All applicants must have received from an accredited institution a baccalaureate degree earned under residence and credit conditions substantially equivalent to those required by Penn State. International applicants must hold the equivalent of an American four-year baccalaureate degree. Applicants must have a Bachelor's degree with a GPA of 2.5 or above in undergraduate courses.
When completing the online Graduate School application, you will be asked to upload the following documents:
Resume or curriculum vitae
Letter of introduction with a career statement and personal history, including motivation and goals, and which emphasis you are interested in pursuing
Letters of recommendation from two people who are best qualified to evaluate your ability to succeed in graduate study. The Graduate School application will ask you to submit the names of references along with their email addresses. Your reference will receive an email directing them to the site to upload a reference letter. You will be notified via email when they have submitted their letter, however you will not be able to view the letter.
International applicants must take and submit scores for the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or the IELTS (International English Language Testing System),with the exceptions noted below. The minimum acceptable score for the TOEFL is 550 for the paper-based test, 213 for the computer-based test, or a total score of 80 with a 19 on the speaking section for the internet-based test. Applicants with iBT speaking scores between 15 and 18 may be considered for provisional admission, which requires an institutional test of English proficiency upon first enrollment and, if necessary, remedial course work. The minimum composite score for the IELTS is 6.5. Submit official scores using Penn State's Institution Code: 2660. To find out more about the TOEFL Exam visit the TOEFL web site. International applicants are exempt from the TOEFL/IELTS requirement who have received a baccalaureate or a master's degree from a college/university/institution in any of the following: Australia, Belize, British Caribbean and British West Indies, Canada (except Quebec), England, Guyana, Republic of Ireland, Liberia, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland, the United States, and Wales.