PIERRE – Later this month, qualifying South Dakota public high school seniors will receive letters announcing their guaranteed general acceptance into the state’s public universities and technical institutes.
At its meeting Monday, the South Dakota Board of Education Standards heard about this “proactive admissions” effort from Paul Turman, system vice president for academic affairs for the South Dakota Board of Regents.
"The proactive admissions initiative is good for students and good for South Dakota,” Turman said. “We are alerting our public high school seniors to the great opportunities available to them, with a goal of encouraging more to attend the exceptional public universities and technical institutes here in our state. This is a way to retain our best students and build a vibrant workforce firmly rooted in South Dakota.”
To be eligible, students must have earned a Level 3 or 4 on their 11th grade Smarter Balanced test in English and math or an ACT composite score of 18. By meeting these criteria, students earn guaranteed general acceptance into South Dakota’s six public universities and four technical institutes. (Note: the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology requires 18 in English and 20 in math on the ACT.)
General acceptance means a student is accepted into the university or technical institute. Some majors have additional requirements. To take advantage of guaranteed general acceptance, students must complete their application for admission, pay the application fee and submit their official high school transcript to the school(s) of their choice by Dec. 1 of their senior year.
After Dec. 1, students may still apply, but their acceptance is no longer guaranteed. Students must also graduate high school the school year in which they are granted guaranteed general acceptance.
The proactive admissions initiative is a cooperative effort of the South Dakota Department of Education, the South Dakota Board of Regents, the South Dakota Board of Technical Education, and their respective institutions.
Find more information at http://sdmylife.com/accepted.
