Texas Southern University Requirements for Admission

What are Texas Southern University's admission requirements? While there are a lot of pieces that go into a college application, you should focus on only a few critical things:

  • GPA requirements
  • Testing requirements, including SAT and ACT requirements
  • Application requirements

In this guide we'll cover what you need to get into Texas Southern University and build a strong application.

School location: Houston, TX


Admissions Rate: 63%

If you want to get in, the first thing to look at is the acceptance rate. This tells you how competitive the school is and how serious their requirements are.

The acceptance rate at Texas Southern University is 63%. For every 100 applicants, 63 are admitted.

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This means the school is moderately selective. The school expects you to meet their requirements for GPA and SAT/ACT scores, but they're more flexible than other schools. If you exceed their requirements, you have an excellent chance of getting in. But if you don't, you might be one of the unlucky minority that gets a rejection letter.


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Texas Southern University GPA Requirements

Many schools specify a minimum GPA requirement, but this is often just the bare minimum to submit an application without immediately getting rejected.

The GPA requirement that really matters is the GPA you need for a real chance of getting in. For this, we look at the school's average GPA for its current students.

Average GPA: 3

The average GPA at Texas Southern University is 3.

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(Most schools use a weighted GPA out of 4.0, though some report an unweighted GPA.

With a GPA of 3, Texas Southern University accepts below-average students. It's OK to be a B-average student, with some A's mixed in. It'd be best to avoid C's and D's, since application readers might doubt whether you can handle the stress of college academics.

If you're currently a junior or senior, your GPA is hard to change in time for college applications. If your GPA is at or below the school average of 3, you'll need a higher SAT or ACT score to compensate. This will help you compete effectively against other applicants who have higher GPAs than you.


SAT and ACT Requirements

Each school has different requirements for standardized testing. Only a few schools require the SAT or ACT, but many consider your scores if you choose to submit them.

You must take either the SAT or ACT to submit an application to Texas Southern University. More importantly, you need to do well to have a strong application.

Texas Southern University SAT Requirements

Many schools say they have no SAT score cutoff, but the truth is that there is a hidden SAT requirement. This is based on the school's average score.

Average SAT: 912

The average SAT score composite at Texas Southern University is a 912 on the 1600 SAT scale.

This score makes Texas Southern University Lightly Competitive for SAT test scores.

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Texas Southern University SAT Score Analysis (New 1600 SAT)

The 25th percentile SAT score is 840, and the 75th percentile SAT score is 990. In other words, a 840 on the SAT places you below average, while a 990 will move you up to above average.

Here's the breakdown of SAT scores by section:

SectionAverage25th Percentile75th Percentile
Math447400490
Reading + Writing466420510
Composite912840990

SAT Score Choice Policy

The Score Choice policy at your school is an important part of your testing strategy.


Texas Southern University ACT Requirements

Just like for the SAT, Texas Southern University likely doesn't have a hard ACT cutoff, but if you score too low, your application will get tossed in the trash.

Average ACT: 17

The average ACT score at Texas Southern University is 17. This score makes Texas Southern University Competitive for ACT scores.

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The 25th percentile ACT score is 15, and the 75th percentile ACT score is 19.

Even though Texas Southern University likely says they have no minimum ACT requirement, if you apply with a 15 or below, you'll have a harder time getting in, unless you have something else impressive in your application.

ACT Score Sending Policy

If you're taking the ACT as opposed to the SAT, you have a huge advantage in how you send scores, and this dramatically affects your testing strategy.

Here it is: when you send ACT scores to colleges, you have absolute control over which tests you send. You could take 10 tests, and only send your highest one. This is unlike the SAT, where many schools require you to send all your tests ever taken.

This means that you have more chances than you think to improve your ACT score. To try to aim for the school's ACT requirement of 17 and above, you should try to take the ACT as many times as you can. When you have the final score that you're happy with, you can then send only that score to all your schools.

ACT Superscore Policy

By and large, most colleges do not superscore the ACT. (Superscore means that the school takes your best section scores from all the test dates you submit, and then combines them into the best possible composite score). Thus, most schools will just take your highest ACT score from a single sitting.

We weren't able to find the school's exact ACT policy, which most likely means that it does not Superscore. Regardless, you can choose your single best ACT score to send in to Texas Southern University, so you should prep until you reach our recommended target ACT score of 17.


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SAT/ACT Writing Section Requirements

Currently, only the ACT has an optional essay section that all students can take. The SAT used to also have an optional Essay section, but since June 2021, this has been discontinued unless you are taking the test as part of school-day testing in a few states. Because of this, no school requires the SAT Essay or ACT Writing section, but some schools do recommend certain students submit their results if they have them.

Texas Southern University considers the SAT Essay/ACT Writing section optional and may not include it as part of their admissions consideration. You don't need to worry too much about Writing for this school, but other schools you're applying to may require or recommend it.



Final Admissions Verdict

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Because this school is moderately selective, strong academic performance will almost guarantee you admission. Scoring a 990 SAT or a 19 ACT or above will nearly guarantee you admission. Because the school admits 63% of all applicants, being far above average raises the admission rate for you to nearly 100%.

If you can achieve a high SAT/ACT score, the rest of your application essentially doesn't matter. You still need to meet the rest of the application requirements, and your GPA shouldn't be too far off from the school average of 3. But you won't need dazzling extracurriculars and breathtaking letters of recommendation to get in. You can get in based on the merits of your score alone.

But if your score is a 840 SAT or a 15 ACT and below, you have a good chance of being one of the unlucky few to be rejected.


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We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools.

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Admissions Calculator

What are your chances of admission at Texas Southern University?
Chances of admission with these scores:

Here's our custom admissions calculator. Plug in your numbers to see what your chances of getting in are.

Pick your test: SAT ACT

SAT Score
Your GPA

Note: Your admission decision relies not only on your GPA and SAT/ACT scores, but also on your coursework difficulty, extracurriculars, letters of recommendation, and personal statements. This tool provides only a simplistic estimate of your chances of admission. Instead of treating this tool as a crystal ball, we recommend you consider the big picture of what your chance means:
  • 80-100%: Safety school: Strong chance of getting in
  • 50-80%: More likely than not getting in
  • 20-50%: Lower but still good chance of getting in
  • 5-20%: Reach school: Unlikely to get in, but still have a shot
  • 0-5%: Hard reach school: Very difficult to get in
We recommend you apply to schools across a range of chances. Applying to some safety schools will guarantee you have a college to go to, while applying to some reach schools will give you a shot at getting into the school at the top of your range.

How would your chances improve with a better score?

Take your current SAT score and add 160 points (or take your ACT score and add 4 points) to the calculator above. See how much your chances improve?

At PrepScholar, we've created the leading online SAT/ACT prep program. We guarantee an improvement of 160 SAT points or 4 ACT points on your score, or your money back.

Here's a summary of why we're so much more effective than other prep programs:

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Application Requirements

Every school requires an application with the bare essentials - high school transcript and GPA, application form, and other core information. Many schools, as explained above, also require SAT and ACT scores, as well as letters of recommendation, application essays, and interviews. We'll cover the exact requirements of Texas Southern University here.

Application Requirements Overview

  • Common Application Not accepted
  • Electronic Application Available
  • Essay or Personal Statement
  • Letters of Recommendation
  • Interview Not required
  • Application Fee $42
  • Fee Waiver Available? Available
  • Other Notes TSI (Texas Success Initiative) Assessment, minimum ACT score of 17/SAT 820

Testing Requirements

  • SAT or ACT Required
  • Scores Due in Office August 15

Coursework Requirements

  • Subject Required Years
  • English
  • Math
  • Science
  • Foreign Language
  • Social Studies
  • History
  • Electives

Deadlines and Early Admissions

  •  
    • Offered? Deadline Notification
  • Regular Admission
    • Yes July 15 August 28
  • Early Action
    • No
  • Early Decision
    • No

Admissions Office Information


Other Schools For You

If you're interested in Texas Southern University, you'll probably be interested in these schools as well. We've divided them into 3 categories depending on how hard they are to get into, relative to Texas Southern University.


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Reach Schools: Harder to Get Into

These schools are have higher average SAT scores than Texas Southern University. If you improve your SAT score, you'll be competitive for these schools.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, NC 1216 23
Hampton University Hampton, VA 1059 22
Kean University Union, NJ 1030 18
California State University Northridge Northridge, CA 1020 19
University of Texas at El Paso El Paso, TX 1008 20
California State University Fullerton Fullerton, CA 990 22
California State University Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA 985 18

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Same Level: Equally Hard to Get Into

If you're competitive for Texas Southern University, these schools will offer you a similar chance of admission.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
Albertus Magnus College New Haven, CT 930 22
Avila University Kansas City, MO 930 21
California State University San Bernardino San Bernardino, CA 900 17
Bennett College Greensboro, NC 900 17
Bethune-Cookman University Daytona Beach, FL 900 16
University of Mount Olive Mount Olive, NC 898 18
Alderson-Broaddus College Philippi, WV 896 21

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Safety Schools: Easier to Get Into

If you're currently competitive for Texas Southern University, you should have no problem getting into these schools. If Texas Southern University is currently out of your reach, you might already be competitive for these schools.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
Pine Manor College Chestnut Hill, MA 870 15
California State University Dominguez Hills Carson, CA 850 21
Paul Quinn College Dallas, TX 840 16
Wiley College Marshall, TX 830 16
Medgar Evers College (City University of New York) Brooklyn, NY 820 14
Albany State University Albany, GA 820 17
Bloomfield College Bloomfield, NJ 629 17

Data on this page is sourced from Peterson's Databases © 2024 (Peterson's LLC. All rights reserved.) as well as additional publicly available sources.


image description
Want to build the best possible college application?

We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League.

We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools.

Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in.


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