VCU to guarantee admissions to high performers
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High school seniors in the U.S. with 3.5 GPAs, or who are in the top 10% of their class, will have guaranteed admission to VCU beginning next year.
What's happening: VCU announced the new first-year applicant policy last week, noting it's the only guaranteed admission program for incoming students among top-tier research universities in the state.
Why it matters: Guaranteed admission can make college more accessible to first-generation college students and/or those from lower-income families.
- And it could help VCU combat its recent downtick in enrollment.
How it works: Qualifying graduating high school students apply through the Common App and submit their transcripts. No other paperwork is needed.
- Yes, but: VCU's competitive arts and engineering programs aren't included in guaranteed admission since they have major-specific application requirements.
Be smart: A handful of universities and states offer guaranteed admission to high-performing high school students, but most are only available to in-state students.
- VCU's program is open to any student in the nation.
VCU's acceptance rate is about 88% and, with an average high school GPA of 3.68, the majority of its current first-year class would qualify for guaranteed admission, per the Times-Dispatch.
The intrigue: This year's first-year class is VCU's largest since 2018 — and so large that the school ran out of dorm rooms and had to house about 80 students in a hotel — but the school's overall enrollment has been shrinking since 2018.
- Increased competition from out-of-state schools, the cost of tuition, a drop in community college enrollment and the rising cost of rent in Richmond are all factors in VCU's declining student body, the Times-Dispatch reported last year.
- Meanwhile, the state's overall population is basically flat, so VCU's future growth may hinge on attracting out-of-state students to its Richmond campus.