No student shall be denied admission to the University by reason of age, sex, nationality, religious belief, political affiliation, socio-economic status, conviction, or ideology.

Graduates of duly recognized high schools may admitted as freshmen into the University on the following bases: (a) their performance in the USM College Entrance Examination (USMICEE); (b) their weighted average in senior high school; and, (c) their compliance with other requirements prescribed by Colleges concerned and/or the University.

Admitted students must not have enrolled in any academic college subject(s) prior to their enrolment as beginning freshmen; otherwise, they shall be classified as transferees.

Students enrolled in vocational courses or any other course(s) not leading to a degree program shall be admitted as beginning freshmen.

Unless otherwise provided, no beginning freshman students shall be admitted for enrollment during the second semester or summer term.

Students from recognized institutions of high learning may be admitted as transferees into the University of the following bases: (a) their performance in the USM College Entrance Examination (USMICEE); (b) their grade weighted average (GPA) in all the courses taken outside the University; and (c) their compliance with other entrance requirements prescribed by the colleges concerned and/or the University.

Transfer students shall be admitted on probation basis until such time when they have validated or repeated all subjects taken outside the University which are required for their courses; Provided, that their admission shall be subject to the availability of slots after all regular students of the University shall have already been admitted.

Only students who have enrolled in any course leading to degree program and who must not have any outstanding failure  in any academic or non-academic subject, including ROTC or its equivalent, shall be admitted as transferees; Provided, that the Official Transcripts of Records (ORT) of transfer students shall be submitted prior to their admission for the following semester; otherwise, their further enrolment in the University will not be allowed.

Transferees from other SUC (State Universities and Colleges) institutions shall be admitted and treated as regular students, in accordance with existing policies of the University.

Rejoining students (those not enrolled during the preceding semester) who secured clearance from the University must reapply for admission at the Office of the Admission and Records; Provided, the former students who have attended another institution since attending the University shall be required to qualify on the same basis as new transfer student.

An applicant who has already earned a baccalaureate degree from the University or from other recognized institutions of higher learning may be admitted without the necessity of qualifying in the USM College Entrance Examination (USMICEE); Provided, that he meets all other requirements prescribed by the college in which he intends to enroll.

Government employees seeking admission to the University shall be required to meet the conditions prescribed for enrollment by the college concerned and to submit the following documents: (a) Permit to study signed by the Head of the agency or his authorized representative; and (b) Original copy of the Official Transcript of Records (OTR) of the applicant.

Students coming from foreign countries maybe admitted to the University, subject to availability of slots; Provided, that they shall be required to meet all the entrance requirements prescribed for the course applied for; and Provided, further, that their admission shall be limited to special courses only.

Foreign students must meet all the prescribed requirements of the Department of Foreign Affair (DFA) and the Bureau of Immigration and Deportation (BID) and must submit a Certification of Proficiency in English, based on TOEFL scores (for non-native speakers in English).

Entering graduate students shall be required to take the qualifying examination in the master’s degree program or in the doctoral degree program, as the case may be, before they are admitted to any graduate program in the University.

Only Students who have graduated from the baccalaureate level with, at least, an average rating of “2” or its equivalent shall be eligible for admission to the doctoral degree program.

Only students who are holders of a master’s degree with, at least, an average rating of”1.75” or its equivalent shall be eligible for admission to doctoral degree program.

Students whose average ratings are below the entrance requirement may be provisionally admitted to non-degree status; Provided, that after the successful completion of at least 18 academic units with an average rating of “2.0” in the master’s degree program or at least 21 academic units with an average rating of “1.5” in the doctoral degree program, they shall be permanently admitted to the degree status, subject to the approval of the Dean.

Applicants to master’s degree program and doctoral degree program shall be required to have the proper and corresponding undergraduate and graduate academic backgrounds, respectively, to qualify for admission; Provided, that the satisfactory completion of 18 academic units in the former and 21 academic units in the latter shall be required for admission.

Every student shall, upon admission, sign the following pledge: “In consideration of my admission to the University of Southern Mindanao and of the privileges of my admission as student of this institution, I hereby promise and pledge to abide by and comply with all the rules and regulations laid down by competent authorities of the University and of the College in which I am enrolled.”Refusal to take the foregoing pledge or violation of its term shall be sufficient cause for denial of admission or summary dismissal of the student concerned.

To all USM Entrance Exam Passers:

1. Before enrollment, there will be pre-registration to the degree/academic program where your USMCEE score qualifies. Please wait for the online pre-registration schedule.
2. If you did not meet the cut-off score of your preferred degree program, you may consider other programs within the specialization that match your score.
3. We will keep you posted via our USM official facebook page. Please also visit or monitor regularly our website page
   for further information and updates. From time to time, we will be posting updates for your guidance.
   Thank you!

Registration of students shall be only on the regular registration period indicated in the academic calendar; Provided, that this may be extended for grace period of five (5) working days after the last day of the registration schedule, subject to the approval of Vice President for Academic Affairs and upon payment of fine for late registration, as required.

A student shall deemed officially registered in order to receive credit course work when he has paid his tuition and other school fees duly validated by the Admission and Records Office..

Registration of a returning student shall be dependent on previous scholastic standing; Provided, that an admission slip, clearance, and a certified copy of his transcript of records, among other things, shall be required as credentials for the enrollment.

A student shall not be allowed to enroll in more than one course at a time during his stay at the University.

The rules of sequencing of subjects in the curriculum of the course being taken must be observed and followed in enrollment. Enrolling and attendance in a subject without it passing its prerequisite shall earn the student no academic credit on the same.

In meritorious cases, however, a student who has previously enrolled and fully attended a course that is pre-requisite to another may be allowed to enroll and attend in the latter course for credit without having passed or earned credit for the prerequisite course; Provided, that no permission shall be granted on waiver of prerequisites except upon application by the student; and provided, that the application shall be accompanied by a certification from the student’s instructors in the prerequisite course that the student had fully attended said course; and provided, furthermore, that the application shall be accompanied by a certification  from the Director Of  Student Affairs that the students failure to pass or earn credit in the prerequisite course was not due to disciplinary action imposed upon him.

The dean of the college/institute concerned shall authorized to grant the permission on waiver of prerequisite course/subject and shall act through a committee created by the dean, to include the college secretary, among others, to decide on the merit of the application.

The student who is granted permission mentioned in the two preceding sections shall be required to enroll in the prerequisite course simultaneously with the course to which the former is a prerequisite, or immediately in the next semester.

Graduating students shall be allowed to take the prerequisite subject and the higher subject simultaneously upon the approval of the dean and confirmation of the Vice President for the Academic Affairs; Provided, that, if the student should fail in the prerequisite subject, the higher subject shall not be given credit.

Cross enrollment may be allowed; Provided, that this shall be done within the period of registration set forth by the Admission and Records Office.

No student shall be registered in any other college of the University without the permission of the Dean of the colleges on which he is primarily enrolled.

The total number of units of credit for which a student may register in two or more colleges in the University shall not exceed the maximum allowed by the rules on academic load.

No student of another institution shall be admitted to cross-enroll in the University without a written permit from Dean or Registrar of his mother school. The permit shall state the total number of units for which the student is registered and the subjects that he is authorized to cross-register, subject to the availability of slots, in the University.

Students enrolled in any curricular level in the University may be allowed to cross-register in another institution; Provided, that the subjects involved are not offered in the University at the time, must have the same course description and number of units in the institution sought to cross-enroll in, and must not be major course; and Provided, further, that there is an immediate need for the cross-registration to clear out academic deficiencies, such as the case of graduating students.

Cross-enrollment of subjects outside the University shall have the approval of the Dean and authorized by the Admission and Records Office for the subjects involved to be given credits by the University; Provided, that no student shall be allowed to cross-register in more than one school outside the University.

Transfer credits shall be given to courses taken by a student in another recognized institution on the recommendation of the authorized official in the other school concerned, subjects to the approval by the Dean of the college/institute concerned in the University to which credits are transferred and the provisions of existing rules and regulations of the University governing the same.

The University reserves the right to deny admission to a student who seeks to cross-register in the institution.

The entrance requirements for each course in the University shall be as prescribed by the faculty of the college offering the course, subject to the approval of the University Academic Council and confirmation of the Board of Regents.

All applicants of admission must have complete and valid credentials and must meet all the prescribed admission requirements of the University and the course applied for.

Every applicant for admission shall be required to pass a thorough physical, medical, and other health examination, as may be deemed wise, to be conducted by the medical and dental units of the University Hospital. No person found to be with a dangerous or contagious disease shall be admitted to the University.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS FOR ADMISSION/ENROLLMENT

Graduates of high schools duly recognized by the government may be admitted as freshmen into the University, based on the following:

1. Performance in the University of Southern Mindanao College Entrance Examination (USMCEE);
2. Compliance with other requirements prescribed by the colleges concerned and/or the University.

(Note: Students from recognized institutions of higher learning may also be admitted as transferees based on the same criteria mentioned.)

SCHOLARSHIP PRIVILEGES

Qualified applicants can avail of the following scholarships:

• USM-sponsored Scholarships
• Government-funded Scholarships
• Private-funded Scholarships