At Princeton SPIA, we are committed to the diversification of our community. Within every admitted class, we seek to attract committed public servants and changemakers from all over the world. One important part of our community is our international students. International students bring diverse perspectives, lived experiences, and nuanced understandings that are valuable additions to our understanding of public and international affairs. Approximately one quarter of our admitted class across our three graduate programs are international students. So, this blog serves to answer a common question we receive from our international applicants:

Am I required to provide an English-proficiency exam as part of the application process? 

Is your native language English? If yes, you are not required to provide TOEFL or IELTS scores.

If your native language is not English, you must then answer:

Did you study for at least three years of you bachelor’s or master’s degree in the USA, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, or Anglophone Canada?

If you earned your bachelor’s or master’s degree in one of these countries and was there for a minimum of three years, you are not required to provide TOEFL or IELTS scores.

If your native language is not English, and you did not study for at least three years of your bachelor’s degree in the aforementioned countries, you must provide TOEFL or IELTS scores.

You can find additional information regarding minimum score requirements for the TOEFL and IELTS on Princeton University’s Graduate School’s website.

For ease of access to the information just provided, feel free to review the graph below.