Beginner Admission

SPEA Indianapolis has a special program to admit freshman students simultaneously to SPEA and to the University College. To be eligible for this dual admission, applicants must meet the general university and campus requirements for admission; have a minimum combined SAT math and critical reasoning score of 1000 or 21 ACT and have a 3.0 high school grade point average.

Students who do not qualify for dual admission at Indianapolis or choose not to apply for freshman-level entry may be admitted to the School of Public and Environmental Affairs after they have declared their major, have a 2.0 cumulative and prior term GPA, and if they have completed 12 or more SPEA major credits, have a 2.3 SPEA GPA.

Indianapolis undergraduate students who are admitted to SPEA are required to attend the Undergraduate Induction, which is scheduled during the fall and spring semesters. The induction provides students with an opportunity to become acquainted with SPEA faculty and staff, and presents important program-related information to ensure a successful transition to SPEA.

Transfer Admission

Students transferring from other institutions will receive Direct Admission to SPEA, providing the students have achieved all of the following:

1. Cumulative GPA - 2.0 and above with the following conditions:

(a) SPEA reserves the right to review and withhold admission in those cases where students have been granted forgiveness, exclusion, or similar exemptions that remove from the cumulative GPA calculation grades that would typically be included in the GPA. SPEA does recognize grade replacements for courses that have been retaken at an institution where the higher of the course grades has been used to compute the cumulative GPA.

(b) SPEA reserves the right to review and withhold admission in those cases where students are seeking to transfer to SPEA from another institution, but they also have a previous record at IUPUI which does not meet good standing requirements.

(c) Students who do not meet condition 1.a) or 1.b) should be referred to the Director of SPEA Student Services. 

2. Last completed semester with a GPA of 2.0 and above.

(a) Students who do not meet this condition but do meet the cumulative GPA requirement should be routed to SPEA and referred to the Director of SPEA Student Services.

Second Undergraduate Degree Applicants

Students who are seeking a second undergraduate degree are encouraged to explore SPEA graduate programs or graduate certificate programs.

Students must petition to SPEA for approval to pursue a second bachelor’s degree.

If permission is granted, students are required to take 30 credit hours beyond the credits used for the first bachelor’s degree and satisfy all the requirements for the second degree.

SPEA Credit Posted for Police and Firefighting Training

SPEA grants credit for graduates of the Indianapolis Fire Department Training academies and graduates of five certified Indiana police training academy.  Qualified firefighters receive 9 hours for designated SPEA courses and qualified law enforcement academy graduates receive 12 hours for designated courses.  This credit is awarded by written notification from SPEA to Admissions. The individual must either (1) be currently enrolled or (2) applied and accepted for admission.  The credit is treated as transfer credit and becomes “official” once the student completes one additional IUPUI course. Individuals who believe they qualify should be directed to the Student Services office in SPEA. Recipients of this firefighter and law enforcement credit should be directly admitted to SPEA when they apply for the credit.

Sex Offenders Screening Policy for Students/Applicants
Indianapolis applicants should be aware that criminal convictions may result in ineligibility for participation in certain courses/activities within the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Questions regarding school policy on such matters should be addressed to the appropriate program director or the Director of Student Services.