This year, many of the students of the class of 2017 were surprised about the college acceptance rates. The college acceptance rates for state universities have gone down this year by quite a surprising amount. While applying for colleges, many students at Steinbrenner High School applied to local universities such as University of Florida, University of Central Florida, Florida State University, University of Florida, and Florida Golf Coast University. Not only have the requirements for being admitted into the universities gone up, but the expectations for incoming freshman are higher than ever.
For example, Florida State University had standards that few applicants were successfully able to meet. The average GPA for admitted students is 3.88, which almost requires the applicant to be at the top of their class and well above average. Your transcript should show mostly A’s and AP and IB courses. The expected average new SAT score is 1280, which is considered a competitive score. The expected average ACT score is 27, making it moderately competitive. On top of these higher expected ACT and SAT scores, Florida State University also requires you to take the written portion of each standardized test. On a larger scale, Florida State University as a whole is said to be a moderately competitive college choice, so having strong academic performance will almost guarantee you admission. Out of the 42,325 students who applied for Florida State University, only 13,000 students were accepted, meaning that Florida State University only accepted 31% of the students that applied this year.
University of Florida had higher expectations this year as well. More than 34,550 students applied for admission this year, while University of Florida only accepted 13,214 students, meaning that University of Florida accepted less than 38% of the students who applied. The average newly admitted student had a GPA of 4.4, a SAT score of 1349, and an ACT score of 30. This year has been the most competitive year to enroll yet in University of Florida history according to their website.
While this year has been one of the most competitive acceptance years in history, it is projected that it will only continue to increase. With the societal standards increasing each year and as the necessity of college comes to an all time high, the acceptance rates will get smaller and smaller, meaning that in the future, it will be almost impossible to get admitted into a state institution.
Kayleigh Haight// Business Manager
