First-Year Admission Requirements

At UW-Eau Claire we use a holistic approach to admit students. This means that we take into consideration not only your high school academic career but your experiences outside of the classroom that highlight your drive and determination, compassion for others, and ability to thrive here. Traditional first-year applicants are considered in part using the guidelines below.

Admission requirements

Academic units required

17 Total Units

• 1 unit = 1 year of high school study or equivalent. These are minimum units; most applicants exceed them.
  • 4 units - English (at least 3 composition and literature)
  • 3 units - mathematics (algebra, geometry, advanced college prep mathematics such as algebra II or advanced algebra)
  • 3 units - social science (1 must be world or American history)
  • 3 units - natural science (lab sciences are encouraged; not required)
  • 4 units - additional courses (in any of the above areas as well as languages, art, music, speech, computer science or other academic areas)

Academic factors

In addition to a rigorous high school curriculum, other academic factors include:

• High school class rank
• Grade point average
• Trends in grades
• Test scores
• Senior year courses
• Course rigor

Non-academic factors

Secondary non-academic factors include:

• Leadership
• Community service
• Special achievements
• Diversity in personal background and experience

NOTE: Students who begin taking high school coursework prior to high school (e.g., mathematics, foreign language in grade 8) are encouraged to continue rigorous course selection from core areas during grades 9-12. Applicants must present evidence of graduation from a recognized high school or equivalent certificate.

Guide to admissions + application guidelines

We do a comprehensive review of each applicant and consider academic as well as non-academic factors. Our average profile for an incoming freshman is below. Contact your admissions counselor to talk through the likelihood of admission.

Profile of admitted first-year students

The numbers below are based on the middle 50% of admitted students. "Middle 50%" means half of the students we admitted are within the listed range. It also means 25% of the students we admitted fall below the range and 25% placed above.

• ACT: 21-27
• Class rank percentile: 62-88%
• SAT: 1120-1310
• GPA (on 4.0 scale): 3.4-3.9