Appendix A - Eligibility Index

The following table is used in determining the eligibility of graduates of California high schools and California legal residents for admission as freshmen at a California State University campus. For an explanation of how the eligibility index works, see Eligibility Index in the Admissions  chapter. An applicant with a grade point average of 3.00 or above (3.61 for nonresidents) is not required to submit test scores. However, all applicants for admission are urged to take the SAT or ACT because campuses use these test results for advising and placement purposes and may require them for admission to impacted majors or programs. Impacted CSU campuses require SAT or ACT scores of all applicants for freshman admission. The minimum eligibility index for California residents and California high school graduates is 2900 using the SAT and 694 using the ACT score. If you neither graduated from a California high school nor are a legal resident of California for tuition purposes, you need a minimum index of 3502 (SAT) or 842 (ACT). The method used to compute the index is explained below:

SAT: Multiply the grade point average by 800, adding your total score on the mathematics and critical reading scores* of the SAT.

ACT: Multiply the grade point average by 200 and add it to 10 times the composite ACT score.

Graduates of secondary schools in foreign countries must be judged to have academic preparation and abilities equivalent to applicants eligible under this section.

* The CSU uses only the ACT score or the SAT mathematics and critical reading scores in its admission eligibility equation. The SAT or ACT writing scores are not currently used by CSU campuses.