Direct Admissions FAQs

TN Direct Admissions provides personalized letters from Governor Bill Lee to Tennessee high school graduates offering proactive acceptance and financial aid estimates at participating Tennessee technical schools, colleges, and universities without requiring a traditional long-form application or application fee. To receive a TN Direct Admissions letter, a student must first complete the TN Promise application, but Direct Admissions is not just for students who plan to use TN Promise at a community of technical college. They can be admitted to any of more than 60 participating Tennessee colleges and universities based on their academic achievement.

Following the Class of 2026 pilot study that sent personalized admission letters from Governor Bill Lee to more than 45,000 high school seniors in the Class of 2026 at 255 randomly selected high schools, TN Direct Admissions is expanding for the Class of 2027 to all public, private, and home school seniors across the state.

The list of participating colleges and universities can be found at this link: https://www.collegefortn.org/direct-admissions-2/direct-admissions-participating-institutions-2/

Seniors will receive letters indicating not only which colleges have accepted them but also estimates of what state and institutional aid is available to them based on their grades, test scores, or other criteria.

Absolutely. In Tennessee, when we say “college,” that includes universities, colleges, and the 23 Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology (TCATs) across the state, which are Tennessee’s public trade or technical schools. William R. Moore College of Technology in Memphis is also participating.

First, we strongly encourage you to talk it over with a parent, guardian, or another trusted advisor and discuss which choice makes the most sense for your future. You should research the colleges listed on your letter and what skills and abilities could be gained from the programs they offer. When you are ready to choose, use the QR code on your letter to view your personalized list of colleges. A link to your Direct Admissions offers will also appear in your TSAC Student Portal. You can claim a spot at the colleges you want to attend, answer a few easy questions, and you are finished.

The colleges selected will send an official letter confirming admission and laying out clear next steps to lead you all the way through to your first day of classes.

No, the purpose of Direct Admissions is to streamline your path to education and training after high school. No application. No application fee. Just claim your spot. Colleges may have a separate set of enrollment questions that they ask you to answer. This is not an application, just an additional set of questions to complete your file.

All Direct Admissions offers are contingent upon graduation from an approved high school with a Traditional High School Diploma. Some admission or financial aid offers, especially at four-year colleges, may require you to graduate with a certain GPA or other eligibility requirements. That’s why we encourage you to stay in contact with your school counselor or college and career advisor at your high school.

No, you will be directly admitted to the college itself, not individual majors or programs. Some majors or academic programs, like nursing or other medical fields, may have additional requirements. You should let your colleges know as soon as you know what you want to study, so you can work together on a plan to get headed in the right direction.

This will happen, but you have a couple of options:

1. Copies of letters are being mailed to public and private high school counselors. Students can access their list through the QR code on these copies, just as they would on the original.
2. All students will also be able to access their personalized list of colleges and financial aid estimates on their TN Direct Admissions enrollment page by logging in to their TSAC Student Portal and clicking on the link available there. The link will take the student to the same place that the QR code on the original letter would have.

The deadline to claim your spot is June 1.

YES. Missing the Direct Admissions deadline doesn’t necessarily mean you have lost the opportunity. You can still apply by visiting the college’s website and completing the standard application process. Each college is different, so check each college’s deadlines for applications, financial aid, housing, orientation, and enrollment steps.

While you are admitted to ALL colleges on your list, you may only select up to two TCATs, two CCs, and five 4-year colleges on the Direct Admissions Enrollment Form.

We are unable to make changes to your college selections once you have submitted the form. Please review your form carefully before submitting. However, you can still apply to any college you are interested in by completing their traditional application process directly.

Direct Admissions letters will list participating colleges to which you have been accepted based on the GPA and ACT scores we had on file at the time. Just because a college isn’t listed in your letter does not mean you are ineligible. Apply through their traditional application.

Absolutely. After receiving the Governor’s letter, you can actually “opt out” by not opting in. You won’t receive official confirmation of your direct admission from a college unless you claim your spot. Even if you use the QR code to explore your options and all the information on your dashboard, you will not be in the program if you don’t claim your spot.

Tennessee Promise applicants who have already been accepted to participating colleges will still get Direct Admissions letters. Direct Admissions will not negatively affect a student’s existing acceptance or admission to any college.

Encourage them to apply now. There may be very good reasons to go ahead and apply. We always recommend acting on a student’s interest when it’s fresh.

THEC will only share student information with entities with which it currently has an approved data sharing agreement compliant with applicable state and federal law and policy. Every public high school in the state should already have such a data sharing agreement in effect to access the FAST system. To participate in Direct Admissions, students will be required to consent to being contacted by THEC and partner institutions, and to data sharing between them.

Only Tennessee residents who are eligible for state financial aid and in-state tuition will receive Direct Admissions letters.

Only Tennessee residents who are eligible for state financial aid and in-state tuition will receive Direct Admissions letters.