The school is designed for eleventh (11th) and twelfth (12th) grade students from Danville City, Henry County, Martinsville City, and Pittsylvania County school divisions.

[citation needed] Nominations of potential candidates may be received from a variety of sources including students, parents, school personnel, and community leaders.

Multiple criteria will be used to create a pool of applicants from the nominations to insure that a student can not be eliminated by one measure.

The criteria may include such items as grade-point averages, Standards of Learning End-of-Course test results, scores from standardized tests, and successful completion of specific courses in mathematics, science, and technology.

The selection process will utilize percentile rankings on standardized achievement and ability tests, such as the Matrix Analogies Test (MAT); writing samples; unweighted grade-point averages; and teacher recommendations.