Undergraduate Admission Criteria

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The admission to any undergraduate program at the College of Engineering at UTSA is based on UTSA's undergraduate admission requirements plus the following additional admission criteria for the College of Engineering. Students may be admitted to the College of Engineering in two ways: directly into a major or into the pre-engineering. A student is admitted directly into a major only if all admission criteria are met.

Students Entering Directly from High School

Students entering directly from high school will be admitted to a lower-division engineering major on the basis of the following admission criteria:

  • Students must meet the UTSA admissions requirements.
  • Students must have completed the prerequisites necessary to enroll in MAT 1214, Calculus I (through Math placement test).

Students who satisfy the above-mentioned criteria are admitted directly into a lower-division appropriate engineering major and those who do not meet all of these criteria are reviewed and considered on individual merits for admission into the Pre-Engineering. If a student cannot be placed in MAT 1073, Algebra for Scientists and Engineers, or a higher level mathematics course, he/she will not be accepted into the Pre-Engineering until he/she has proper mathematics background. Such students will be advised to take their deficiency mathematics courses at UTSA as undecided.

Students Entering with Transfer Credit

Any student applying from either a program within UTSA or from other educational institutions is considered transfer student. Transfer students from outside UTSA must provide an official transcript to the Admissions Office for an evaluation of all college level work completed. Transfer students with less than 30 hours of transferable credit are evaluated the same as those students entering directly from high school.

Transfer students with 30 hours or more of transferable credit must meet the following requirements in order to be accepted into a major:

  • Students must fulfill the requirements for UTSA admission.
  • Students must have completed the prerequisites to enroll in MAT 1214, Calculus I (through Math placement exam).
  • Students must have credit for at least 15 hours of math, science and engineering courses applicable to the degree they are seeking.
  • Students must have Three-Calculation GPA
    The three GPA calculations employ only the grades received in courses that are applicable to the engineering degree being sought. The GPAs calculated are:
    • Overall GPA of all courses (Overall GPA)
    • GPA of all math, science, and engineering courses (MSE GPA), and
    • GPA of all courses, if any, taken in the major subject (Major GPA)
  • Students must comply with the C-grade rule
    .
    A grade of D or lower in any lower division course or any other course that is pre-requisite by another required course indicates unsatisfactory preparation for further engineering education. Any such course in which a D, F, or W is received must be repeated before enrolling in any course for which it is a prerequisite. This requirement is subject to the Three-Attempt Rule. A student unable to raise his or her grade to at least a C in a course within three enrollments (attempts) shall be required to change his or her major to a field outside of the College of Engineering.

Thus, students who meet with the above-mentioned criteria are admitted directly into a major and those who do not comply with any of these criteria are reviewed and considered on individual basis for admission into pre-engineering.

Placement in a Lower-Division Engineering Major

Incoming students who meet all admission criteria either directly from high school or with transfer credits will be admitted into one of the lower-division program majors: CE (Civil Engineering), EE (Electrical Engineering), ME (Mechanical Engineering). All students admitted to a lower-division major, should follow their major curriculum. A student who meets the requirements for entering into a lower-division major within the College of Engineering but is unsure of which major may be admitted as Lower-Division Engineering Undecided. If a student cannot meet all the admission criteria to a lower-division major, he/she may be admitted into the Pre-Engineering.

Students admitted into the Pre-Engineering should take the deficiency mathematics courses along with the required University Core courses every semester. Their academic performance will be monitored regularly by the College of Engineering.

The Three-attempt Rule and the minimum required three-calculation GPA of 2.00 or higher will be enforced. They can apply to their department for advancement into the lower-division major when conditions specified by the department are met.

A student unable to raise his or her grade to a minimum required grade in a course within three enrollments (attempts) shall be required to change his or her major to a field outside of the College of Engineering. Enrollment in a course for a period of time sufficient for assignment of a grade, including a grade of W, is considered an attempt.

Admission into the Upper Division

Students who have successfully completed the lower division engineering courses in their program of studies may apply to their department for advancement to the upper division. The lower division courses are referred to 1000 and 2000 level math, science and engineering courses that are required for the degree. An official degree plan is filed upon acceptance into the upper division. Prior to admission to the upper division, students are required to demonstrate a satisfactory academic performance. To be considered for upper division, in addition to a minimum overall GPA of 2.00 in all 1000 and 2000 level courses that are counted towards the degree, students must obtain a GPA of 2.25 for all 1000 and 2000 level math, science and engineering courses.