International Transfer Student Admission & Application Requirements

An international transfer student who is coming to MSUM from another university (whether based within the United States or not) and is transferring in 12 university credits or more is considered a transfer student.

Transfer Applicants from Universities Outside the U.S.

Both Secondary and Post-Secondary transcripts will be used to determine general admissibility. A student's overall academic performance will be taken into consideration. Students whose post-secondary transcripts fail to show a satisfactory performance on the college level may be considered if their secondary transcripts were of outstanding caliber.

Transfer Applicants from U.S. Colleges and Universities

International students in this category must meet the same criteria as our U.S. Transfer Students. Students must have an accumulative Grade Point Average of 2.0 or higher. Students who have earned less then 24 credits will need to supply us with official secondary transcripts. Courses that are not considered "college level" courses (such as English as a Second Language) will not be included in the accumulative GPA when determining admissibility.

Students transferring from a U.S. college who also possess credits from an institution outside the U.S. will need to follow the credit evaluation guidelines outlined in the section below.

International Transfer Credit

International students who have been accepted to Minnesota State University Moorhead who wish to transfer credit from colleges or universities outside the United States must provide Minnesota State University Moorhead with a course-by-course evaluation from Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc; World Education Services, SpanTran, or any other NACES accredited evaluation company. The costs of the evaluation will be paid by the student. This process should be started as soon as the student receives his or her visa.

If a student has already completed a course-by-course evaluation from another National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) member, he or she can submit this evaluation to the MSUM Registrar's Office.

If the credit evaluation is not done during the application process, students will be admitted as transfer students and will be given 3 years for a program length on their I-20. Class standing will be determined once MSUM has received the credit evaluation. Students should be aware that failure to submit an credit evaluation in a timely manner could have a negative impact on their academic advising. The sooner a credit evaluation has been completed, the sooner your advisor will have a proper understanding of what courses will transfer to MSUM and how those courses will be applied to your degree.

We encourage you to complete the credit evaluation before you arrive. Comprehensive Course-by-Course Report can cost students between $135-$185.

International Student Application Dates

  • January 15-June 30 for starting Fall Semester (August)
  • June 15-November 15 for starting Spring Semester (January)

International Student Application Process

Applicants outside of the United States are encouraged to contact your local EducationUSA Advising Center for assistance with your application and visa process.

All undergraduate international students must submit the following information to be considered for admission:

  1. Submit your application for undergraduate international admission.
    • We accept the entire application, high school certificates, bank statements, and other supporting documents via e-mail (clear scanned copy). But if you are attending a U.S. university/college, all official transcripts MUST be sent to us directly from the institution. All other documents can be sent via scan/e-mail or fax to save time. However, you must always 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.
  2. Pay the $20 application fee payable in U.S. dollars
  3. If you have started the application process, please log in to the Online Application to complete and submit the required information and documentation.
  4. Provide proof of English proficiency by submitting an official TOEFL or IELTS score report sent directly to us by the issuing agency (ETS for TOEFL or IELTS directly).
    • MSUM TOEFL institutional code is 6678
  5. English Proficiency Requirement
    • TOEFL Score of 500 (Paper-Based Test), 171 (Computer Based Test) or 61 (Internet Based Test)
    • IELTS score of 5.5 or higher
    • English Language School (ELS) 109 completion or higher
    • WASSCE/WAEC : Students must earn a minimum score of C4 on the English Language section
    • SAT: Students must earn a minimum score of 990 on the Math and Critical Reading sections
    • Completion of Level 6 at any A.C.E. Language Institute
    • Completion of WESLI - Wisconsin ESL Institute. Please check with ISS for the level of completion.
  6. All official secondary or college transcripts: students must provide Minnesota State University Moorhead academic records of every secondary and post-secondary institution he/she has attended. Records must be certified true copies or notarized photo copies.
  7. Financial Statement and supporting bank statements or letters from bank verifying funds
  8. Transfer credits/courses:
    • International Credits/Courses: All students who wish to transfer credits/courses from an international institution (University/College) back home will need to submit an official transcript to any one of the evaluation company's. They are E.C.E OR W.E.S
    • U.S. Transfer of courses:> Please submit an official transcript to International Student Services (ISS) once the grades are posted.

We strongly recommend students receive their acceptance packets via express mail (FedEx or DHL). If you wish to receive your documents via express mail, please go to eShipGlobal - University Express Mail Services. Register and activate an account, prepare a shipment request, pay the mailing cost online and eShipGlobal will route the request to MSUM. You will receive the acceptance packet approximately 3-5 business days from the date of mailing. This must be done within 3 days of acceptance into MSUM.

We recommend that students use the above eShipGlobal - University Express Mail Services site for effect shipping service. If students create their own shipment at a DHL or FedEx office, please be advised that we will need a copy of the shipping label and proof of payment before we will send the shipment out. This makes the process smoother for both the University and the student. Please be aware students who choose this route often encounter complications that delay the time for them to receive their documents.

Please note submission of fraudulent documents will cause severe penalties resulting in an investigation from U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Your SEVIS (Immigration Record) will be terminated immediately.

MSUM TOEFL institutional code is 6678