Sec. 51.762.  COMMON ADMISSION APPLICATION FORMS.  (a)  The board, with the assistance of high school counselors and an advisory committee composed of representatives of general academic teaching institutions, junior college districts, public state colleges, public technical institutes, and private or independent institutions of higher education, and with the consultation of all institutions of higher education that admit freshman-level students:
(1)  shall adopt by rule:
(A)  a common admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as a freshman student to a general academic teaching institution;
(B)  an electronic common admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as a freshman student to an institution of higher education that admits freshman-level students, other than a general academic teaching institution; and
(C)  if the board determines that adoption of the form would be cost-effective for nursing schools, an electronic common admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as a student to an undergraduate nursing education program at an institution of higher education; and
(2)  may adopt by rule a printed format common admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as a freshman student to an institution of higher education that admits freshman-level students, other than a general academic teaching institution.
(b)  The board, with the assistance of an advisory committee composed of representatives of general academic teaching institutions, junior college districts, public state colleges, and public technical institutes, and with the consultation of all institutions of higher education that admit undergraduate transfer students, may adopt by rule:
(1)  a common admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as an undergraduate transfer student to a general academic teaching institution;
(2)  an electronic or printed format common admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as an undergraduate transfer student to an institution of higher education that admits undergraduate transfer students, other than a general academic teaching institution; and
(3)  if the board determines that adoption of the form would be cost-effective for nursing schools, an electronic common admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as a transfer student to an undergraduate nursing education program at an institution of higher education.
(b-1)  An electronic common admission application form adopted under this section must include a prominent link to the electronic tools or platforms developed by the board under Section 61.09022.
(c)  In addition to information required to determine the residency status of the applicant and information relating to the use of the form at each institution, the board shall include on each application form adopted under this section information that the board considers appropriate.
(d)  The board shall attempt to ensure as much uniformity in the forms adopted under this section as possible, regardless of the category of institution for which the forms are adopted.
(e)  The board shall publicize in both electronic and printed formats the availability of a form adopted under this section.
(f)  The board shall ensure that copies of the freshman common admission application forms and information for the use of the forms are available in electronic format for distribution to the appropriate personnel at each public high school in this state.
(g)  The board shall make a form adopted under this section available to the public electronically by the Internet or other commonly used telecommunications media and may contract with an institution of higher education or other provider to satisfy this requirement.
(h)  An applicant may file, and each institution of higher education shall accept, an application for admission as an entering freshman or undergraduate transfer student that uses the appropriate form adopted under this section.  The form used to apply to a general academic teaching institution may be filed in either electronic or printed format.  An institution of higher education is not prohibited from requiring an applicant to submit additional information within a reasonable time after the institution has received an application using a form adopted under this section.
(i)  In addition to other information considered appropriate by the board, the board by rule shall require each institution to collect information regarding gender, ethnicity, and date of birth as part of the application process and report this information to the board.
(j)  In adopting a form under this section, the board shall ensure that an applicant may indicate on the form the applicant's consent to an institution of higher education to which the applicant submits an application for admission to a particular degree program using the form to, if the institution denies the applicant admission to that degree program, provide the applicant's application to other institutions of higher education that offer the degree program.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 11, Sec. 1, eff. April 25, 1997.
Amended by: 
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 725 (S.B. 502), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2005.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 983 (H.B. 2099), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2013.
Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 946 (S.B. 1813), Sec. 2, eff. June 15, 2017.
Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 713 (H.B. 277), Sec. 1, eff. June 10, 2019.
Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1210 (S.B. 25), Sec. 2, eff. June 14, 2019.
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 378 (H.B. 8), Sec. 11, eff. June 9, 2023.
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1011 (H.B. 2920), Sec. 2, eff. June 18, 2023.