INITIAL ELIGIBILITY ACADEMIC STANDARDS

The NCAA Eligibility Center verifies the academic and amateur status of all prospective student-athletes who wish to compete in Division I athletics.

College-bound prospects who want to practice, compete and receive athletically related financial aid during their initial year of enrollment need to meet the following requirements:

  1. Graduate from high school.

  2. Complete a minimum of 16 core courses.  10 of the 16 total required core courses must be completed before the start of the seventh semester in high school.  Seven of the 10 courses must be successfully completed in English, math and natural/physical science.

  3. Earn a minimum required grade-point average in core classes. GPA must be at least 2.3 and meet the sliding scale

  4. Earn a qualifying test score on either the ACT or SAT.

  5. Request final amateurism certification from the NCAA Eligibility Center.

Prospects who earn a 2.0 Core GPA and meet the current sliding scale standard (for example, an SAT score of 820 or Sum ACT score of 68), but do not meet the 2.3 Core GPA requirement will be eligible for practice in the first term and receive athletically related financial aid the entire year, but will not be allowed to compete.  Freshman who are academically successful in the first term will earn the ability to continue to practice for the remainder of the year.


To learn more about the initial eligibility standards, refer to:

2023-2024 NCAA Guide for College-Bound Student-Athlete | NCAA Division I Initial Eligibility Brochure | NCAA Division I Initial Eligibility Quick Guide | NCAA Core Course Requirements

Eligibility: Transfer Students

General Rule

Student-athletes interested in transferring to Louisiana State University (LSU) must obtain permission to contact from their current or previous institution's athletics compliance office or director of athletics prior to communicating (e.g., email or telephone calls) with LSU coaches or athletics department personnel.

SEC Two-Year Eligibility Rule

Student-athletes enrolling at an SEC institution must have two or more years of eligibility remaining in order to be eligible for practice, financial aid and/or competition.

SEC Two-Year College Transfer Rule

A non-qualifier who initially enrolls at a two-year college and then transfers to LSU, shall meet the following criteria in order to be eligible for financial aid, practice and/or competition:

  1. Graduate with an Associates Degree;

  2. Satisfactorily complete a minimum of 48 semester hours of transferable degree credit acceptable towards any baccalaureate degree program at LSU , including six-semester hours of transferable English credits, three semester hours of transferable math credit and (if first time enrollment at a collegiate institution was on or after August 1st, 2012) three semester hours of transferable natural/physical science credit;

  3. Achieve a cumulative grade-point-average of at least a 2.00 or (if first full time enrollment at a collegiate institution was on or after August 1st, 2012) achieve a cumulative grade-point-average of at least 2.50;

  4. Attend the two-year college that granted the Associates Degree as a full-time student for at least three semesters (excluding summer terms).

To learn more about transfer requirements:

NCAA One-time Transfer FAQs | NCAA Guide for Two-Year Transfer | NCAA Guide for Four-Year Transfer

Eligibility: International Students

International admission requirements are applied to all students who have international secondary or post-secondary educational credentials, regardless of country of citizenship, immigrant or visa status. Applications from students with both U.S. and international educational credentials may be reviewed according to either or both U.S. and international requirements.

Any transcript or documentation used in a language other than English must be sent with an official English translation. The Admissions Division of the Office of Undergraduate Admissions & Student Aid is solely responsible for evaluating and determining the equivalencies of international credentials and grading scales.

English Proficiency Requirement

An applicant whose native language is not English and/or who has been educated outside of the U.S. in a country or province where English is not the only official language must demonstrate proof of English proficiency by submitting either a TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or an IELTS (International English Language Testing Service) score.

The following minimum scores are required for automatic admission:

  • Paper-based TOEFL: 550

  • Computer-based TOEFL: 213

  • Internet-based TOEFL: 79

  • IELTS: 6.5

  • Duolingo: 100

Official TOEFL/IELTS scores are those reported directly to LSU by the respective testing service at the request of the student.

Applicants may be exempt from the TOEFL/IELTS requirement if they have completed one of the following:

  • U.S. high school diploma earned (having attended all four years of high school in the U.S.);

  • A score of 480 on the English/Critical Reading section of the SAT; or 20 on the English section of the ACT;

  • U.S. Transfer requirements (minimum 2.5 overall GPA on 30 or more semester hours above remedial level, including a college-level course in English and in mathematics, or two consecutive English courses, from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university); or

  • Bachelor's degree earned from an accredited U.S. institution

Official transcripts or scores are required showing completion of one of the above before a student can be exempted from the TOEFL/IELTS requirement.

To learn more about the NCAA academic requirements for various countries, click here.

To learn more about NCAA International Student Eligibility, click here.

NCAA Eligibility Center

The NCAA Eligibility Center verifies the academic and amateur status of all prospective student-athletes who wish to compete in Division I athletics. Both academic and athletics certification is required prior to competing for an intercollegiate team. The NCAA requires all transcripts from any school attended ( online, dual enrollment, summer school) as well as official test scores directly from the standardized testing agency (SAT or ACT). When taking a standardized test, a prospective student-athlete can enter the code 9999 and their official SAT or ACT will be sent to NCAA.

For more information or to register, please visit www.eligibilitycenter.org. Registration is required prior to taking any official visit to a college campus.