Graduate Admission Criteria

Academic Requirements

Admission criteria are established both by the Graduate School and by the graduate program of study.

The minimum academic criteria for admission include:

• credentials documenting prerequisite academic work that gives evidence of ability to pursue a graduate program in your chosen area. Consult your intended graduate program for more information.
• an earned 4-year baccalaureate or higher degree from an accredited college or university prior to beginning graduate studies.
• an earned cumulative grade-point average (GPA) equivalent to at least 3.0 out of 4.0 (or B) in all previous undergraduate college-level course work, or 3.3 in all graduate course work. If your undergraduate GPA is below the minimum, an official Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) test score is required.

If you have a "B-" average or lower, your application materials will not be reviewed by your graduate program until we receive an official GRE or GMAT score.

English Proficiency - for International Applicants and those who have held the status of U.S. Permanent Resident for less than one year.

Success at Ohio State depends upon the student's ability to converse in, write, and understand English. The University normally requires any applicant whose native language is not English, and who has been educated primarily outside of the U.S., to submit a recent, official Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score or Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB) score. Some Graduate programs may require a TOEFL score above the graduate school minimum requirement. You may consult the chart titled "Graduate Program Requirements and Deadlines" sheet included in your application for details. If no score is listed, then the minimum required scores are as follows:

• at least 550 on the paper-based (213 on the computer-based) Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). We strongly encourage applicants to take the TOEFL ibt (internet-based version).
• or at least 82 on the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB)
• Applicants who are citizens of, or who have been educated primarily in one of the following countries are exempt from the TOEFL or MELAB requirement: Australia, Belize, the British Caribbean and British West Indies, Canada (except Quebec), England, Guyana, Ireland, Liberia, New Zealand, Scotland, the United States, and Wales.
• In addition, for most graduate programs, applicants are exempt if they have received a bachelor's or higher degree from a university in one of these countries.

Applicants who will seek a student visa (either F-1 or J-1) must demonstrate that they have sufficient funds to support themselves throughout their educational program. Documentation of your ability to support yourself includes any one of the following:

• an affidavit of financial support and a confidential bank statement from yourself, or a relative, or personal sponsor showing that they have sufficient funds to support your studies at Ohio State
• an award letter documenting the receipt of a Graduate Fellowship, or Associateship from Ohio State University
• a sponsorship letter from a government agency, organization, institution or school (Not Ohio State University)

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Look under Graduate Program Requirements and Deadlines for additional admission requirements.  It is recommended that you contact your intended graduate program about any admission requirements it may have in addition to those listed above. E-mail addresses, phone numbers, and addresses are found in the Graduate Program Requirements and Deadlines section.