How admission works
Special Education uses cohort (secondary) admission: you enter Porter as a pre-special education student, complete a set of prerequisite courses, and then apply to the professional program for a class that starts together. Admission is competitive and space is limited.
Prerequisite courses
Before applying to the professional program, students typically complete the introductory science, math, and program courses with a minimum grade in each and a minimum overall GPA. For Special Education, that prerequisite block includes courses such as EDUC 1000, EDUC 2100, EDUC 2300, EDUC 2500 along with required general-education work. The exact list, grade, and GPA thresholds are published by the program and can change year to year.
If you are transferring in
Transfer students are welcome. Send transcripts for evaluation, use the transfer-course guide, and meet with an adviser before registering so approved credit lands where it should. Transfer applicants to a cohort program apply on the same competitive cycle as continuing students and must have the prerequisite block complete or nearly so.
Questions and next steps
An admissions counselor or a Special Education adviser can walk you through the specifics for your situation. Start with the program page and the application, and see the four-year plan for how the courses sequence.
If you are not admitted the first time
Students who do not meet the GPA or prerequisite bar the first time can usually reapply the next cycle after retaking a weak course or two. The department publishes how many reapplicants are admitted in a typical year; a strong reapplication usually addresses the specific gap (a low grade in a prerequisite, a GPA just under the line) rather than resubmitting unchanged. A pre-professional or general-studies track lets you keep taking gen-ed and elective credit while you reapply, so little time is lost either way.
Common questions
Can I start undeclared and move into Special Education later? Yes for most students; you would follow the same prerequisite or portfolio path as anyone else, just starting the clock later.
Does a minor or double major affect admission? No — admission is based on the criteria above regardless of what else you plan to study, though a heavier combined course load can make the prerequisite timeline tighter.
Where do deadlines and current thresholds live? The program page and your adviser have the current cycle's dates and numbers; this page describes how the process works rather than this year's specific deadline.
Fictional information
UW–Porter Falls is a work of parody. The admission process described here is a parody of how programs like this typically work; the specific thresholds are invented.