The Florida Board of Governors is scheduled to meet Thursday afternoon, with two significant regulatory changes on the agenda affecting the state’s public university system — one dealing with how baccalaureate degrees are awarded and another reshaping who can enroll in Florida’s most competitive universities.
Admissions rules could change
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The board is expected to take up amendments to Regulation 6.001, General Admissions, which governs how Florida’s state universities accept students.
The proposed updates would reinforce that admissions criteria cannot include preferences based on race, color, national origin, disability, religion, or sex, and would direct each board of trustees to ensure compliance with Section 1001.7415 of Florida Statutes. Universities that fail to comply could face enforcement action under Section 1008.322 of Florida Statutes.
The proposed regulation also includes a new provision affecting undocumented students. Beginning with the 2027-28 academic year, individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States would not be eligible for initial enrollment at any state university that, in each of the two most recent academic years, did not admit all academically qualified applicants — except in cases where applicants were denied for non-academic reasons.
Additional proposed updates would require universities to post admissions criteria, requirements, appeal processes and decision notification procedures on their websites and in university catalogs. Universities could also deny admission to applicants whose past misconduct — on or off campus — is deemed against the best interest of the institution, provided such denial is consistent with state and federal law.
New graduation requirements on the table
The board is also set to consider final approval of an amendment to Regulation 6.017, Criteria for Awarding the Baccalaureate Degree. The proposed change would require courses used to satisfy institution-wide graduation requirements to align with the standards outlined in Section 1007.25(3)(c) of Florida Statutes.
The amendment also clarifies what qualifies as an institution-wide graduation requirement. Under the updated regulation, those requirements would be defined as “designated courses or curricular components that apply uniformly to all students.” The definition would exclude credit hour thresholds, GPA standards, residency requirements, or other graduation conditions not tied to a specific course.
The board first approved a public notice of intent to amend the regulation at its March 26, 2026, meeting, at which time members also approved clarifying language around the definition. The amended regulation was then opened for public comment — and no changes were requested before Thursday’s scheduled vote.