Liberty University Admission Requirements: A Comprehensive Guide

Liberty University, renowned for its commitment to academic excellence, affordability, and accessibility, offers a wide array of undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs both on-campus and online. Understanding the admission requirements is the first step towards joining the Liberty University community. This article provides a detailed overview of these requirements, encompassing GPA, standardized test scores, and other essential criteria.

Academic Foundations: GPA and Transcripts

GPA Expectations

The average GPA at Liberty University is 3.59, indicating that successful applicants typically have a solid academic record. This GPA suggests a high school performance characterized by a mix of A's and B's, with very few C's. While there are no set minimums for acceptance, a strong GPA strengthens your application significantly.

Transcript Requirements

Securing your high school transcripts is a crucial step. Liberty University requires official high school transcripts for undergraduate programs if you are attending college for the first time. For high school students, an admission decision can be made based on preliminary transcripts (grades 9-11). Transfer students can receive an admission decision based on their final high school transcripts.

Final transcripts must reflect all coursework and final grades received for grades 9-12, a graduation date, and an overall GPA. Unofficial transcripts combined with a Transcript Request Form can be used for admission, but official transcripts must be received within 60 days of the admissions decision or before non-attendance drops for the first set of matriculated classes, whichever comes first. An acceptable official college transcript is one that has been issued directly from the institution and is in a sealed envelope.

If official high school transcripts are not received within those 12 credit hours, a hold will be placed on the account, and additional registration will not be permitted until transcripts are received. The High School Self-Certification form can be completed through our online portal or printable form (PDF).

Read also: Liberty University Fees

Standardized Testing: SAT and Alternatives

SAT Score Range

Liberty University's average SAT score ranges from 1050 to 1270. Aiming for a score of 1050 or higher is advisable to increase your chances of admission. A score of 1050 places you around average, while a 1270 moves you up to above average.

Test-Optional Policy

It's essential to check Liberty University's current testing policies, as they may offer test-optional admission based on specific criteria. If standardized tests are not required, focus on highlighting your strengths through other application components like essays, extracurricular activities, and letters of recommendation.

Holistic Review: Beyond Numbers

Acceptance Rate

Liberty University has a high acceptance rate of 99.3%, indicating a nearly open admissions policy. While this suggests a high likelihood of acceptance, it is crucial to present a well-rounded application to demonstrate your potential and suitability for the university.

Additional Factors

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. Every application is reviewed by the admission committee on a case-by-case basis. Other documentation such as reference letters, community service, or leadership verification may also be required by the admission committee on a case-by-case basis.

Admission Essay: Adding Your Voice

One of the most important steps in your admission process to Liberty University is the admission essay. Submitting your college essay is required before you can be admitted to Liberty University, and it’s your opportunity to add your voice to your college application.

Read also: History of Liberty's Flames

Transfer Students: Credit and Requirements

Liberty University offers generous transfer policies that aim to give as much credit as possible to students for accredited courses. We expect you to be in good standing with your previous school when you transfer, but your Liberty University GPA will not be affected by any GPA received at another school. Note: Course equivalencies are generally determined by the dates the military courses were taken.

International Students: Additional Requirements

Applicants whose native language is other than English must submit official scores for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or an approved alternative assessment. You may be required to have your international transcripts reviewed. *International transcripts must be translated into English and include a full course by course evaluation by NACES before submitting.

Program-Specific Requirements

Please note: There may be degree-specific admission requirements for each of our online degree programs. You can find these requirements on each of the individual degree pages. It is important to note that some of our master’s degrees may have residential components such as on-campus intensives or internships. Any program-specific admission requirements can be found on each individual program page. Additional document requirements may also vary per program.

School of Nursing Programs

As an exception to the general criteria for admission, the RN to BSN to MSN programs require a 3.0 or above GPA for admission in good standing. At this time, our School of Nursing programs are limited in certain states. Please view the licensure/certification requirements for your state.

Respiratory Therapy Program

In addition to general criteria for admission, your transcripts must show that you have graduated from a CoARC-accredited associate degree in respiratory therapy.

Military Students

You must request an official military transcript. Note: Course equivalencies are generally determined by the dates the military courses were taken. Unable to find your specific MOS or military training?

LUCOM (College of Osteopathic Medicine) Admission

Minimum Requirements for Admission While most students who matriculate to LUCOM will have a bachelor’s degree or higher, at a minimum, each applicant that matriculates must have completed no less than 75% of the credits needed for a baccalaureate degree from a college or university accredited by an agency recognized by the United States Department of Education. Exception may be granted by the Dean. Students must have obtained not less than a 3.0 GPA overall and 3.0 GPA in sciences to be considered for admission unless an exception for cause is granted by the Dean. Applicants must have a cumulative score of at least 499 on the MCAT to be considered for admissions unless an exception for cause is granted by the Dean. Verified MCAT scores submitted in AACOMAS should be no more than three years old.

The minimum required undergraduate courses for matriculation are:

Biochemistry or Cellular Biology: one semester (3-5 semester hours/6-8 quarter hours). Two semesters of biochemistry or completion of both courses are highly recommended.
Biological Sciences: one year with laboratory (8-10 semester hours/12-15 quarter hours)
English: two courses (6-10 semester hours/8-15 quarter hours)
Inorganic Chemistry: one year with laboratory (8-10 semester hours/12-15 quarter hours)
Organic Chemistry: one year with laboratory (8-10 semester hours/12-15 quarter hours)
Physics: one semester with laboratory (4-5 semester hours/ 6-10 quarter hours), second semester is recommended
Four (4) additional science hours are required (Faculty recommend courses in Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Immunology, Microbiology, or Genetics to enhance the student’s success in medical school)

Recommended courses to prepare for the osteopathic medical curriculum include additional humanities such as literature, philosophy or theology; communication skills such as speech, debate, or drama; additional science courses such as genetics, human anatomy and physiology with lab, immunology, epidemiology, etc. A course in statistics is highly recommended. The applicant should demonstrate a humanistic and service mentality consistent with that of LUCOM as demonstrated by action and involvement in outreach and service events. Preference is given to students from rural and underserved environments that are more likely to advance the mission and goals of the COM, especially those from the Central, Western and Southern regions of Virginia. Each applicant’s personal values should be compatible with the Christian mission and environment of Liberty University. Applicants are required to meet the Technical Standards for admission, continued enrollment and must affirm that they meet the standards. Any falsification or misinformation regarding the ability to meet technical standards is reason for dismissal. Applicants must submit all required paperwork per deadlines.

LUCOM Technical Standards

The requirements to succeed at LUCOM are those necessary to successfully complete the curriculum and to practice osteopathic medicine with full practice rights. Students must be able to function in a variety of learning and clinical settings and quickly, accurately, and consistently learn and process data. LUCOM is committed to making accommodations for students whose qualified disabilities allow them to accomplish a successful career as an osteopathic physician. While reasonable accommodations do occur; the student, however, is required to function with independence and personally demonstrate all the skills described that LUCOM holds as mandatory for the safe and effective practice of osteopathic medicine. The use of a trained intermediary means that a candidate’s judgment must be mediated by someone else’s power of selection and observation and is not a permissible accommodation. While LUCOM is committed to making the accommodations that make a student successful, LUCOM is also committed to patient safety and assuring a safe and effective environment that does not place patients, students, or others at risk. Each technical standard has been chosen from standards osteopathic physicians deem necessary for the safe and effective practice of osteopathic medicine. Applicants who do not meet the technical standards should not apply to LUCOM. Students must consider these requirements at the time of application and must also consider whether or not they can meet these technical standards in the curriculum and in the practice of medicine. Once enrolled, students must maintain their ability to meet these technical standards and to make academic progress and succeed in the curriculum. LUCOM considers the ability to meet these standards essential for the entrance to, continuation in, and graduation from its degree program. If an applicant has a question as to their ability to meet the minimal technical standards listed, the applicant is required to notify the Office of Admissions and Student Services in advance of applying so that reasonable testing may occur. Applicants must identify to the Office of Admissions and Student Services all areas where there is question in meeting these technical standards.

Observation and Visual Integration

Applicants and students must have sufficient visual capabilities to observe laboratory demonstrations, experiments, laboratory exercises, microscopic tissue with the aid of the microscope, and computer-based pictures used in laboratory demonstrations in the basic and clinical sciences. The student must be able to visually and accurately observe the physical signs associated with a patient in order to make a diagnosis and management. The use of a trained intermediary in such cases would compromise performance, as it would be mediated by another individual’s power of selection, observation, skill, and experience. Observation requires the functional use of vision and somatic sensations and is enhanced by the sense of smell and hearing. They must be able to observe a patient accurately at varying distances with the ability to determine size and depth of an object in low light at 0.3 cm, and with the ability to discern non-verbal communication.

Communication

Applicants and students must be able to communicate effectively in English as the curriculum and clinical experiences are offered in English. Students are encouraged to learn other languages for medical communication; however, all curriculum and assessment is given in English. LUCOM requires the functional ability to speak, hear, and observe patients in order to elicit accurate medical information. The student must be able both to describe changes in mood, activity, posture, and other physical characteristics and to perceive nonverbal communication. The student must be able to communicate in English effectively and efficiently in verbal and in written form with the patient and with all members of the health care team in order to successfully complete the curriculum.

Motor Function

Applicants and students must have sufficient motor function to execute movements reasonable required to provide general care and emergency treatment to patients by eliciting information from patients by palpation, percussion, and other diagnostic measures. The student must have sufficient motor function to carry out maneuvers of general and emergency care and osteopathic manipulation. Examples of emergent motor functions required of physicians include, but are not limited to, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, administration of intravenous fluids and intravenous medications, management of an obstructed airway, hemorrhage control, closure by suturing of wounds, obstetrical deliveries and osteopathic manipulative medicine. In addition, the delivery of osteopathic manipulation requires the use of extremities in palpation, positioning, and carrying out maneuvers of manipulation. These actions require fine and gross muscular movements, equilibrium and sensory function, as well as the senses of touch and adequate vision for inspection. Students must be able to perform these maneuvers. Students who have conditions that do not allow physically taxing workloads must consider the long hours of study, the hours required in the classroom and laboratories, the physical strength required in the osteopathic examination and treatment, and to stand and walk for long hours in the clinical setting.

Sensory Skills

Applicants and students of osteopathic medicine must possess an enhanced ability to use their sensory skills. Individuals with disabilities who have significant tactile sensory or proprioceptive disabilities may require a thorough evaluation to determine if they are otherwise qualified, with or without reasonable accommodation. Such individuals may include those with significant previous burns, sensory motor deficits, cicatrix formation and malformations of the upper extremities.

Strength and Mobility

Medical treatments, such as osteopathic manipulative medicine and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, often require upright posture with sufficient upper and lower extremity and overall body strength and mobility. Individuals with disabilities who have significant limitations in these areas may require evaluation to determine if they are otherwise qualified, with or without reasonable accommodation.

Intellectual, Conceptual, Integrative and Qualitative Abilities

Applicants and students must have the ability to concentrate, reason, calculate, analyze and interpret data, measure, synthesize information, and make decisions within areas in which there is a reasonable amount of visual and auditory distraction. They must perform these functions under a time limitation and do so under a reasonable amount of stress as physicians are expected to be able to perform such duties in diverse clinical settings where others may be present and where there is a certain degree of noise. Students must be able to accurately write prescriptions, accurately preform basic mathematical functions, and accurately and quickly read charts with minimal error in areas where there may be distractions. The student must be able to comprehend, memorize, synthesize, and recall a large amount of information without assistance to successfully complete the curriculum. The student must be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand spatial relationships to succeed in school and to administer medical care. The student must be able to gain knowledge through all types of learning materials that the LUCOM curriculum offers and must be able to perform pattern identification, memorization, recall information, and to identify and discriminate important information, to problem solve, and to calculate and make decisions in timed situations and in the presence of noise and distraction. The above intellectual abilities are necessary, as students and graduates will be expected and required to perform pattern identification, immediate recall of memorized material, identification and discrimination to elicit important information, problem solving, and decision-making as to emergent diagnosis and treatment of patients. Students must be able to recall important information for diagnosis and to calculate therapeutic management of emergent conditions. This type of demonstrated intellectual ability must be performed in a rapid and time-efficient manner in order to avoid placing patients in emergent conditions at risk. It is common for emergent situations to occur in the presence of visually distracting and noisy environments. Such emergent situations include, but are not limited to, cardiopulmonary compromise, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, obstetrical and neonatal emergencies, trauma presentations, poisonings and toxic exposures, shock, and hemorrhage.

Behavioral and Social Attributes

Applicants and students must possess the emotional health required for full utilization of his/her intellectual abilities, exercise good judgment, and promptly complete all responsibilities attendant to the diagnosis and care of patients and the development of mature, sensitive and effective professional relationships with patients. Students must be able to function effectively under the high degree of stress and testing required in medical school and in COMLEX national board testing. Students who suffer from serious mood disorders and/or test anxiety should strongly consider if they will meet this technical standard, as it is essential to the success of a physician in being able to practice. Students must possess ability to identify behaviors and attributes in themselves and others, as well as to self-regulate their own behaviors and attitudes, to ensure professional practice and delivery of care. Applicants and students must be able to tolerate physically taxing workloads and adapt to changing environments, display flexibility and learn to function in the face of uncertainties inherent in the clinical problems of many patients. Compassion, integrity, concern for others, interpersonal skills, interest and motivation are all personal qualities that will be assessed during the admissions and educational processes. The emotional health required for effective communication and for professional, mature, sensitive, and compassionate patient/physician or patient/student relationships must be present. Students must have the emotional health to be able to function without the aid of medications that are known to affect intellectual abilities and judgment. The student must have the emotional stability and motivation to deliver patient care and to make emergent decisions at all times. The ability to adapt to changing environments and stressful situations and to display compassion and integrity, while maintaining the necessary intellectual capacity to care for patients is one that is observed during the interview process and throughout the progress in medical school. An ability to demonstrate the emotional health necessary for the delivery of quality and safe medical care is mandatory throughout medical school. LUCOM considers addiction or the participation in substance abuse as a risk for unsafe medical care.

Participation in OMM and Clinical Medicine Laboratory Encounters

Osteopathic physicians utilize touching as part of the osteopathic approach to treatment. As part of the educational process, LUCOM students must be able to tolerate being touched and to touch others of both sexes in order to acquire the skills necessary for palpation and examination. This palpation is performed in a professional and appropriate manner. Stedman’s Medical Dictionary defines “palpation” as examination with the hands and fingers, touching, feeling or perceiving by the sense of touch. Acquiring the skills to palpate and examine patients requires a student to examine partially or completely disrobed patients of both genders and is mandatory for successful completion of the curriculum at LUCOM. In physical diagnosis and osteopathic manipulative medicine laboratory experiences, as well as other clinical laboratories.

Financial Aid and Affordability

As an accredited university, Liberty allows eligible students to use federal and private grants and aid. Make sure you have your FAFSA completed prior to class registration. Use Liberty’s school code (010392). Online undergraduate tuition rates have been frozen for the last 10 years. While many other online colleges have raised tuition, Liberty has been able to keep costs low as a non-profit university.

Application Process

Ready to Apply? Submit your application online or over the phone. We understand the university admission process can seem overwhelming. You can apply online or call a Liberty University admissions counselor at (800) 424-9595 for individualized assistance. Need to know where to send your documents or how to apply to a degree program made for you?

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