TN Direct Admissions

Program Description: 

Tennessee Direct Admissions is a pilot program that automatically accepts eligible high school seniors into public and private universities in the state as well as state community and technical colleges. The program also provides financial aid information to a subset of students, making this program the first in the country to pair automatic college admission with state-supported and merit-based financial aid. The goal is to help learners clearly see where they have been accepted and how they can afford to enroll, increasing the likelihood they will attend college in the fall. 

For the Class of 2027, all eligible Tennessee Promise applicants will receive a TN Direct Admissions letter from Governor Bill Lee. All letters will include a list of the colleges and technical schools where students have been accepted and the estimated grants and scholarships they are on track to receive at each. Expected to reach roughly 70,000 public, private, and homeschool students statewide, TN Direct Admissions offers personalized admissions and financial aid information without having to apply, or pay application fees, to more than 60 colleges and technical schools across the state. To participate in TN Direct Admissions, a student must complete the TN Promise application and be eligible for state aid.

Impact:

In the pilot year with the Class of 2026, over 45,000 students from 255 randomly selected high schools received early admission letters. About half of those students also received financial aid information. The program is expected to reach all students in the Class of 2027 who complete the TN Promise application—roughly 70,000 public, private, and homeschool students statewide. 

The Tennessee Higher Education Commission has partnered with researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Harvard Graduate School of Education to conduct a controlled study to assess how different types of information affect students’ decisions to enroll in college. The study aims to determine whether providing clear financial aid information alongside direct admission notifications increases the likelihood of college enrollment compared to receiving only direct admission information, or no letter at all. Students in the program will also be eligible to receive additional college-going supports, including proactive outreach to parents and counselors, as well as personalized contact from a direct admission advisor. 

Population Served:

High school seniors in Tennessee

Learn more here.

Page last updated in August 2026