All applicants to Northwestern, international and domestic, apply using the same process and timeline.

Northwestern University requires all undergraduate applicants, whether educated in the United States or abroad, to submit the results of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT Reasoning Test) or American College Test (ACT) with writing.

International applicants must demonstrate a high level of English proficiency. An evaluation of English proficiency includes reviewing all test scores, grades in classes taught in English, writing samples, and comments by recommenders. International applicants whose first language is not English are required to submit exam results from either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).

International applicants who complete 3 to 4 years of their secondary school curriculum in English and score 650 or above on the Critical Reading section of the SAT Reasoning Test are not required to submit a TOEFL or IELTS score. Northwestern does not accept scores from other English proficiency exams, including the TOEFL Institutional Testing Program (ITP).

TOEFL Requirements

All graduate applicants to the Bienen School of Music whose native language is not English, regardless of citizenship, are required to submit a TOEFL score.

To be considered official, a TOEFL score report must be delivered to our office directly from ETS, and cannot be more than two years old. For example, if your application is submitted on December 1, 2018, then your TOEFL report cannot be older than December 1, 2016. It is recommended that you take the TOEFL exam at least two months before the application is due, to ensure that your scores arrive by the deadline.

Photocopies, student copies, faxes, and email attachments will not be accepted. Test scores arriving after the deadlines listed below will not be accepted.

Use TOEFL School Code: 1565 (Northwestern University)

TOEFL Waiver Policy

The Bienen School of Music does not offer ESL coursework and so must evaluate English proficiency either through the TOEFL exam or through documentation provided in a request for a TOEFL waiver. Applicants who have substantial training or education in English may request a TOEFL waiver on the Graduate Application. Do not request a waiver if you are sending recent TOEFL scores with your application. We do not grant waivers based upon citizenship.

All application materials, including transcripts and letters of recommendation, must be submitted by the application deadline of December 1 in order to evaluate a TOEFL waiver. If the requirements listed below are not received by December 1, your request for a TOEFL waiver will be denied.