The Academic Fresh Start Law
You don't have to let old grades count against you
Texas residents who apply for admission (or readmission) to Texas public colleges or universities and enroll as undergraduate students may be able to begin a new course of study with a clear academic record.
If you are a Texas resident who has credits for college courses taken 10 or more years prior to the planned enrollment date, the "Academic Fresh Start" law allows you to have those credits ignored for enrollment purposes.
Note: this is an all or nothing option. You are not able to pick and choose which courses to ignore and which courses to count. If you choose the "Academic Fresh Start" option, you will not receive any credit for any courses you took 10 or more years ago.
This means that:
- Courses taken previously cannot be used to fulfill new prerequisite requirements.
- Courses taken previously cannot be counted towards your new degree.
- Courses taken previously will not be counted in your new G.P.A. calculations.
Who determines eligibility for Academic Fresh Start?
The final authority on applying or interpreting Texas Education Code 51.931, Right to an Academic Fresh Start is the Director of Admissions at the college or university where you are planning to enroll.
How does this affect admissions for undergraduates?
Even if you choose the Academic Fresh Start option, you must still complete the usual admissions process, including providing information on all colleges or universities previously attended and providing copies of transcripts from all schools you attended. Nothing in the law prohibits a public university from applying standard admissions requirements.
How does this affect financial aid?
Academic Fresh Start clears only your academic record. When deciding your eligibility for financial aid, the school must still count all prior credits earned.
Students who earned a graduate degree prior to enrolling as an undergraduate under the Academic Fresh Start option will only be eligible for aid available to graduate students.
Contact the Director of Financial Aid at the school you are enrolling in for details on your particular situation.
What effect does this have on you if you enroll under the Academic Fresh Start option, earn an undergraduate degree, and then apply to a postgraduate or professional program at a public university?
Admissions staff for master's, doctoral, or other professional degree programs at public universities shall consider only the grade point average of the applicant established by the course work completed after enrollment under Academic Fresh Start, along with any other criteria the institution uses in evaluating applicants for admission into the postgraduate or professional program.
Credits and G.P.A. earned prior to the student's Academic Fresh Start will not be used to evaluate applicants for admission into the postgraduate or professional program.
Note: nothing in the law prohibits a public university from applying standard admissions requirements.
