Our undergraduate admissions office is staffed with a group of professional counselors, assigned by regions of the country, who develop relationships with and specialized knowledge of the high schools in those regions. Throughout the admissions process, counselors consider a variety of information about an applicant, including the application, essay, high school transcript, letters of recommendation, and communications with high school counselors and teachers. To help evaluate the items in the file, the counselors use a Selection Index worksheet. That worksheet guides the counselor but does not solely determine admissions decisions. The Selection Index used for the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts has 150 total points.
Race is only one of a variety of factors that are considered.
Points are awarded for personal achievement, leadership and service, and for being an alumni legacy. Students also can earn points for coming from a geographic area that is less well represented on our campus. In a miscellaneous category, students can earn a total of 20 points for having an economically disadvantaged background, being an underrepresented minority, attending a high school serving a predominately minority population, or being a scholarship athlete, among others. The essay is an important portion of the application where students can communicate their unique personal histories and circumstances. Taken as a whole, the many criteria we consider are effective in composing a student body that is diverse in a variety of ways, as well as outstanding academically.