Admissions Pathways

Whether you’re just starting your educational journey or you’re restarting a journey started long ago, we have an admission pathway for you. Our minimal requirement for admission is a high school diploma or GED.

At the heart of our bachelor’s degree curriculum is our two-semester Common Seminar, Knowledge Management. We offer several admission pathways that prepare you to succeed in this seminar. Our English placement test (which contains no math), combined with any prior college experience, helps us place you in the best pathway for success.

No prior college experience?

Based on your placement test results, your admission pathway may include English Foundations and/or English 101U and will require our Communications Core (English 201U and 202U).

Just a little college experience?

With an overall “C” average in your attempted college coursework and based on your placement test results, your admission pathway may include English Foundations and/or English 101U and will require our Communications Core.

Plenty of college experience?

Depending on your placement test results and your grades on prior English and math classes, your admission pathway may include our Communications Core or may enter directly into our Common Seminar. This is also the pathway toward Weekend College admission.

Our placement test and admission pathways work hand-in-hand to make your success our priority. We’ll consider academic probation for those whose prior college experience has been below average. We provide precursors to the Communications Core — English Foundations and English 101U — to help you get better prepared for the Communications Core if your placement test scores show weaknesses in college-level reading and/or writing. And we’ll do our best to get you on track (or back on track) toward earning your degree at the University of Richmond.