Undergraduate Admissions

To be considered for admission to ACM, applicants must have (or will have earned) a high school diploma, or its equivalent by the time of enrollment into the program. A phone or virtual meeting with an ACM admissions team member will be required to gather additional information from applicants.

Undergraduate ACM candidates submit their applications through the Common App*, a U.S-based platform that allows students to apply to multiple universities simultaneously. Once an application is submitted, an ACM Admissions team member will reach out to the applicant to schedule a brief online introductory meeting to gather more information and to answer any questions about ACM or the application process.

* Beginning Summer 2026, ACM will no longer accept Common App applications from students requesting application fee waivers via school counselors.

DEADLINES

ACM offers admission to its undergraduate program for students to begin in both the spring and fall semesters. The spring semester begins late January, and the fall semester begins late August.

Spring 2027 Admission

September 30, 2026

Priority Decision*

November 4, 2026

Regular Decision

Fall 2027 Admission

January 6, 2027

Priority Decision*

May 5, 2027

Regular Decision

May 26, 2027

Late Admission**

*Priority Decision applicants receive priority financial aid consideration. There is no obligation to commit to ACM if applying to this review round.

**Applicants applying after the Regular Decision deadline will be required to submit their enrollment deposit in a shorter timeframe and must expedite their French Student visa. We accept EU/Dual-Citizenship and Military passport holders until July 1st.

REQUIREMENTS

Admission to the ACM bachelor’s program is based on a review of the following items:

Common App application form
High School transcript or equivalent
College or university transcript (if applicable)
Personal essay
Extracurricular activities/Resume
Application fee
Introductory Meeting
One letter of recommendation
Proof of English Language proficiency (if applicable)

TRANSCRIPTS

Students will be required to provide an official transcript electronically to admissions@acmfrance.org if not submitted during the application. Students may also mail a hard copy to the address listed below. Students may provide an unofficial transcript during their application which ACM will use to review their application, however, acceptance is conditional upon receiving the official hard or electronic copy. If the student is currently enrolled in a high school or secondary institution, ACM requires that the student send a final official transcript after they graduate with completed courses and graduation date listed.

Degrees Earned Outside of the United States:
Students who earned a degree from an institution outside the United States may be required to submit an official course-by-course transcript evaluation (also called a foreign credential evaluation) as part of their application. Students can choose to submit a course-by-course evaluation from one of the following evaluation services.

Official course-by-course transcript evaluations can be emailed to admissions@acmfrance.org or mailed to:

The American College of the Mediterranean
Attn: ACM Admissions
409 Camino del Rio South
Suite #200
San Diego, CA 92108

TEST SCORES

ACM does not require ACT/SAT scores for admittance. However, students may share their official ACT and/or SAT score with ACM for additional consideration.

ACT scores – ACM’s code is 7925
SAT scores – ACM’s code is 7611

PERSONAL ESSAY

During the online application, students are required to submit a personal statement responding to the following prompt:

Please describe why you are applying to The American College of the Mediterranean and why you would like to study in France. ACM encourages candidates to share their academic history, goals and any relevant international experience or heritage connections to the region.

EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

As part of the online application, applicants are asked to provide a resume or list of any extracurricular activities that they have participated in during their high school career. This includes professional, athletic, artistic, individual/team, volunteer, religious, academic, or other types of activities (be creative!):

Activity type
Organization Name
Position/Leadership description
Years of participation
Timing of participation (during the school year, during school break, all year)
Hours spent per week
Weeks spent per year
What you accomplished and any recognition you received
Whether or not you intend to participate in a similar activity at ACM

LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION

One letter of recommendation must be submitted as part of the application. This may be submitted during your application or via email to admissions@acmfrance.org. These recommendations can be done by a teacher, professor, advisor, supervisor, employer, or someone who can speak to the applicant’s strengths as a student and a person. Letters must be emailed by the individual writing the recommendation if not on an official letterhead.

NOTE: Letters of recommendations are waived for IAU alumni.

PROOF OF ENGLISH PROFICIENCY

Applicants must provide proof of English level proficiency if their native language is not English, unless they have been attending an English-speaking school/university for at least 3 years.

Applicants may submit an official TOEFL score, IELTS, or Duolingo English language proficiency exam results.

TOEFL score requirements: 85 or higher
IELTS Academic score requirements: minimum 6.5
Duolingo score requirements: 120 or higher.

This requirement may be waived or requested by ACM’s U.S. Office of Admissions under certain circumstances.

APPLICATION FEE

The fee to apply to ACM is $50 USD for domestic and international students.

*ACM does not waive application fees unless applicants are IAU alumni.

INTRODUCTORY MEETING

The introductory meeting’s purpose is to help prospective students learn more about ACM, our academic programs, student life, and the admissions process. It is also an opportunity for us to get to know our applicants, discuss academic and professional goals, and explore how ACM may fit into their future plans. Attendees are encouraged to ask questions and engage in conversation as they learn more about the opportunities available through an ACM education.

ENROLLMENT

A non-refundable comittment fee of $500 is due within three weeks of acceptance to secure enrollment into the program. Applicants applying on or after the regular decision deadline will be required to submit the committment fee within one week of acceptance.

Fees can be submitted via check (for U.S. Citizens only) to our U.S. Office of Admissions or through the secure credit card authorization form on our online payment portal.

MEET WITH US

Interested in learing more?

We would love to meet with you to learn about your education goals and to answer any questions about ACM.

Greg Grassi

Director of Admissions

Jonathan Belk

Assistant Director of Admissions

Kayla Fredericks

Admissions Specialist

The American College of the Mediterranean (ACM) welcomes students from all backgrounds and identities and encourages them to fully engage in the rich and complicated history of the Mediterranean. The Admissions Committee appreciates maturity, independence, openness to difference, curiosity, and resilience.

ACM admits students of any race, color, national origin, and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. ACM does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or genetic information in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and other school-administered programs.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email admissions@acmfrance.org or call 800.221.2051.