Students may begin filing their electronic application via CSUMentor or mailing their paper application by October 1, 2004. The priority admission application filing period for fall 2005 is October 1, 2004 through November 30, 2004. Students applying for admission to impacted campuses or majors must submit an application between October 1 and November 30 to be considered for admission.

Who should be called if there are questions about completing or filing the electronic application?

Students may call the CSUMentor technical support toll free line at 1-800-GO-TO-XAP (1-800-468-6927) during 6:30 AM through 5:30 PM Monday through Fridays. Extended service in the evenings and throughout the weekend will be available during the month of November.

How do I find out which campuses are open for admission?

All campuses will be open from October 1, 2004 through November 30, 2004 for the fall term. After November 30th, students and counselors may determine which campuses are open for admission by going to http://www.csumentor.edu/filing_status/. At this site, the students may select their class level (undergraduate or graduate) and term in which they want to apply.

Is it necessary to report the ACT Writing test or writing component of the SAT I test?

The CSU does not require students to complete the writing components of either the SAT I or ACT. These test scores are not used to determine a student's eligibility for admission.

How do students meet the VPA requirement?

Two semesters of approved arts courses from a single VPA discipline in dance, drama/theater, music or visual art is required for applicants for the fall 2005, winter 2005, and spring 2006 terms. Beginning with applicants for fall 2006, students must complete a single year-long approved course from a single discipline.

What is the Early Assessment Program?

The Early Assessment Program (EAP) is the result of collaboration between the California Department of Education (CDE), State Board of Education (SBE), and California State University (CSU). The EAP, developed to align the competencies required of incoming freshmen with the K-12 standards in English-language arts and mathematics, is voluntary is offered at all public California high schools.

The Early Assessment of Readiness for College English portion of the EAP consists of fifteen optional multiple-choice questions and an essay that augments the 11th grade California English-Language Arts Standards Test (ELA CST). The Early Assessment of Readiness for College Mathematics consists of fifteen optional multiple-choice questions that augment the Algebra II and Summative High School Mathematics CSTs. These augmented tests are offered only to high school juniors.

Students who demonstrate proficiency in English and/or mathematics expected by CSU faculty will be exempt from taking CSU's placement tests prior to attending the CSU. Students who do not demonstrate proficiency can work with the high schools while in 12th grade to improve their skills necessary to demonstrate proficiency on CSU's placement tests.

Why should eleventh-grade students take the EAP when many of them will be taking SAT I, SAT II, ACT, AP, and STAR tests?

The EAP is voluntary for eleventh-grade students and adds a minimal amount of time to part 2 of the Grade 11 ELA, Algebra II, and Summative High School Mathematics CSTs. The benefits of participating include the opportunity:

• To earn an exemption from CSU-required English and/or mathematics placement tests.
• To identify the need for additional preparation for college-level courses.
• To adjust senior-year coursework to prepare for college-level courses.
• To avoid having to invest time and money in college remediation courses that do not count toward a baccalaureate degree.

Who should be encouraged to participate in the EAP?

Eleventh-grade students who are considering applying to a CSU campus should be encouraged to participate in the voluntary assessment. Prior to the high school's scheduled CST administration, eleventh-grade students will receive a two-sided page of information about the EAP.

What guidance should counselors provide to students who received a letter explaining the results of their test?

Counselors should advise those students whose results indicate an "exemption" in English and/or math to provide a copy of those results to the CSU campus or campuses where the students will be applying during the application process.

All students who receive a "conditional exempt" on the math CST should be advised to successfully complete an approved 12th Grade Experience during the senior year in order to preserve the conditionally exempt status. Some examples of approved 12th grade experiences in math are: completion of any course like physics or chemistry that had algebra II as a prerequisite, complete an approved on-line math tutorial like ALEKS or PLATO, and successful completion of a mathematics course beyond Algebra II during the senior year.

Students whose results indicate a "non-exemption" in English and/or math should be encouraged to continue to work on their English and/or math skills and to prepare to take the English Placement Test (EPT) and/or the Entry Level Math test no later than the spring of their senior year.