Graduate Admissions

You must have the equivalent of a regionally accredited four-year US bachelor's degree before beginning your studies at NYU Steinhardt to be considered for admission. If you hold an artist diploma you may be considered for the Music Performance, Music Theory, or Music Composition programs.

We require all applicants who have completed, or are completing, undergraduate and/or graduate degrees at institutions outside of the US or Canada to provide translation and a course-by-course evaluation of their transcripts. However, if one of your undergraduate or graduate degrees was received or will be received by an accredited institution in the US or Canada, this evaluation requirement may be waived.

The course-by-course evaluation helps us understand how your grades compare to grades in the US education system as well as what the equivalent US degree is.

We have two approved agencies that can prepare your required course-by-course evaluation:

• World Education Services (WES): We prefer the WES Course-by-Course Credential Evaluation, as you can request that WES send the evaluation electronically only to Recipient: New York University,  School/Division: Steinhardt School of Culture, Edu. & Human Dev.  Division/Office Name: Office of Graduate Admissions. When we receive your WES Course-by-Course evaluation, we will automatically attach it to your NYU Steinhardt graduate application. The Basic Course-by-Course evaluation is acceptable and the ICAP Course-by-Course evaluation is required if you intend to transfer any credits to NYU.
• Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE): Visit ECE's website and select a Course-by-Course Evaluation Report. Please have the evaluation sent to NYU Steinhardt by ECE Dispatch.

Applicants with a three year international degree and applicants with credentials from India are strongly encouraged to use WES.

We do not require evaluations for applicants who spent a semester or year of study abroad as part of their US or Canadian undergraduate degree studies, nor is it required if you attended an English-language institution outside the US that is regionally accredited through the Council for Higher Accreditation (CHEA), recognized by the US Department of Education.

Your ability to speak, write, and read with fluency in English is crucial to your success at NYU Steinhardt. We expect all students to be proficient in English at their time of admission to NYU Steinhardt. 

If your native language is not English, you must submit results from one of the following English proficiency exams: TOEFL iBT (we do not accept TOEFL Essentials), we do accept TOEFL - MyBest Score, IELTS, Duolingo English Test or PTE Academic. Due to accreditation and licensure requirements, applicants to any program in our OT department must submit TOEFL scores, other scores will not be accepted.

This requirement is waived if:

• You received four years of education as an undergraduate where the official language of instruction of the institution was English for all course work; or
• You received four years of education as a graduate student where the official language of instruction of the institution was English for all course work; or
• You received a combined undergraduate and graduate education of four years where the official language of instruction of the institution was English for all course work

The Admissions Committee reserves the right to require any candidate, regardless of country of citizenship or prior college experience, to submit results from an English language exam prior to rendering a decision if they believe the applicant’s proficiency in English may not meet admissions standards.

Explore English proficiency testing requirements.

When completing your graduate application, please be sure to use your full, legal name as it appears on your passport. The use of any other names, such as nicknames, will cause serious delays in applying for your US visa. All international applicants must have an international address as their permanent address. The US government mandates that you include a permanent, international address to receive your visa.

Once you are admitted, you will apply for an I-20 to receive an F1 student visa with your acceptance package. You need financial documentation when applying for a visa, but financial documents should not be submitted with your application for admission. Please be prepared to pay additional fees for processing your I-20 from NYU and your student visa from the US government.

If you’re currently in the US at another school or recently completed your program at another US school and need to transfer your immigration record to NYU, please review the Office of Global Services' instructions to transfer to NYU.

Heightened security measures may result in delays in processing your I-20 and your student visa requests. Please apply for these credentials as soon as possible as it may take up to 8 weeks to process your documents. Use overnight and express mail wherever possible.

More information is available on the NYU's Office of Global Services Pre-Arrival website.

You may be able to work in the United States after graduation for up to three years if you complete your studies in one of NYU Steinhardt's programs in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM). 

Optional Practical Training (OPT) is temporary employment that is directly related to your major field of study. This training helps you develop and apply the practical and research skills you've learned at NYU Steinhardt to advance your career.

Take a look at the NYU Steinhardt programs and degrees that are STEM OPT eligible.