Admission Requirements

Freshman applicants
Students who are still in high school and/or who have not attended any postsecondary institution are considered freshmen.  

Academic requirements
The University has set country specific academic requirements for international students. Click here to know more about these requirements.

General requirements include an above average performance in high school and completion of the following course preparation in high school:

• 4 years of English or the student's first language
• 3 years of mathematics (1 year each of algebra, geometry, and advanced algebra)
• 3 years of science (including 1 year each of 2 of the following: biology, chemistry, or physics)
• 2 years of social studies (3 years for applicants to College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS)
• Applicants to majors in the LAS and Engineering colleges must have 2 years of a single foreign language (English may be used).

English proficiency
Students for whom English is not their primary language may meet Iowa State's English proficiency requirements in one of the following ways:

• TOEFL - an IBT score of 71 with a minimum score of 17 in Speaking and Writing sections
  
• TOEFL a PBT score of  530
• IELTS - an overall band score of 6.0 with no subscore below 5.5
• SAT Critical Reading score of 420

Only official test scores are accepted. Scanned copies are not official. Our TOEFL School Code is 6306.  IELTS scores must be sent directly to the Office of Admissions from the test center.

Conditional admission
If your scores do not yet meet the minimum requirement, you may apply for "conditional admission" to allow you to improve your English skills in our full-time Intensive English and Orientation Program (IEOP). If admissible, a conditional admission letter for the bachelor's program will be issued along with an I-20 for our Intensive English and Orientation Program. The IEOP offers classes at the same time as our regular classes, and you can retake the TOEFL at the end of each semester until you pass it. Please follow the procedures listed below:

The IEOP requires applicants to have a minimum score of 55 on the IBT, 477 of the PBT, or 5.5 on the IELTS. If you have one of the scores above, you may:

1. Complete the IEOP application for the term you would like to first enroll.
2. Complete the International Undergraduate Application for the term after that, and check "Yes" to Question 10 on the application asking if you are applying for conditional admission.

If admissible, a conditional admission letter for the bachelor's program will be issued along with an I-20 for our Intensive English and Orientation Program.

If you have not yet met the above test score requirement, but have been admitted to a different English language program, please include a copy of the letter of admission you received from that program when you apply to Iowa State. If admissible, we will issue a conditional admission letter for the bachelor's program. No I-20 will be issued until you finish the English language program elsewhere and submit a satisfactory English test result. Otherwise, we encourage you to wait until your test scores increase to apply for admission.
Iowa State will not review an application for conditional admission until either an official TOEFL or IELTS result is received, or you have submitted proof of admission to another English language program.

Iowa State reserves the right to change this policy at any time as needed to meet the university's enrollment and/or diversity needs.

Transfer applicants
Students who have graduated from high school and attended any postsecondary institution are considered transfer students. (Such students may not elect to omit their attendance at a postsecondary institution on their application. Attendance at any and all institutions must be listed on the application form.)  Students need to meet prescribed cumulative scores in all transferable courses to be eligible for transfer credits. Click here for detailed country specific requirements.

Transfer credit
Transfer credit is typically awarded for courses taken toward bachelor degrees at recognized colleges/universities. Coursework taken toward diplomas, certificates, and/or professional, vocational and career development programs may not be accepted for transfer.  

Evaluation of transfer credit is two-step process:

• When you apply, the Office of Admissions reviews your course work taken at another institution to determine whether the courses are acceptable for transfer. A Transfer Credit Evaluation form indicating which courses have been accepted for transfer will be sent to you with your offer of admission letter.
• After you arrive at Iowa State, you will meet with your academic adviser to discuss how your transfer credits will apply toward degree requirements. It may be necessary for you to show a course syllabus and a list of textbooks to the faculty member teaching the comparable ISU course to receive transfer credit, so please bring those materials with you to Iowa State when you come.