International Student Freshman Admission & Application Requirements

International Student Application Dates

• Fall Semester Start (late-August)
  • Application Available
    • First Year Students: Sept 1 – May 1
    • Transfer Students (not in US): Sept 1 – May 1
    • Transfer Students (currently in US): Sept 1 - July 1
  • Final Document Submission Deadline
    • First Year Students: June 1
    • Transfer Students (not in US): June 1
    • Transfer Students (currently in US): August 10
• Spring Semester Start (early-January)
  • Application Available
    • First Year Students: January 25 – August 1
    • Transfer Students (not in US): January 25 – August 1
    • Transfer Students (currently in US): January 25 – Dec 1
  • Final Document Submission Deadline
    • First Year Students: Sept 1
    • Transfer Students (not in US): Sept 1
    • Transfer Students (currently in US): December 20

If document submission occurs after the final date, we will move your application forward to the next available start term. If we have previously deferred your application, we will not be able to defer it again and will reach out to you to request a new application to be submitted.

The online application must be completed fully before any further processing of your admission.

You may pay the one-time $20 non-refundable undergraduate application fee online with a credit card.

Payment of the fee should only be made after you have:

1. Submitted your online application and
2. Activated your StarID.

To Pay:

1. Log in to eServices using your StarID.
2. Click on "Bills and Payments".
3. Click on "Make a Payment" to pay the $20 application fee.

Pay Application Fee

• A minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA is needed on a 4.0 scale. GPA will be calculated using academic transcripts and/or exit exams depending on country of origin. For example, WAEC and KCSE for West African countries and Kenya we would need exit exam results submitted/verified.
• Some documents may require external evaluation based on an initial internal assessment. If this is requested, you will need to submit your official academic documents to one of the following external credential evaluators. Provide official documents in both the original language and English. Official documents should be sent directly from your educational institution to the evaluator. Only transcripts submitted directly to the evaluator are accepted.
  • ECE – select the “General with GPA”
  • IEE- select “Education Document + GPA Report (US)”
  • TEC - select the “General Analysis with GPA report”
  • WES – select “Document-by-Document Evaluation WES ICAP”
• If you are currently attending a U.S. university/college, all official transcripts MUST be sent to us directly from the institution.
• Keep the original or certified documents with you in case we need you to send us the official/certified documents. You will also need the official/certified documents to present at the U.S. visa interview.

If you are from a non-English speaking country, you must provide proof of English language proficiency in one of the following ways. Only scores directly from the testing organization are accepted. Please make appropriate action for MSUM to verify your score from the testing organization. We are not accepting letters from secondary schools outside of the U.S. for proof of English proficiency.

Students from exempt countries do not need to provide proof of language proficiency. A list of exempt countries can be found below.

• Transfer from a U.S. college or university with a C or better in an approved English composition course.
• Submit an official TOEFL or IELTS score report sent directly to us by the issuing agency (ETS for TOEFL or IELTS directly).
• English Proficiency Requirement
  • TOEFL - minimum score of 61 iBT/173 CBT/500 PBT
    • TOEFL institutional code is 6678
  • IELTS - minimum overall band score of 5.5
    • e-Delivery: University Name- Minnesota State University Moorhead
  • Duolingo - minimum score of 95
    • Share Score with Minnesota State University Moorhead
  • ITEP - minimum score of 3.7
  • PTE Academic - minimum score of 50
    • Institutional code is Y7J
  • SAT test - (2021 or later) A score of 480 or higher on the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section
    • SAT Code: 6678
  • ACT - A score of 18 or better on ACT Combined English/Writing
    • ACT Code: 2134
  • WASSCE/WAEC - minimum score of B3 or higher on the English Language section
    • Applicants from Nigeria: West African Examinations Council Digital Certificate website and share score with Minnesota State University Moorhead
    • Applicants from Ghana, Liberia & Sierra Leone: Share unused Scratch Card for us to verify score
      • We are NOT able to make admission decision unless we verify your WAEC score.
  • Diploma from a U.S. high school

Provide a financial Statement and supporting bank statements or letters from bank verifying funds.

Bank Statement/Bank Letter

• Must be dated within the last six months;
• Must validate at least $26,585 USD
  • Plus $7,000 USD for the first F-2 dependent
  • $6,000 for each additional dependent after the first dependent
• Name of account holder must be present;
  • Applicant Self, their family, or their family business can be a financial sponsor.
• Amount of money in the account must be listed;
• Must be in English, or include a certified English translation;
• Type of account (eg. savings, checking, time deposit) must be included;
• Type of currency must be included.
  • If you submit documentation that include foreign currency, calculate the value in U.S. Dollars and include evidence of the source for the currency conversion exchange rate. https://www.oanda.com/currency-converter/en/
    • Select Original Currency convert to U.S. Doller
    • Type closing amounts on original bank statements
    • Select the date that the bank statement was issued
    • Print the document, save it in PDF format, and upload as a part of Financial Document
  • If the account holder for the Bank Statement does not match the name of the applicant, the financial sponsor must submit ONE of the following:
    • Sponsor Statement of Support Form
    • Bank Letter
    • Bank Affidavit

NCAA/NAIA Athletic Scholarship

• Institutional Tender of Financial Assistance and Declaration of Intend
  • Name of Recipient
  • Type of Assistance
  • Amount of Assistance
  • Signature from Recommender and Director of Financial Aid
• If the amount of assistance is not meet a minimum of $26,585USD, applicant is required to provide additional financial documents to meet total of $26,585 USD

Government Sponsor

• Letter from Government Sponsor meeting listed below requirements:
  • Must be an original;
  • Must be dated within the last six months;
  • Name of award recipient must be present;
  • Must state the period of time covered by the award;
  • Must indicate Minnesota State University Moorhead as the student's institution
  • Must state the total amount of support for the given period.

Documents NOT accepted

• Tax returns
• Tax documents in general
• Mortgages
• Employment or salary statements
• Paystub
• Pending or Provisional Education Loans
• Lines of credit including Credit Card available balances

Students from the following countries do not need to take an English Proficiency Test

• Antigua and Barbuda 
• Australia
• Bahamas 
• Barbados
• Belize
• Bermuda 
• Botswana
• British Virgin Islands 
• Canada (except Quebec) 
• Cayman Islands 
• Dominica 
• Gambia (with B3 or better for English on WASSCE/WAEC certificate)
• Ghana (with B3 or better for English on WASSCE/WAEC certificate)
• Grenada
• Guyana
• Ireland
• Jamaica
• Liberia (with B3 or better for English on WASSCE/WAEC certificate)
• Malawi 
• Micronesia 
• Montserrat
• New Zealand 
• Nigeria (with B3 or better for English on WASSCE/WAEC certificate)
• Sierra Leone (with B3 or better for English on WASSCE/WAEC certificate)
• South Africa
• Trinidad and Tobago 
• Turks and Caicos Islands 
• United Kingdom 
• U.S. Territories
• Zambia