Undergraduate Admissions

Application Requirements for Undergraduate Students

Congratulations on your interest in joining Pitt SCI! Our dynamic combination of leading-edge coursework and outside of the classroom opportunities will prepare you for an exciting career in the computing and information professions.

Admission guidelines are available in the University Catalog. Navigate to either the most recent catalog publication or, if transferring from another school within the University, to the year you were admitted to the University, then to the SCI section of the catalog.

First year students

SCI is a four-year undergraduate school, admitting its first-year students through Pitt's Office of Admissions and Financial Aid (OAFA) website. Applicants interested in beginning their studies at SCI as a first-year, non-transfer student should refer to OAFA's website for application prep checklists, access to the application, deadlines, etc.

International students

Applicants are required to submit original or certified, official secondary school records; literal translations of your records if they are not in English; and an official credential evaluation of all international documents (transcripts, marksheets, certificates, examination results, etc.) from an approved evaluator. See details on the OAFA webpage for International Transcript Evaluation. The application process should be started 9 to 12 months in advance of the intended enrollment date.

An applicant whose native language is not English must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and submit official test results.

For more information on international student applications, including TOEFL requirements and exceptions, refer to OAFA’s international student admissions webpage.

External transfer students

Students at other institutions who wish to apply for admission as transfer students to the School of Computing and Information should submit a Transfer Application and supporting materials to the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid.

Please note applicants’ grades must be posted for the courses required for admission for the application to be considered complete.

Incomplete applications, where grades are not posted for admissions pre-requisite classes by the stated final deadline, in-progress courses, and other courses lacking grades as they appear in the application materials, will be sent application rejection notices during the standard notification timeframe.

Internal or Regional transfer students

Students in Pitt’s undergraduate schools or regional campuses at the University should initiate the process of transferring into an SCI program by submitting an Undergraduate Academic Program / Plan Add / Change form with their current campus’s Records Office or other administrative center. Students currently on inactive status in the school of last registration must first be reinstated in that school before the transfer process can be completed.

Note: All credits and previously approved exemptions to academic requirements will be re-evaluated by SCI. In some instances, this may mean that not all transfer credits or previously approved exemptions or waivers will be accepted or applied toward a student’s SCI career. All credits will be subject to the transfer credit policies listed in this catalog.

Dual Degrees

Students in Pitt’s undergraduate schools may pursue more than one undergraduate degree within the University simultaneously. Students wishing to apply for a dual degree with SCI should confer with their academic advisor. When ready to apply, they should initiate the process by submitting an Undergraduate Academic Program / Plan Add / Change form with their current school’s Records Office or other administrative center.

Second-degree Pitt

Students who have already earned an undergraduate degree at the University of Pittsburgh with a minimum GPA of 2.75 and who are returning to complete a second degree in a major offered through SCI will be considered for admission.

Students who fall into this category should apply directly to the School of Computing and Information. Applicants should note the following:

Course work for the second degree will continue to be recorded on the original University of Pittsburgh undergraduate transcript
All appropriate course work from the first degree will apply to the second degree
The cumulative GPA and credit total will be based on all credits from the first degree and any new course work completed that applies to the second degree
Students must earn a minimum of 30 new credits

Second-degree, non-Pitt

Students who completed a degree at another institution should submit a Transfer Application and supporting materials to the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid.

Post-baccalaureate and Guest students

Students who have completed an undergraduate degree and wish to take additional undergraduate courses on a non-degree-seeking basis (post-baccalaureate) or students enrolled in an undergraduate degree program at another university who plan to take courses for credit at the University of Pittsburgh with the intention of transferring those courses back to their home institution (guest students) should apply directly to the College of General Studies (CGS). Eligibility and application instructions are available on the CGS website.

Non-degree-seeking status at CGS is not encouraged for students interested in later applying for internal transfer to SCI. Instead, these students should apply directly to SCI as first-year students through the OAFA website.

Readmission

Students who previously attended the University of Pittsburgh before attending another institution and who wish to return to the University are considered transfer students and must reapply following the guidelines for transfer students. Former students who have enrolled in other institutions may apply for readmission with advanced standing. Such students should submit a Transfer Application and supporting materials to the University’s Office of Admissions and Financial Aid.

For more details regarding the different definitions and regulations for readmitted and reinstated students, see the Readmission and Reinstatement section of the SCI Catalog page.

Reinstatement

Students who have left the University for one calendar year or more (whether of their own volition or as a result of a suspension), who did not complete work at another institution, and who wish to continue their studies must apply for reinstatement through the school.

For more details regarding the different definitions and regulations for readmitted and reinstated students, see the Readmission and Reinstatement section of the SCI Catalog.

Transfer and Second Degree Admissions Requirements

To be considered for admission, transfer* and second Pitt bachelor’s degree applicants must:

Complete at least 24 credits with a GPA of at least
- 2.75 (Pittsburgh campus) or
- 3.00 (Regional campuses, second Pitt bachelor’s, and external transfers)
Finish the equivalent of the first-year SCI Curriculum with grades of “C” or better in each course. The first-year SCI curriculum must minimally include the SCI quantitative mathematics and statistics requirements, programming, and introductory composition. Completion of CMPINF 0010: Big Ideas in Computing and Information course is strongly recommended for Pittsburgh campus internal transfer applicants.
Sample courses of study within SCI can be found within the Catalog pages for individual majors offered within the school.

Please note that these GPA requirements are for consideration only. Individual undergraduate programs reserve the right to close admission to a major once capacity has been reached. Applicants’ grades must be posted for the courses required for admission in order for the application to be considered complete.

Incomplete applications, where grades are not posted for admissions pre-requisite classes by the stated final deadline, in-progress courses, and other courses lacking grades as they appear in the application materials, will be sent application rejection notices during the standard notification timeframe.

*Pittsburgh and regional campus (i.e., internal) transfer applicants should note that the criteria listed above applies only to students admitted to the University of Pittsburgh in Fall 2019 or later. Internal transfer applicants admitted prior to Fall 2019 must be admissible directly to a major (major eligibility requirements) and meet the admissions criteria outlined in the Catalog published in their University admit term in order to be considered for admission to SCI (see the Archived Catalogs).

Deadlines

Applications and all required documents must be submitted by the specified dates. Applications will not be reviewed if all documents have not been received by the deadline.

First Year Domestic Students

Fall term: Rolling admissions
No Spring or Summer entry

First Year International Students

Fall term: April 1 application deadline
No Spring or Summer entry

Transfer Students

Early Deadline

(All transfer, reinstatement, and second bachelor's applicants)

Fall term: March 1 application deadline | Mid-March review period

Final Deadline - Domestic and Internal International Students

(All domestic internal and external transfer, reinstatement, and second bachelor’s applicants. International students applying for transfer within the University may follow these deadlines.)

Fall term: June 15 application deadline | Late June review period
Spring term: October 1 application deadline | Mid-October review period
Summer term: February 1 application deadline | Mid-February review period

Final Deadline – International Students

(All international external transfer, reinstatement, and second bachelor’s applicants.)

Fall term: May 1 application deadline | Late May review period
Spring term: October 1 application deadline | Mid-October review period
Summer term: February 1 application deadline | Mid-February review period