Counselors

For Counselors

The Office of Admissions appreciates the critical role high school counselors play in advising college-bound students. We thank you for the time you invest in your students as they move through the college admissions process.

Want us to visit your school or participate in an event? Email RequestUF@admissions.ufl.edu.

General inquires: Contact us at counselors@admissions.ufl.edu or call 352-392-1365

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a student apply if they are receiving their Associate of Arts (AA) degree and high school diploma upon graduation?

If a student is receiving their Associate of Arts (AA) degree with their high school diploma, they should still apply as a freshman. If we are unable to offer that student admission at the freshman level, we will ask if they would like to be reviewed as a junior-level transfer student. If the student opts in as a transfer applicant, there will be no separate application. The student will confirm their intended major, affirm that they have completed the prerequisites for the major, and then their information will be sent to the department that houses that major. Admissions decisions at the transfer level are made by each department. Acceptance at the transfer level is for a specific major and term, and students are not permitted to change either of these.

How does PaCE work?

Pathway to Campus Enrollment (PaCE) is a program that allows students to become Gators but with a flexible schedule. The first 60 credits are earned through UF Online, a local community college and/or dual enrollment. At least 15 of these credits must be earned through UF Online. Once a student earns 60 credits and completes at least two semesters as a PaCE student, they will transition to campus and begin taking in-person courses. There is no extra application process; students are selected from the general freshman applicant pool. However, students must choose a major within the PaCE offerings in order to be considered (more than 60 majors are available). Students may change their major, but any student who enrolls in PaCE must remain in a PaCE major throughout their time at UF. Learn more about PaCE.

How does Innovation Academy work?

Innovation Academy (IA) is a unique program that runs on a spring-summer schedule, leaving the fall semester open for students to participate in an internship, study abroad, spend time at home, or stay in Gainesville and take fall connection courses. IA is focused on creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation. Students have access to advisors, special programming,an exclusive Innovation minor, and may live in the IA Living Learning Community. Students must apply for the IA program if they are interested and will be considered for all three start terms available to freshman applicants (Summer, Fall or IA). Learn more about Innovation Academy.

Can students switch out of either program if accepted?

Students admitted through PaCE or IA can request a term change. These are granted on a space-available basis and are often not decided until late April/early May, but students should be aware that often there are more requests for term changes than there are available spaces, so they may not be able to move to the residential program. Students cannot appeal a PaCE or IA decision.

What is the Promise program?

The UF Promise program consists of students with academic promise who may need additional support to reach their educational goals, with an emphasis on serving first-generation and/or low-income students. Students are selected by the Office of Admissions upon entering their first year at the University of Florida. Learn more about the Promise program.

How does the Honors Program work?

Students apply to the Honors Program through the UF application. Decisions for Honors will be released with the UF admissions letter; the most important factors in the decision are Honors essays, academic record and test scores, and extracurricular involvement. The Honors Program offers special courses, advising, research and a dedicated residence hall. If a student is not chosen for the Honors Program initially, they may reapply after the freshman year. Learn more about Honors.

How do you choose between Summer/Fall admissions?

When students apply, they are asked to designate the term in which they would like to start - Summer or Fall. While we try to accommodate these requests, there is limited space available in each term, so some students will be offered admission to the term outside of their choice. If this term is not feasible, a student may request a term change. These are granted on a space-available basis and are often not decided upon until late April/early May. There is no difference in admissions criteria for either of the terms. Approximately 1/3 of the incoming freshman class begins in the summer, with the remainder beginning in the fall.

Is a student's desired/intended major a factor in decisions?

We do not admit students based on major to our traditional on campus program. However, if not admitted to our campus program, students must apply for an eligible major to be considered for our PaCE program or state college partnership programs in Engineering and Design and Construction programs. Likewise, students must designate a major within IA to be considered for this program.

Do alumni ties help with admissions?

We do not consider alumni ties when making our decisions.

Do you prefer AP, IB, AICE or Dual Enrollment?

We have no preference between these courses. However, it is important to note that once a student begins dual-enrollment courses, this constitutes the beginning of the student's college GPA. A student's GPA must be at least a 2.0 to attend any state university in Florida.

Do elective courses count toward the recalculated GPA?

When we recalculate the GPA we do not consider elective courses unless they are tied to the IB, AICE or AP curricula. For example, AP Music Theory will receive the additional weight, but a dual-enrollment music appreciation course will not.

How should students label their accelerated courses when submitting the SSAR?

If Honors, pre-IB or pre-AICE courses are not offered at a student's high school then College Prep or other accelerated courses should be labeled as Honors on the SSAR. If these courses are offered, College Prep or other accelerated courses should be labeled as regular.

Are students required to live on campus?

The University of Florida does not require students to live on campus.

How do students get on-campus housing?

Once students submit their freshman application, they can also submit their housing application along with a $25 non-refundable housing application fee. Students do not need to be admitted to apply for housing. This application is a place holder for the student for when housing contracts are available after admissions decisions have been made, so it is to a student's benefit to apply as early as possible for housing, as it is not guaranteed for incoming students. Learn more about housing.

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