Colorado School of Mines introduces guaranteed admission for qualifying students

The Colorado School of Mines is making a historic change. Beginning next year, a new program will guarantee admission and scholarships to every Colorado high school graduate who qualifies.

The program gives Colorado youth a path to pursue undergraduate degrees in engineering and applied science. School officials say the "Mines Golden Guarantee" is Colorado's first statewide admissions guarantee program.

"We want Colorado families to know that if their high school students work hard, challenge themselves, demonstrate they are ready and have an interest in engineering and applied sciences, their admission to Mines is guaranteed," Mines President Paul C. Johnson said.

Johnson said the program aims to help prepare the next generation of technical and business leaders, as well as keep top talent in Colorado.

To be eligible, students must reside in Colorado and graduate from a Colorado high school with an unweighted GPA of 3.8 or higher, or an unweighted GPA of 3.6 or higher paired with a minimum SAT score of 1420 or an ACT composite of 32. Other requirements include completing pre-calculus or trigonometry and completing three years of lab-based science courses, including chemistry and/or physics. Students must maintain a grade of B- or higher in all math and science courses.

Applications must be submitted by the Nov. 1 priority deadline.

If accepted, students under the Mines Golden Guarantee will also receive a merit scholarship of at least $2,000 per year.

The school says that students who do not meet these admission criteria are still strongly encouraged to apply, and that the Mines Admissions team considers an applicant's full academic and personal context in its reviews.

"The Mines Golden Guarantee is meant to be a benchmark for automatic acceptance, not a barrier to entry," said Lori Kester, associate provost for enrollment management at Mines. "In fact, over a third of Colorado residents accepted to Mines this fall did not meet at least one of the guaranteed admission requirements, including high school GPA."

Kester says the school wants every qualified student to thrive at Mines, regardless of their background or their path to the school.