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Required IELTS scores at US universities

IELTS requirements of the world’s top 200 universities in the USA in 2019

The following rankings, organised by subject area, come from the 2019 Times Higher Education World University Rankings and QS World University Rankings.

Times Higher Education World University Rankings in 2019

Name of institution

World rank

IELTS minimum requirement (undergraduate programmes)

IELTS minimum requirement (postgraduate programmes)

Stanford University

3

Contact institution

Contact institution

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

4

7.0

7.0

California Institute of Technology

5

7.0

7.0

Harvard University

6

7.0

7.0

Princeton University

7

Contact institution

7.0

Yale University

8

7.0

7.0

University of Chicago

10

7.0

7.0

University of Pennsylvania

12

7.0

7.0

Johns Hopkins University

12

7.0

7.0

University of California, Berkeley

15

7.0

7.0

Columbia University

16

7.0

7.0

University of California, Los Angeles

17

7.0

7.0

Duke University

18

7.0

7.0

Cornell University

19

7.0

7.5

University of Michigan

20

7.0

7.0

Carnegie Mellon University

24

7.5

7.5

Northwestern University

25

7.5

7.5

New York University

27

7.5

7.5

University of Washington

28

7.0

7.0

University of California, San Diego

30

7.0

7.0

Georgia Institute of Technology

34

Contact institution

Contact institution

University of Texas at Austin

39

6.5

6.5

University of Wisconsin-Madison

43

6.5

7.0

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

50

6.5

6.5

University of California, Santa Barbara

52

7

7

Brown University

53

8.0

7.0

Washington University in St Louis

54

7.0

7.0

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

56

7.0

7.0

University of California, Davis

59

7.0

7.0

Purdue University

64

6.5

6.5

University of Southern California

66

6.5

6.5

University of Minnesota

71

6.5

6.5

Ohio State University

71

6.5

7.0

Boston University

74

7.0

7.0

Pennsylvania State University

81

6.5

6.5

University of Maryland, College Park

82

7.0

7.0

Emory University

84

Contact institution

Contact institution

Rice University

86

7.0

7.0

Michigan State University

93

6.5

6.5

University of California. Irvine

96

7.0

7.0

Dartmouth College

99

7.0

7.0

University of Virginia

107

7.0

7.0

Georgetown University

109

7.0

7.0

University of Pittsburgh

110

6.5

6.5

University of Colorado Boulder

114

Contact institution

Contact institution

Vanderbilt University

121

6.5

7.0

Arizona State University

123

6.0

7.0

Case Western Reserve University

132

6.5

6.5

Indiana University

146

6.5

6.5

Tufts University

152

7.0

7.0

University of Florida

156

6.0

6.5

University of Arizona

159

6.5

7.0

University of Rochester

163

7.0

Contact institution

University of California, Santa Cruz

167

7.0

7.0

Texas A&M University

171

6.0

6.0

University of Notre Dame

173

7.0

7.0

University of Alabama at Birmingham

179

5.5

6.5

Rutgers, the state University of New Jersey

176

6.0

6.0

Northeastern University

184

7.5

7.0

QS World University Rankings in 2019

Name of institution

World rank

IELTS minimum requirement (undergraduate programmes)

IELTS minimum requirement (postgraduate programmes)

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

1

7.0

7.0

Stanford University

2

Contact institution

Contact institution

Harvard University

3

7.0

7.0

California Institute of Technology (Caltech)

4

7.0

7.0

University of Chicago

9

7.0

7.0

Princeton University

13

Contact institution

7.0

Cornell University

14

7.0

7.5

Yale University

15

7.0

7.0

Columbia University

16

7.0

7.0

University of Pennsylvania

19

7.0

7.0

University of Michigan

20

7.0

7.0

John Hopkins University

21

7.0

7.0

Duke University

26

7.0

7.0

University of California, Berkeley (UCB)

27

7.0

7.0

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

32

7.0

7.0

Northwestern University

34

7.5

7.5

University of California, San Diego (UCSD)

41

7.0

7.0

New York University (NYU)

43

7.5

7.5

Carnegie Mellon University

46

7.5

7.5

University of Wisconsin-Madison

53

6.5

7.0

Brown University

56

8.0

7.0

University of Texas at Austin

63

6.5

6.5

University of Washington

66

7.0

7.0

Georgia Institute of Technology

69

Contact institution

Contact institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

71

6.5

6.5

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

83

7.0

7.0

Rice University

87

7.0

7.0

The Ohio State University

89

6.5

7.0

Boston University

93

7.0

7.0

Pennsylvania State University

95

6.5

6.5

Washington University in St Louis

100

7.0

7.0

Purdue University

100

6.5

6.5

University of California, Davis

100

7.0

7.0

University of Southern California

115

6.5

6.5

University of Maryland, College Park

126

7.0

7.0

University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB)

132

7.0

7.0

University of Pittsburgh

136

6.5

6.5

Michigan State University

141

6.5

6.5

Emory University

148

Contact institution

Contact institution

University of Minnesota

156

6.5

6.5

University of California, Irvine

169

7.0

7.0

University of Florida

180

6.0

6.5

Dartmouth College

183

7.0

7.0

University of Rochester

184

7.0

Contact institution

University of Colorado Boulder

190

Contact institution

Contact institution

University of Virginia

192

7.0

7.0

Texas A&M University

203

6.0

6.0

 

Study Visa for the U.S.

If you would like to study in the U.S., you will typically need to apply for one of the following student visas from the U.S. embassy or consulate in your country.

(1) F Student Visas are intended for students who wish to study at an accredited U.S. college or university or to study English at an intensive English language institute. This is the most common type of visa.

(2) J Exchange Visas are typically granted to students for participation in a short-term exchange programme, including high school and university study.

(3) M Student Visas are for students enrolling in non-academic or vocational study or training programmes in the U.S.

Before you can apply for your student visa to study in the U.S., you must receive either an I-20 or a DS-2019 form from the college or university where you have been admitted, and obtain documented funding for your first year of study. With the I-20 or DS-2019 in hand, you can then apply for your student visa.

Education USA has a lot of detailed advice on how to prepare and apply for your visa to study in the U.S. Visit their site to find out more.

Why do an increasing number of candidates wishing to study in the U.S. choose IELTS? 

(1) Pen and paper. Unlike other tests, there is no need to complete IELTS on a machine. Paper-based evaluation is better-suited to many candidates. 

(2) Quiet testing environment. Candidates who move through the test at different speeds will not disturb each other.

(3)  Face-to-face speaking test.  This enables candidates to more authentically demonstrate their communication skills.

(4) Effective preparation. IELTS includes a combination of everyday and academic English.  This empowers candidates with language skills and systems which can be used in a variety of environments.