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GSSE Application

New Application Flow for 2026: 

  1. All students will complete the 2027 Governor’s School Unified Application. Students interested in applying for GSSE should indicate that in the application.
  2. After submitting the 2027 Governor’s School Unified Application and selecting interest in applying for GSSE, students will receive an email with a specific link to complete the 2027 Governor’s School for the Sciences and Engineering Supplemental Form where they will complete 2 essay questions and provide contact information for 2 teachers for Letters of Recommendation and their school counselor contact information.
  3. Within 72 hours of submitting the 2027 Governor’s School for the Sceinces and Engineering Supplemental form, students should receive an email confirming receipt and processing of their application. They will also receive instructions for accessing the Go Vols Portal to track the status of their application.
  4. Within the same 72 hours, teachers and counselors will receive an email with student-specific links to the Letter of Recommendation Form or Counselor Information and Verification Form.

 

Parent Verification form is no longer a separate requirement for the GSSE Application.

High School Counselor Distribution List: 

  • Create a slate.org account to get our communication emails regarding our program application updates and deadlines!

Student Prerequisites:

  • Possess excellent academic records and be able to demonstrate advanced critical thinking and analysis.
  • Must have completed at least one laboratory science course for high school credit (e.g., biology, chemistry, or physics) and one year of Algebra.
  • Have a GPA of 3.5 or higher.
  • Must be a rising Tennessee high school junior or senior (current sophomore or junior).

Students interested in applying will now begin with the Unified Application. By selecting their intent to apply to the Governor’s School for the Sciences and Engineering (GSSE), they will then receive instructions on how to complete the GSSE-specific application.

Click here to access the TN Governor’s School Unified Application

After completing Step 1 of the Unified Application, students will receive an email with instructions to complete the GSSE Supplemental Form. Students will be required to provide:

  • Two teacher recommendations

    • Science, Math, or STEM Teachers are preferred

    • We recommend students identify and notify teachers early to allow time for completion.

  • School Counselor information

    • Counselors will receive the Counselor Verification and Information Form once the student submits their application.

  • Student personal information

  • Parent/Legal Guardian contact information

  • Responses to two short essay prompts

Each applicant must designate two teachers to provide confidential recommendations for their GSSE application.  Teachers will receive an email with student specific links to support their GSSE Application.

Important note: GSSE will not retrieve any other Letters of Recommendation submitted to any other platform or for any other Governor’s School. 

Instead of beginning the application with a Counselor Nomination, students will now identify their school counselor within the supplemental form.  Counselors

will receive an email with student specific links to support their GSSE Application.

Important note: GSSE will not retrieve any other transcripts or forms submitted to any other platform or for any other Governor’s School. 

 

The flagship campus of the University of Tennessee System and partner in the Tennessee Transfer Pathway.