CSU Eligibility Requirements
International Freshman
All applicants to SJSU must meet all of the following admission requirements to enroll at SJSU.
1. Earn the equivalent of a U.S. 3.0 grade point average (GPA) or an average of “B” grades.
SJSU will convert your international grading scale to the equivalent of a U.S. GPA as needed in order to evaluate your application for admission. Please note that due to impaction, some majors require higher GPAs than others for admission.
2. Successfully complete three years of college preparatory mathematics with a minimum grade of “C-” or better.
3. Meet English language proficiency requirements
If your school’s medium of instruction is English:
All students must take four years of college preparatory English if you are attending a school where English is the medium of instruction.
If your school’s medium of instruction is not English:
If English is not the medium of instruction, then you will be required to submit official passing test scores from an approved English language proficiency test (TOEFL, IELTS, PTE or Duolingo ). Score reports must be sent directly to SJSU from the testing institution. SJSU will not accept score reports sent by the applicant or agency on behalf of the applicant.
4. Submit partial official secondary school (high school) transcripts and final transcripts.
In order to process your application for admission, you must submit partial official secondary school transcripts to show your completed course work as well as any course work in progress. All transcripts and documents must be received by the deadlines posted in your MySJSU account. The documents must include ALL 9th through 12th year courses you have completed (passed and not passed). A graduation (completion) date must appear on the final transcript.
If you attended more than one institution to complete Grade 9 through Grade 12, please ensure all transcripts from each institution are submitted to SJSU to complete your application. Official electronic transcripts (electronic or soft copy) must be directly transmitted by your institution via an institutional email address to [email protected].
Additional Information
If you attended a high school with regional U.S.accreditation (ex: WASC), you must meet CSU Eligibility Requirements.
“O” Level Examinations
If you have taken "O" level examinations, SJSU requires that five subjects are passed in one sitting or the same year, including Math and English (English as an ESL is not acceptable); if these requirements regarding "O" level examinations are met, the English Language proficiency test will be waived. Certified copies of "O" level examinations must be sent directly to SJSU from the testing service or attested by your school; scores sent by the applicant will not be accepted.
“A” Level or “AS” Level Examinations
If you have taken "A" level and/or "AS" level examinations, SJSU may award college credit if you pass these exams with a "C" or higher. SJSU must receive "A" and "AS" level examination scores directly from the Board of Examinations. Scores sent by you or certified statements of exam results will not be accepted. You will be required to complete four years of college preparatory English and three years of mathematics and earn a passing score of "C-" or higher.
International Baccalaureate (IB)
If your studies were in the International Baccalaureate (IB curriculum) program, please submit your school transcripts for evaluation. You will be required to complete four years of English and three years of mathematics and earn a passing score of "C-" or higher. For those earning scores of 4 or higher on the IB Higher Level exams, SJSU may award college credit.
Admission Selection Process (Impaction)
Admission to San José State is competitive in all majors because SJSU continues to have more qualified applicants than available new student spaces. This situation is called "impaction" and it means that meeting the minimum California State University (CSU) requirements does not guarantee admission to SJSU. To learn about impaction and view the historical competitiveness of each major at SJSU, visit our Impaction Information page.
Choose Your Major and Alternate Major Carefully
It is important to understand that though all majors are impacted, the admission threshold for each major varies, depending on the capacity of the major to take new students, and the number of students applying for that major in that term.
We encourage you to apply for the major in which you intend to earn a degree. Change of major is prohibited during the application and admission process. After you are admitted, change of major is never guaranteed and is by petition only. Your mandatory orientation, advising and registration will all be based on your choice of major.
Alternate Major: You must enter an alternate major on your application to SJSU. We will consider the alternate major for those applicants who did not meet the impaction threshold to their first choice major. We will only admit to alternate majors if there is additional capacity for new student enrollment in that major.
View a complete list of degrees, including graduate degrees and credentials.
English Proficiency Requirement
To satisfy the English language proficiency requirement, undergraduates may take any one of the following tests:
- Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
- International English Language Testing System (IELTS)
- Pearson Test of English (PTE)
- Duolingo
Official score reports must be electronically transmitted by the testing center directly to SJSU after the student has submitted a Cal State Apply online application. SJSU will notify students after they apply when to submit scores (via the MySJSU "To Do List").
Score reports for TOEFL, IELTS, PTE and Duolingo over two years old are not valid. The SJSU school code for SAT and TOEFL results is 4687.
Freshman and lower division transfer applicants will need to meet the English Proficiency Requirements below.
| SJSU undergraduate minimum proficiency standards |
Internet |
Paper |
| TOEFL: Undergraduate, except Engineering |
61 |
500 |
| TOEFL: All Engineering majors |
80 |
550 |
| IELTS: Undergraduate, except Engineering |
6.0 |
N/A |
| IELTS: Engineering |
6.5 |
N/A |
| PTE: Undergraduate, except Engineering |
44 |
N/A |
| PTE: All Engineering majors |
53 |
N/A |
| DUOLINGO |
95 |
N/A
|