The University of St. Thomas

English Proficiency

English Proficiency Requirement for Transfer Students

Non-native speakers of English are required to have an official report of one of the following English Proficiency Requirement Options.  English is considered a native (first) language if the student has been raised in an environment where English is the only official language of the locality and nation, and English is the primary language used at home.  Score reports need to be sent directly from the testing center.

  • TOEFL score report not older than two years of 550 Paper Based TOEFL (PBT), 213 on the Computer Based TOEFL (CBT) or an 80 on the Internet Based TOEFL (iBT) with a subscore of 20 on the written and 20 on the speaking sections.
  • IELTS score report of 6.5.
  • Michigan English Language Assessment Battery-minimum score report of 77, and must be accompanied by an official letter from the testing coordinator.
  • SAT critical reading score of 450.
  • ACT verbal score of 19.
  • ELS Language Center successful completion of Level 112, and with the recommendation of academic director.
  • Bachelor degree from an accredited US college or university (not an online degree).
  • Transfer of 28 credits or more from an accredited US college or university with the transfer equivalent of UST English 111 and 112 with a grade of B or above in the course transfer, and a CGPA of 2.75 or above.
  • Students who do not meet any of the above English proficiency requirements may apply to attend under the University of St. Thomas English Program (USTEP).  Click here for details.

All students who are non-native speakers of English are required to take a placement test for English composition upon arrival to UST.  Exceptions to this requirement are those who have a verifiable TOEFL score of 600 pbt, 250 cbt or 100 ibt or above, an IELTS score of 7.5 or above, or a Bachelor degree from an accredited US college or university (not an online degree).  Student may be required to take the placement test based on the submitted transcript; determined by the director of international admissions.