Eligibility and Testing

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the Davidson Young Scholars program, applicants must:

• Be 5 to 16 years old when the application is submitted, and
• Be a U.S. citizen or Permanent Resident of the United States, and
• Having documentation of current testing that meets our Testing Requirements.

The Davidson Young Scholars program does not discriminate based on race, gender, religion, ethnicity, or disability.

See also:

• How to Apply
• Portfolio Requirements

Testing Requirements

The Davidson Institute Review Committee is not able to determine whether a child qualifies for the Young Scholar program without a complete application, as testing information is evaluated in the context of the rest of the application materials.

As part of the application process for the Young Scholar program at least one of the following tests must be submitted. The only tests accepted are those listed below. To be considered, the following testing requirements must be met:

• The official and complete testing report. All individually-administered intelligence and achievement testing reports must include a list of tests administered, the tester’s observations, test scores, explanation of findings, recommendations and the tester’s signature or license number. Talent search and college placement testing reports must include a copy of an official score report (either paper or electronic) from the organization who administered the test. This report must list the student’s testing or member ID number.
• Applicants must be at least four years old when test was administered. Testing completed under the age of four will not be considered.
• Test scores must meet or exceed the qualification criteria listed below.
• The following testing situations require the submission of a portfolio. If you are submitting one of the following types of testing reports, you must also submit a minimum of three (3) work samples as described in our Portfolio Requirements. If you submit one of the following types of testing and do not also submit three (3) work samples, your application will be considered incomplete and won’t be reviewed until it is complete.
  • You are submitting PSAT 8/9, PreACT, SAT, ACT, or Davidson-specific ITBS scores.
    • We have partnered with Northwestern University's Center for Talent Development (CTD) to offer several remote testing options. More information and registration
  • You are submitting a testing report of any kind that is more than four years old, which may include an earlier version of a test we currently accept (ex. a WISC-IV that was administered 5 years ago)