New SU admissions standards begin in spring

Effective spring 2006, Southern University will have new admissions standards and requirements.
As instructed by the Louisiana Board of Regents, incoming freshmen will have to complete the board’s TOPS high school core curriculum of 16.5 units and require no more than one remedial course in order to be accepted at Southern. In addition, prospective students will have to have a high school cumulative grade point average of 2.0, an ACT composite score of 20 (or 940 SAT score equivalent) or rank in the top 50 percent of their graduating class.
Presently, high school graduates must maintain a minimum grade point average of 2.2 or an ACT composite score of 17 (830 SAT score).
According to Tracey Abraham, interim admissions director, the revision mandated by the Board of Regents should have a profound affect on Southern enrollment.
“We will meet this challenge as we have met all other challenges that we were faced with,” Abraham said. “This will in no way prevent us from meeting our enrollment goals that we set each year.”
With the exception of Grambling State University and Southern University-New Orleans, every university in the state was mandated by the board to implement new admissions policies. A brochure is available in the Office of Admissions and Recruitment in T.H. Harris Hall.
Norman St. Amant, vice chancellor for enrollment management, said the goal of the new admissions policy is to attract more students, not exclude students.
“We are challenging our students to constantly strive to reach their potential,” St. Amant said. “We are in no way lowering our standards. We want our new admissions to send the message that we are serious about education.”
St. Amant said students who enroll at Southern University should be privileged to attend an institution that is fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and should become involved in the recruitment process.