Admissions & Aid

Admissions Requirements

Salem State College has a commitment to academic excellence and a continuing desire to provide access to a four-year baccalaureate program for a broad range of students. Your application is carefully reviewed to evaluate your strengths as a candidate and to be certain that you have the academic background to succeed at Salem State.

The following admissions standards have been developed with the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education to ensure that the college remains an institution of high academic quality. These standards consist of nine categories:

1. High School Graduates:

Requirements:

The following high school courses are required for admission to the college:

English: 4 full year college prep. units

Math: 3 full year college prep. units

Science: 3 full year college prep. units (2 must include labs)

Foreign Language: 2 full year college prep. units of the same language

Social Science: 2 full year college prep. units (one must be U.S. History)

Electives: 2 courses from the above subjects or from the arts and humanities or computer science

Only courses that are college preparatory or higher will be considered. Honors and advanced placement courses will be given additional consideration.

Salem State College, under the auspices of the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, uses a sliding scale admissions formula. The sliding scale uses a re-calculated grade point average and SAT or ACT scores. The sliding scale chart is listed below:

Required GPA and SAT/ACT:

These are the minimum admissions standards. The college reserves the right to set higher standards.

2. Students with Learning Disabilities:

Applicants with professionally diagnosed and documented learning disabilities (documentation must include diagnostic test results) are exempt from taking standardized tests for admission to any public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Such students, however, must complete 16 required academic courses with a minimum required GPA of 3.00 or present other evidence of the potential for academic success.

An applicant may substitute two college preparatory electives for the two required foreign language courses only if the applicant has on file with the high school results of a psycho-educational evaluation completed within the past three years that provides a specific diagnosis of a learning disability and an inability to succeed in a foreign language.

3. Vocational High School Graduates:

Vocational-technical students must complete 16 college preparatory courses, distributed in the same manner and with the same minimum grade point averages required of other high school graduates, with the following exceptions:

• Two vocational-technical courses may be used to fulfill the two required electives.
• Vocational-technical high school graduates who do not complete the two required college preparatory foreign language courses must complete an additional college preparatory elective, for a total of three such courses, and satisfy one of the following options:

1. Complete at least one full-year of foreign language;
2. Complete a fourth unit of mathematics or science, which need not be a laboratory course; or
3. Complete one unit of computer science.

4. English as a Second language Students (ESL):

ESL applicants may substitute up to two college preparatory electives for the two required foreign language courses.

5. Alternative Admissions:

Students not meeting the admissions requirements above may be considered for a six-week pre-college summer program.  The two programs are described below.

A.I.D./ACCESS Program:
This program is an alternative admission and educational opportunity. It is designed to support minority, low-income and educationally disadvantaged students. There is a mandatory six-week summer institute.

Developmental Skills Program:
The Developmental Skills Program (DSP) increases students potential for academic success by providing support that will enhance the experience at Salem State College. Students selected into DSP agree to participate in a six-week summer institute. Applications for DSP are considered on the basis of high school grades, SAT, and diagnostic tests administered at Salem State.

6. GED Recipients:

GED scores will be considered for admissions if the student's graduating class has been out of high school for at least three years.  Additionally, the student must submit a resume or work history letter.  An interview may also be required.

7. Adult Learners:

An adult learner is classified as a student who has graduated high school three or more years from the semester he or she wishes to attend Salem State College. The student must supply proof of high school graduation and submit a resume or work history letter.  An interview may be required.

8. International Students:

The student must have the equivalent of a U.S. secondary school diploma or must have attained that level at the time of entrance to the college. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is required. The minimum TOEFL score to be considered for admission is 173 (computerized) and 61 (internet). Freshmen international students must also submit SAT or ACT scores. There is no minimum SAT or ACT score required. 

9. Special Admissions:

The special admissions category allows a limited number of students to be accepted without meeting the high school admissions standards outlined above. These spaces are typically given to students who have fulfilled all of the academic units but fall just shy of meeting the admissions requirements. If you are one of these students, we strongly recommend that you apply before the first of January.