International Student Information

Degree Requirements for International Students

For students holding undergraduate degrees from non-U.S. institutions, we require submission of a professional credential evaluation report. The purpose of this evaluation is to assist our admissions committee in accurately understanding and interpreting a student’s academic credentials. Four-year undergraduate degrees are required.

The report will provide us with the following information:

• A list of all subjects completed at the post-secondary level
• A U.S. semester credit and grade equivalent for each course
• A U.S. grade point average (GPA) on a 4.0 scale (the GPA area on the application can be left blank)
• A designation of the level (upper or lower) of each undergraduate course

To obtain this report, applicants should visit https://www.wes.org/ and follow these instructions to order either a BASIC course-by-course evaluation or an ICAP course-by-course evaluation.

Transcript reviews and evaluations through WES take a minimum of 7-10 business days. Also, document submissions directly from an applicant’s undergraduate institution are required for some countries. Thus, applicants should plan to have all required documents submitted to WES early enough to allow adequate processing time. Be sure to review the list of required documents for your country before submitting. Incomplete submissions will not be evaluated.

An application for admission is not complete until we receive the electronic WES evaluation. The report must be available to us electronically by the application deadline of February 29. No exceptions will be made. You may track the progress of your WES evaluation via the WES website.

International students are required to display English language proficiency during the application process. This can be accomplished by submitting unofficial test scores* (exam date within two years of the date of application) in one of the following ways:

• TOEFL iBT score of ≥ 100
• TOEFL Essentials score of ≥ 10
• IELTS score of ≥ 7

This requirement can be waived by meeting one of the following criteria:

• GRE verbal score ≥ 146
• GMAT verbal score ≥ 22
• Receiving a baccalaureate degree with all four years of attendance at a U.S. college or university
• Citizenship of one of the countries listed

*If admitted, official test scores must be submitted.

Language Requirements for Graduate Assistantships

While official TOEFL or IELTS scores are not required for the admissions process, should an applicant wish to be considered for a graduate assistantship, official scores are necessary. To serve in a Graduate Assistant – Teaching (GAT) position, the State of Texas requires that international students attain English Language Proficiency Certification (a higher standard than used for admissions). This can be achieved in any one of the following ways, attested by official test scores submitted by March 1.

• TOEFL iBT speaking score of ≥26
• TOEFL Essentials speaking score of ≥ 11
• IELTS speaking score of ≥ 8.0
• ELPE speaking score of ≥ 80 (administered through Texas A&M Testing Services)

Important: IELTS scores take a minimum of two weeks (and often up to a month) after submission to be reflected in a student’s academic records. Please plan accordingly.