First-year Admissions Requirements

For Fall 2024, we received more than 52,000 applications for approximately 7,000 spaces in our entering class. To be a first-year applicant to Virginia Tech, you must complete:

18 units of high school coursework, including:

• 4 units of English
• 3 units of math (includes algebra I, and algebra II)
• 2 units of laboratory science (chosen from biology, chemistry or physics)
• 2 units of social science (one must be history)
• 3 additional academic units (foreign language is highly recommended)
• 4 elective units

If you have already graduated high school and have attempted 12 or more credits at the college/university level, then you should apply as a transfer applicant. If your credits were attempted or completed in high school, you are still a first-year applicant.

First-year Applicant Holistic Review

When your application is complete, it will be reviewed holistically by our admissions committee. We will look at your achievement inside of the classroom, as well as who you are outside of the classroom. This includes looking at your application within the context of your high school. The committee will consider your school’s course offerings, grading scale, and any other school-related information provided to review your academic achievement. Factors that are considered in the application review process include:

Academic Review:

• Rigor of academic program within context of school
• Grades in courses, including trends over time
• Standardized test scores (if applicable; test-optional for students entering through Fall 2025)
• Major requested on your application as we review by major at Virginia Tech

Personal Review (in alphabetical order, not reflective of order of review):

• Activities outside of the classroom like jobs, clubs, sports, family responsibilities, service, research, etc.
• Disciplinary record
• First-generation college student status
• Interest in the Corps of Cadets
• Participation in Virginia Tech pipeline programs
• Personal statements submitted through the Ut Prosim Profile
• Residency
• Veteran status

Required Supplemental Information for Application Review

Academic Materials

Applicants who have only attended high school or have been home-educated within the United States:

• Must submit a Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR) for review. Your SRAR should include all courses and grades received for years 9-11 and all in-progress and planned coursework for year 12. If you choose for your SAT/ACT scores to be reviewed, you must include them on your SRAR.

Applicants who have attended high school or have been home-educated outside of the United States at any point:

• Must submit a Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR) or copies of your transcript(s). Your SRAR or transcripts should include all courses, grades, and exam results for years 9-11 and all in-progress and planned coursework for year 12. If you choose for your SAT/ACT scores to be reviewed, include them on your SRAR or upload a score report to your Applicant Portal.

In both cases, the Applicant Portal will be a tool for submitting your academic materials. Applicants will be able to either seamlessly log into their SRAR or upload their transcript(s) and standardized test score reports (if applicable).

Standardized Tests

• ACT or SAT: Virginia Tech is test-optional for students entering through Fall 2025. On the application for admission, you will be able to select whether or not you would like your scores to be reviewed as part of your application. We do not look at the Writing section of either test. If you do not want to include test scores in the review of your application, it will not impact your admission decision. If you are required to submit the SRAR, you will provide the scores there. If you are attending a high school outside the U.S. and submit transcripts instead of an SRAR, then you can include the test scores on your Common App for review, or upload the score report in your Applicant Portal.
• English Language Requirements: If you are applying and your native language is not English, you will need to demonstrate English language proficiency through testing. For more information, please see the international requirements webpage for details.

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation are not required or requested. Even if submitted, they will not be considered in the review of your application.

If there is a circumstance that you would like to share that impacted you academically or personally, we encourage you to share this information on your application in the Additional Information writing prompt on Common App. Your counselor may also write a letter of circumstance on your behalf and email it to admissions@vt.edu to be added to your application for review. Please note that this should not be used to share letters of recommendation.

For a checklist related to applying to Virginia Tech as a first-year, please visit the first-year application checklist.

Home-Schooled, Home-Educated, and Others in Non-Accredited Programs

In order to be competitive for admission to Virginia Tech, students applying from educational backgrounds other than accredited schools (including home-schooled or home-educated students whose programs are not accredited) must provide the following documentation for review by the admissions committee:

• Application for admission, including the non-refundable application fee
• Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR) that includes all coursework completed in high school
• Grades/level of performance
• SAT and/or ACT test scores, if choosing to have scores reviewed

Virginia Tech attracts highly competitive students nationwide and from over 100 countries. An increasing number of these students have unique educational backgrounds that require additional evaluation. The university administration recognizes that students from educational backgrounds other than accredited schools may not study in the traditional classroom environment and that they are unable to provide the traditional documentation needed to evaluate their academic performance. Virginia Tech believes that providing this population the opportunity to demonstrate proficiency in their college preparatory curriculum through the above-listed documentation will be beneficial to both the student and the university.

Updated July 2023