At its May 8, 2015, meeting, the College Senate voted to recommend to the president the following revisions to the DOPS Freshman Admission Policy.
Freshman Admission Policy Revision
WHEREAS, the only current recorded freshman admission policy on record is from 1992; and
WHEREAS, the 1992 policy calls for review every five years and this has not occurred; and
WHEREAS, an ad hoc workgroup of Standards for Students members and Enrollment Management staff has met to review institutional and peer practices, SUNY regulations, and national best practices; and
WHEREAS, Buffalo State’s Directory of Policy Statements (DOPS) lacks a policy statement for freshman admission,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that Buffalo State adopt the following revised Freshman Admission policy and post it in the Directory of Policy Statements (DOPS).
BUFFALO STATE COLLEGE
DIRECTORY OF POLICY STATEMENTS
Policy Number: I: 01:__ Date: April 2015
Subject: Freshman Admission
Admission is based on academic performance in high school and on space availability. Successful applicants will be those who submit a completed application (i.e., application form, standardized test scores, essay, and high school transcript) with a demonstrated competitive high school curriculum. Students who apply without demonstrated success in a competitive curriculum may be reviewed using “holistic review,” which includes a variety of factors (e.g., standardized test scores, letters of recommendation, strength of high school program completed, and extracurricular participation).
Special consideration for admission is available to applicants with extenuating circumstances that may have affected their past academic record. Students admitted under the special consideration provision may have stipulations attached to their admission (e.g., specific course enrollment, academic skill development, mentoring). The percentage of special consideration admissions will be reviewed annually in a meeting of the Standards for Students Committee and the associate vice president for enrollment management.
Previously earned college credit (e.g., Advanced Placement, college coursework completed while in high school) will be evaluated after students’ acceptance upon receipt of their official scores and/or college-credit bearing transcripts. Accepted students will be apprised regarding transferable credit. Grades, quality points, and cumulative averages do not transfer. Departments reserve the right to refuse to accept transfer credit hours in fulfillment of their own major requirements, within the parameters set forth by SUNY Seamless Transfer requirements.
I hereby accept the recommendation of the College Senate on revisions to the DOPS Policy on Freshman Admission. I charge the provost with the responsibility of overseeing the implementation of the revisions to this policy effective with the fall 2015 semester.
