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FAQ - High School Classes

What type of classes should I be taking in high school?

The University requires the completion of the following high school courses in order to be considered for admission. A unit is equivalent to the credit for a year of satisfactory work in an accredited secondary school. The two language units must be in the same language and a language offered by the University of Notre Dame.

Students are required to take 16 units during their high school career. This distribution will differ slightly based on the student's intended area of study, but must include the following:

  • 4 units of English
  • 3 units of Mathematics - Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry (4 units preferred)*
  • 2 units of Foreign Language (3-4 units preferred)
  • 2 units of Science (4 units preferred)**
  • 2 units of History/Social Science (3-4 units preferred)

*For students with an intended major within the College of Science, the College of Engineering, the School of Architecture, or certain majors within the College of Arts & Letters (Neuroscience and Behavior, Arts & Letters Pre-Health), 4 units of Mathematics are required, which must include an advanced Mathematics course (Pre-Calculus or Calculus).

**Students with an intended major within the College of Science or the College of Engineering must take a unit of Chemistry. Additionally, the following majors require a unit of Physics:

  • Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics
  • Chemistry
  • Biochemistry
  • Chemistry with Business
  • Chemistry with Computing
  • Mathematics (within the Colleges of Science and Arts & Letters)
  • Physics
  • Physics-in-Medicine
  • All Engineering majors

It is also strongly recommended that students with the following intended majors take a unit of Physics:

  • Architecture
  • Biological Sciences
  • Environmental Sciences
  • Neuroscience and Behavior (within the Colleges of Science and Arts & Letters)
  • Science Preprofessional Studies
  • Arts and Letters Pre-Health
  • Science-Business
  • Science-Computing
  • Science-Education
  • Statistics

Although we require at least 16 academic units for admission, our most competitive applicants will have four units in each major academic area and in the most rigorous level their high school offers. We do include algebra and/or foreign language courses completed during eighth grade in our count of admissions requirements. For example, if you earned credit for one full-year introductory French course as an 8th grader, then completed French II in 9th grade, both credits will be counted.