Program-Specific Admissions Criteria

Admissions Requirements for First-Time Freshmen Applicants

• Complete and submit a Take Flight application or Common App
• Pay the non-refundable $30 application fee.*
• Submit your high school transcript.

*Students on free/reduced lunch do not pay the application fee.
**ACT and SAT scores are optional for students. Learn more about our policy.
***No letters of recommendation are required if you meet minimum standards.

Admission Requirements for General Admission to UofL

The University of Louisville seeks to admit college-ready students. Students with strong high school grades and a pre-college high school curriculum are generally admitted. The middle 50% of our first-year students scored between 22 and 28 on their ACTs. 25% scored 29-36 and the final 25% scored below 22. Students with lower test scores (or students who apply without ACT/SAT test scores) will be considered if they demonstrate strong high school grades in a rigorous high school curriculum. A UofL admissions counselor may request additional materials, such as a resume that displays involvement outside the classroom, letters of recommendation or a personal essay to demonstrate a student’s ability to succeed at the University of Louisville. 

Students applying to Speed Engineering, School of Nursing or College of Business with the required minimum GPA can also demonstrate readiness for direct admission through our placement exam, Accuplacer. Reach out to your admissions counselor for more details. 

Admission Requirements by School or Program

* Students applying to programs in the Hite Art Institute must apply to those programs separately, in addition to applying to UofL.
**Advanced math courses (AP, IB and dual credit) that demonstrate readiness for success in College Algebra are required when the application is being reviewed without test scores.
***Dental Hygiene and Nursing admission has a two-step process. Freshmen are admitted to the lower division and then apply for upper division after 3-4 semesters. 
****Audition required for admission into School of Music. 

Test-Optional Admission

All students applying without test scores will receive a comprehensive high school transcript review of grades and courses, particularly college preparatory courses. You can learn more about applying to UofL without test scores on our Standardize & Optional Test Information page.

The University of Louisville is aware of upcoming changes to the format of the ACT which will make the Science Reasoning portion of the test optional. Currently, the only majors that review the Science Reasoning section of the ACT are our Speed School of Engineering programs. For students applying for 2025 terms, the Science Reasoning section will still be reviewed as part of the automatic admission process for engineering applicants. More information regarding applications for future terms will be posted here once available. Please note that UofL remains test optional for all majors, and there are pathways for admission to all of our programs without the ACT or SAT.