International Students

Admission Requirements

First-Year and Transfer Students

In general, the cumulative grade point average (GPA) for incoming international first-year students is a B (3.0 on a 4-point scale). Students will be classified as a transfer applicant if they enrolled in a college or university after graduating from high school.

All undergraduate international students applying to Central College are required to submit the following:

• Application for admission
• Official transcript(s). All credentials must be official, original documents or notarized attested copies of the original.
• Proof of English proficiency (if English is the only official language of the country an English proficiency test score is not required).
  • TOEFL
    • 71 (Internet Based)
    • 530 (Paper-based)
  • IELTS
    • 6.0 overall band score (5.5 minimum in each band)
  • First-year students who have attended four years in a U.S. or in an international based high school where English was the primary method of instruction with grades of “C”/2.0 or better in their English language classes meet the English language of Central College.
  • Transfer students wanting to transfer to Central College from an accredited U.S. institution must have completed a minimum of 36 credit hours for Central College to consider waiving the English language requirement.
  • Successful completion of level 112 of the Intensive English for Academic Purposes Program from an ELS English Language Center. Please note that Central College must receive an official Academic Report and copy of the ELS Certificate directly from ELS.
  • SAT Critical Reading score of 420.
• Letter(s) of recommendation
• Personal statement 
• Original bank statements and International Student Certification of Finances
• Copy of passport

Please note: to help expedite consideration of your application for admission, please submit all the required documentation listed below at your earliest opportunity.

Application Deadlines

Fall application deadline: April 1

Fall deposit date: May 1; I-20 will be sent upon receipt of deposit

Fall first payment due: Aug. 1 (one half of first semester)

Spring application deadline: Oct. 1

Spring deposit date: Nov. 1 (I-20 will be sent upon receipt of deposit)

Spring first payment due: Jan. 1 (one half of first semester)

SAT/ACT Requirement

The SAT or ACT is not required for admission if you graduated from a high school outside of the U.S., however, Central College does recommend that students take the SAT or ACT as the results of these exams may be used to enhance the level of academic scholarship that an international student may receive.

If you graduated and have spent four (4) or more academic years at an American high school in the U.S. you may be required to submit official standardized test results for either the SAT or the ACT.

Conditional Admission

Qualified students without English proficiency are eligible for conditional admission.

Advanced Credit

International Baccalaureate (IB)

Students who earn a score of 4 or better on International Baccalaureate (IB) higher level examinations (subsidiary level examinations are not accepted) will be granted a minimum of three semester hours of credit for each subject area. International Baccalaureate scores must be sent directly to Central from International Baccalaureate.

Advanced Placement (AP)

Central College accepts Advanced Placement (AP) credit and International Baccalaureate (IB) credit.

Students who earn a score of 4 or better on Advance Placement (AP) examinations will be granted a minimum of three semester hours of credit for each subject area. Scores of 3 may satisfy some prerequisites with departmental approval. AP scores must be sent directly to Central from the College Board.