Special Students  

Students enroll at UW-La Crosse for a variety of reasons. Students desiring to audit or take selected courses for credit, but who do not expect to earn a degree at this university, may be enrolled as special nondegree students.

You may be a special nondegree student if you are:

• a student at another university looking to enroll at UW-La Crosse for the summer or winter session, and planning to return to your home university;
• an individual looking to take classes toward a graduate program for which you need to complete additional prerequisites; or
• a high school student looking to take college courses, also called the Youth Options program.

Students may later be admitted as an undergraduate degree-seeking student provided they submit complete transcripts of previous work and meet admission requirements. Courses completed as a special nondegree student at UW-La Crosse will then be evaluated for credit.

Special nondegree students apply using the online UW System application. Select "nondegree/special" when applying.  

*Please note: If you are a special nondegree student, you are not eligible to receive financial aid.*

High School Special Students and Youth Options

There are two ways to study at UW-La Crosse while still in high school. High school special students may have greater flexibility in course selection, but these students are required to pay for courses on their own. Youth Options students must have approval from the school district for specific courses, and the fees for the courses are typically paid by the school district. Admission of high school students who wish to pursue university course work does not guarantee that they will be able to register for a specifically approved course. All candidates must complete appropriate preparatory high school course work for college courses.

High school juniors and seniors may apply for the Youth Options program. High school seniors must rank in the upper 25% of their high school class or achieve a composite score of 26 or greater on the ACT exam. High school juniors must rank in the upper 10% of their high school class.

High school sophomores can apply as special students, and must rank in the upper 10 percent of their high school class. A personal interview may be required of sophomore candidates.

To apply under the Youth Options program or as a high school special student:

• Apply online as a nondegree/special student using the UW System application. An application fee is not required.
• Obtain and complete a High School/UW-La Crosse Enrollment and Youth Options Program sheet. Have your school counselor approve and sign it. Submit to the Admissions Office, Cleary Center, 1725 State St., La Crosse, WI, 54601.
• Submit an official high school transcript, sent directly from your high school, to the Admissions Office.
• Submit ACT or SAT scores, if applicable.

Please note the following guidelines about enrolling at UW-La Crosse as a high school student:

• The University will enforce course prerequisites and placement test requirements. For placement in English and mathematics courses, ACT or SAT scores and the Wisconsin Regional Placement Test scores are used. For placement into foreign language, the Wisconsin Regional Placement test is used.
• All courses taken will be recorded as university credit and will become part of the student’s permanent record.
• The student is responsible for tuition, fees, books, and supplies if the school district does not pay them.
• Youth Options students are not required to submit a $100 registration deposit at the time of registration. UW-La Crosse will prepare an invoice for costs of tuition, segregated fees, and special course fees after the fourth week of classes.  Payment is to be made by the school district after the invoice is received. Other high school special students will be required to submit a $100 registration deposit at the time of registration.
• High school students will be sent a registration letter with an invitation to visit the UW-La Crosse Records and Registration office and meet with a staff member to officially register for classes.
• As required by law, the University will notify the school board of the courses Youth Options students are enrolled in within 30 days after the beginning of classes.
• All institutional policies apply to Youth Options students and other high school students engaged in study at UW-La Crosse.

Additional questions about the Youth Options program should be directed to Stefanie Huber (shuber@uwlax.edu) in the Admissions Office.