
    • have unusual talent or ability in art, drama, music, sports, and the like, or
    • are educationally or economically disadvantaged and show promise of being able to succeed in a program or curriculum at USAO.
    1. The student must have taken the ACT or SAT and earned a score on each subtest's frequency distribution (as defined by the State Regents) that is equal to or greater than the composite score required for admission at state colleges. Simply put, a student wishing to enter USAO must earn a comprehensive score of 21 or better on the ACT (or 980 on the SAT) and also earn a 19 or better in each of the subtest categories: English, math, science, and reading.
    2. The student's high school class must have graduated.
    3. The student must satisfy the high school curricular requirements for state colleges, as verified from the private school transcript. For home school students, this verification may come from the parent-teacher.
    • must meet the published criteria of the State Regents (other than high school graduation and curricular requirements) for admission. This includes having earned a composite score of 24 on the ACT or the equivalent score on the SAT (1090) combined critical reading and mathematical scores, or a high school GPA of 3.0 and class rank in the top 25 percent. 
    • must be enrolled in less than a full-time load (fewer than six courses per semester) at the high school which he or she is attending, as attested by the high school principal.
    • must obtain a written recommendation from the high school counselor, written permission from their parent(s), and a signed statement from their high school principal confirming their eligibility to satisfy by the spring of the senior year the high school graduation requirements, including curricular requirements for college admission. This form is available in the USAO Registrar's Office. 
    • 19 ACT in English to take an English class
    • 19 ACT in mathematics to take a mathematics class
    • 19 ACT in science to take a science class
    • 19 ACT in reading to take history or social studies
    • if the student has achieved a composite score on the ACT (24), or if the student’s combined score on the SAT critical reading and mathematical sections equal (1090), or
    • if the student has a high school GPA of 3.5 or better.
    • must be 17 years of age or older and meet the standardized test admission requirements of USAO, or
    • must be 16 years of age and have achieved a composite score of 24 or whose combined critical reading and mathematical scores equal 1090. 
    1. test scores (ACT of 32 or SAT of 1410)
    2. the student's level of maturity and ability to function in the adult college environment, and
    3. whether the experience will be in the best interest of a student intellectually and socially.
    • originally (prior to beginning college anywhere) have met USAO's high school curricular and performance requirements and earned at least an overall retention/graduation GPA of 2.0 (on a 4.0 scale) on all college course work elsewhere; or
    • originally (prior to beginning college anywhere) have met USAO's high school curricular requirements but not the performance requirements and earned at least an overall retention/ graduation GPA of 2.0 on at least 24 attempted trimester credit hours of regularly graded (A, B, C, D, F) college work; or
    • originally (prior to beginning college anywhere) have met USAO's performance requirements but not the curricular requirements, have earned (on high school course work) an overall GPA equal to a 2.0 (on a 4-point scale), and have satisfactorily completed USAO's high school curricular requirements before transferring; or
    • originally (prior to beginning college anywhere) have met neither USAO's curricular nor performance requirements but have earned an overall 2.0 GPA on at least 24 attempted trimester credit hours of regularly-graded (A, B, C, D, F) college work, and completed USAO's curricular requirements before transferring.
    • Transcripts of record from colleges or universities accredited by the North Central Association or other regional associations will be given full value.
        1.  Each nonresident applicant must be in good standing at the institution from which he or she plans to transfer.
        2.  Each nonresident applicant must have made satisfactory progress (an average grade of "C" or better to meet this policy's current retention standards, whichever is higher) in the institution from which he or she plans to transfer. 
    • Transcripts of record from institutions not accredited by a regional association may be accepted in transfer when appropriate to the student's degree program and when USAO has had an opportunity to validate the courses or programs.
        1.  Each nonresident undergraduate applicant must meet the conditions of a(1) and a(2) above.
        2.  Each nonresident undergraduate applicant who meets a(1) and a(2) above also will be required to validate the transferred credit by making satisfactory progress (an average of "C" or better) for at least one semester.