SCGSSM Admissions Overview
SCGSSM admissions, step by step.
Grade, residency and coursework decide who can apply, so start there. Then see what the application includes.
Checked against SCGSSM's published admissions pages on November 5, 2026.
Who can apply
Who can apply.
Confirm every rule before planning anything else.
- Grade
- Only current 10th graders can apply. Ninth graders cannot, and the school does not admit students for senior year only.
- South Carolina residency
- At least one parent or legal guardian must be a South Carolina resident. Military families with orders to move to South Carolina are also eligible.
- Required courses
- By the end of spring of 10th grade, students need 10.5 high school credits, including Geometry, Algebra 1 and Algebra 2, English 1 and 2, and a lab science.
- Finishing the courses
- A student who has not finished the required courses by the end of 10th grade cannot be considered, and summer credit must come through the home high school.
- AP Seminar
- AP Seminar counts for English 2 if the student's high school recognizes it as an English credit.
- Homeschooled students
- Homeschooled students may apply and must meet the same requirements.
- International transcripts
- Students with international transcripts submit a certified English translation and a course-by-course evaluation from a NACES approved company.
- Grades
- The school says unweighted GPAs of 3.3 or higher are most competitive, with no set minimum. The enrolling Class of 2027 averaged 3.93 unweighted.
- 01
Check the Geometry, Algebra 1 and Algebra 2 requirement with your school counselor this fall, not in the spring.
- 02
If your student will finish a required course in summer, ask the school's admissions office in writing before relying on it.
The application
What the application includes.
- Cost to apply
- It is free to apply.
- The portal
- Families create the Student Portal account in the student's name. It is the same account as the application portal.
- Essays
- The application has three short answer essays of 100 to 250 words each.
- Teacher recommendations
- Two teacher recommendations are required, one STEM teacher and one humanities teacher, from teachers who taught the student in spring of 9th grade or in 10th grade.
- Counselor form
- A School Counselor Form is also required. It carries attendance, discipline and academic information, and it is not active until mid-January.
- Honors and awards
- The honors and awards section is not only for academic awards. It can include honor roll, music, sports, leadership, drama, art or writing awards.
- How the school reviews
- Every application is reviewed holistically by faculty, staff and leadership.
- Integrity
- Plagiarism and the use of AI are grounds for application dismissal.