English Language Proficiency
International undergraduate applicants are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), Duolingo English Test or IELTS exam for admissions purposes if they do not meet an exemption. TOEFL, Duolingo or IELTS scores must be sent directly from the educational testing service. UTRGV will not accept residual TOEFL exams taken at another institution (TOEFL ITP). The minimum scores for the tests are as follow: TOEFL 61 (IBT, IBT Home or IBT Paper edition, IBT MyBest Scores), TOEFL Essentials 6.5 (Essentials, MyBest Scores), Duolingo 95, and IELTS 6. The UTRGV school code for TOEFL is 7585.
Exemptions
- Applicants from the following English-only countries do not need to submit the TOEFL/IELTS:
| America Samoa | Dominica | New Zealand |
| Anguilla | Gambia | Nigeria |
| Antigua/Barbuda | Ghana | Saint Kitts and Nevis |
| Australia | Gibraltar | St. Helena |
| Bahamas | Grand Cayman | St. Lucia |
| Barbados | Grenada | St. Vincent |
| Belize | Guyana | Trinidad/Tobago |
| Bermuda | Ireland | Turks & Caicos Islands |
| British Virgin Islands | Jamaica | United Kingdom |
| Canada (except Quebec) | Liberia | Virgin Islands |
| Cayman Islands | Montserrat |
- Applicants who have recently and successfully completed at least 30 credit hours from an accredited university in the United States or in one of the countries listed above.
- Applicants who have completed two semesters of freshmen English composition in a U.S. institution and earned a “C” or better.
- Applicants who have successfully completed the highest ESL Advanced Level course through the UTRGV Language Institute.
- Applicants who hold a bachelor’s degree from a U.S. Higher Education Institution.
- Applicants who have successfully completed three years of high school in the U.S.