The Academic Common Market (ACM) is a tuition-savings program for college students in 15 Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states who want to pursue degrees that are not offered by public institutions in their home state. Students can enroll in out-of-state institutions and pay the institution’s in-state tuition rates for more than 2,200 undergraduate and graduate programs. 

The ACM is not competitive or merit-based, but applicants must meet state residency and college admission requirements.

How Does It Work?

The ACM process begins by applying to the University of Kentucky. Upon acceptance into an ACM eligible major, students will need to contact their state ACM representatives and complete the verfication process. The student's UK Admission Letter can be used as major verification. If additional major verification is needed, please contact residency@uky.edu.

The University of Kentucky will receive the student's eligibility letter from the state representative and the new ACM status will reflect on their account. Students must remain continuously enrolled in an ACM eligible program to receive these benefits.