Admission Policies
Social Security Number To gain access to certain hospitals that serve as clinical sites for all Health Professions Programs, all students must have a social security number (SSN) by February 1 in the year of entry.
Prerequisite Course Work Applicants must complete prerequisite courses at a regionally accredited college or university. Individual programs determine the specific courses and the minimum grade that must be achieved in any course; therefore, program-specific requirements may differ. Pass/fail grades are not acceptable in prerequisite courses unless pre-approved by the specific program. Students are eligible to apply for admission to an associate or baccalaureate program when their academic progress shows reasonable probability that entry-level requirements can be completed before the beginning date of the next entering class. Applicants should read the admission policies and program descriptions in the school and program sections of this bulletin for specific entry-level requirements.
Repeated Courses Applicants whose cumulative grade point average is at least 2.00 on a 4.00 scale and who have repeated courses may petition to have their admission grade point average recalculated. The recalculation will use the most recent grade. This repeat option includes the use of the Indiana University FX option and is applied with the following restrictions: It can be used for a total of no more than 15 credits; the grade will be deleted not more than twice for a given course; each attempt will count toward the 15-credit-hour limit; and a W cannot be used to replace a grade and will not count. If more than 15 credit hours are repeated, the applicant will determine which of the repeated courses are to be deleted. The petition must be attached to the application. The effective date is the beginning of the 1996 fall semester. Any course being used to replace an earlier course grade must be taken in the fall of 1996 or later.
Academic Bankruptcy Applicants whose cumulative grade point average is at least 2.00 on a 4.00 scale may petition the program for up to one consecutive academic year of academic bankruptcy based on compelling nonacademic reasons. The bankrupted terms must be consecutive. Academic bankruptcy is for admission purposes only and in no way affects the university's official grade point average. Course work completed in a semester that has been bankrupted for admission purposes cannot be used for the fulfillment of program prerequisites or counted as credit hours toward the degree. Request for academic bankruptcy must be submitted at time of application.
Fresh Start Applicants whose cumulative grade point average is at least 2.00 on a 4.00 scale may petition the program for Fresh Start (forgiveness) based on compelling nonacademic reasons. This forgiveness will eliminate, for the purpose of calculating program specific admission grade point average(s), all courses and grades earned by the applicant during the requested period. The forgiveness period begins with the applicant's first academic enrollment period (at any college or university) and ends after the academic term designated by the applicant. Course work completed in a semester that has been forgiven for admission purposes cannot be used for the fulfillment of program prerequisites or counted as credit hours toward the degree. The request must be submitted at the time of application and must include the beginning and ending dates of the forgiveness period.
To invoke this policy, the student must meet the following three conditions:
- Including all course work taken during the requested academic forgiveness period, applicants must have at least a 2.00 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.00 scale).
- After the designated forgiveness period, applicants must complete the following minimum number of graded course hours based on the degree level of their program of interest - Bachelor's Degree - 50 credit hours of graded course work or Associate Degree* - 12 credit hours of graded course work.
- Meet all other program-specific admission requirements.
Applicants may include in-progress course work at the time of the specific program’s application deadline toward the minimum number of graded course work required after the designated forgiveness period.
*Applicants to the Radiography Program must complete at least one math/science course as part of the 12 credit hours of graded course work completed after the academic forgiveness period.
NOTE: Fresh Start will not be granted for professional Radiologic Sciences courses for those applying to the Medical Imaging Technology Program.
Transfer Credit Acceptance of credit from a regionally accredited college or university for transfer to Indiana University will be determined by the campus admissions office.
While the grades from course work completed at Indiana University and all other colleges and universities are used to calculate the admission grade point average, only grades of C (2.00) or above will be considered for transfer. The university does not accept the transfer of special credit by examination awarded by another college or university. The transfer of credit earned through a regionally accredited junior college or a community college is normally limited to the equivalent of two years of academic work toward a baccalaureate degree and one year of academic work toward an associate degree. The IUSM retains the right to determine the acceptability of transfer credit to meet degree requirements.
Transfer credit is evaluated by the IU Indianapolis campus in regard to the below IU Indianapolis General Education Core.
IU Indianapolis General Education Core The IU Indianapolis General Education Core serves as the foundation for all degree programs at IU Indianapolis. The GE Core includes 30 credit hours (typically 10 courses) that often are taken in the first and second year of college. Transfer students entering IU Indianapolis from another public university in Indiana who have completed the transferable general education core at their home campus will not need to complete the IU Indianapolis general education core. For more information regarding the Indiana College Core, visit the IU Indianapolis General Education Core website.
Credit by Examination Applicants to any of the Health Professions Programs who have received credit by examination from Indiana University in a course that meets a program prerequisite will be viewed as meeting this specified requirement. Application of this policy for math/science prerequisites will be determined at the program level. Any credit by examination hours received by the student must be transferred onto the student's university transcript before it can be considered as meeting a program's admissions prerequisite.
At IU Indianapolis, credit by examination can be earned from the following sources: Advance Placement (AP), the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES), and Indiana University departmental examinations. See IU Indianapolis Admissions for required documents and procedures on receiving credit. Students at Indiana University whose standardized test scores (ACT or SAT) are high enough to have course content waived by a particular academic unit may request the specific program's admissions committee to accept this waiver.
Undistributed Credit Upon admission to any of the Indiana University campuses, students with course work completed previously at accredited colleges or universities are awarded the appropriate transfer credit for this prior education. Transfer credits are either matched to the appropriate course equivalent (e.g., ENG-W 131) on that IU campus or transferred as undistributed credit (e.g., ENG-UN 100). Some campuses have policies that limit the number of credits that students may receive for their prior education.
When transfer credits are designated as 'undistributed,' this simply means that the transfer credit analyst for the specific campus did not find an equivalent course at that IU campus. These credits can still be applied for use towards any of the School's degree programs, but cannot be used to meet the IU Indianapolis General Education Core unless they are designated an undistributed general education credit.
When a student has been given 'undistributed' credits, it is the student's responsibility to contact the School's Administrative Office to determine how these credits will be accepted by the admission committee of the student's program of interest. Such a request should be made in writing (preferably via email) to a member of the administrative staff. The request will then be forwarded to the appropriate admissions committee for consideration.
Undistributed credit can be re-evaluated for equivalency to an IU Indianapolis course number. Please contact the IU Indianapolis Office of Admissions for further details on this process.
Preference to In-State Residents Most spots available each academic year are reserved to applicants who complete the majority of applicable course work at a public college or university in Indiana. Each program's admissions committee may set aside up to 20% of the incoming class for out-of-state residents. Some programs have more restrictive policies. Please see each program’s admission section for more details.
Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Policy Indiana University pledges itself to continue its commitment to the achievement of equal opportunity within the University and throughout American society as a whole. In this regard, Indiana University will recruit, hire, promote, educate, and provide services to persons based upon their individual qualifications. Indiana University prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, color, disability, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status.
As required by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Indiana University does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its educational programs and activities, including employment and admission. Questions specific to Title IX may be referred to the Office for Civil Rights or the University Title IX Coordinator.
Indiana University shall take affirmative action, positive and extraordinary, to overcome the discriminatory effects of traditional policies and procedures with regard to the disabled, minorities, women, and veterans.
Policy Changes When a change to any School or Program criterion is made, it will become effective for applicants who apply for admission during the specific program's application deadline immediately following the announced change.
Any changes in a specific program's requirements will be announced on the School's website and in advising materials made available to students. Changes will also be distributed to university counselors and constituents who work with pre-health professions students state-wide.
Updated: March 2024
