For students with older academic credentials, BSU provides two forms of admission: general or provisional. General admission is offered to students graduating from high school in 1989 or later with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.0. Students who graduated before 1989 and have never attended college can also receive general admission. Provisional admission is applied to students entering post-secondary education with academic credentials earned at an earlier stage of their lives, such as adults returning to school.
Boise State University (BSU) determines admission of high school grads under 21, according to the university's Admissions Index. It combines your high school grade point average (GPA) with your ACT composite score (or, in some cases, your SAT Math and Critical Reading scores). For example, if you have a high school GPA of 3.0 and an ACT composite score of 22, the BSU Index would classify you as an excellent candidate for admission. As of July 2010, the admissions cusp for high school grads under 21 is: GPA - 3.0; ACT composite - 23 (or SAT composite - 2.39).
High school graduates over 21 are assessed on core curriculum achievement. For those graduating from high school before 1989, BSU processes applicants on their completion (or in-completion) of the Idaho College Admission Core. The classes from that curriculum include English, math, natural science, social science, humanities and other college prep courses. That said, students who have not completed these core courses can qualify for provisional admission to Boise State University.
Graduates of programs not formally accredited in Idaho must present formal test scores to qualify for schooling at BSU. A General Education Diploma (GED) is the broadest way to satisfy Boise State's general admission requirements. Students over 21 may be provisionally admitted, providing they meet minimum standards on the COMPASS exam: 46 on Algebra, 68 on Writing and 85 on Reading. Applicants over 21 years of age need not submit SAT or ACT scores.
As of Fall 2010, BSU can admit students with GED scores achieved over the last three decades. Boise State University applicants must provide GED Standard Average Scores that meet the following guidelines:
GED achieved prior to 1989: Standard Average Score of at least 50.
Applicants over 21 who achieved GED between 1989 and 2001: Standard Average Score of at least 50.
Applicants under 21 who achieved GED between 1989 and 2001: Standard Average Score of at least 50 and a composite score of at least 17 on the ACT.
Applicants under 21 who earned the GED in 2002 or later: Standard Score Average of at least 500 on the GED and a composite score of at least 17 on the ACT.
Under this administrative umbrella, provisionally-admitted students have three semesters to complete 14 college credit courses with no less than a C-minus average.