International Students

INTERNATIONAL FIRST-YEAR APPLICANTS

• Completed online application.
  • Fall (August): April 1
  • Spring (January): October 1

• Non-refundable $80 application fee (check or money order in U.S. dollars and drawn on a U.S. bank, payable to UNCW).

• Essay & short answer in application

• Official transcripts, translated to English (translation must be certified), of grades from secondary school.
  • In order to be “official”, transcripts must be sent directly from the school administrator/ counselor. Student uploaded transcripts will not be accepted.

• TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo English Test, or Pearson test of English score unless:
  • English is the applicant's native language.
  • English was the primary language of instruction at the applicant’s secondary school
  • Applicant has an SAT-I critical reading score of 450 or higher or an ACT minimum score of 20 on the reading section.
  • A student successfully completes Level 4 in UNCW's ELC program.

INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER APPLICANTS

International transfer student applicants must submit the following:

• Completed online application.
  • Fall Deadline: April 1
  • Spring Deadline: October 1

• Non-refundable $80 application fee (check or money order in U.S. dollars and drawn on a U.S. bank, payable to UNCW).

• Official high school (secondary school) transcript, translated into English (translation must be certified).

• Translated transcripts from post-secondary institutions.
  • The applicant must have foreign transcripts evaluated by an accredited credential evaluation service. The applicant must choose a company that belongs to the National Association of Credential Evaluators (NACES), such as Spantran.

• TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo English Test, or Pearson Test of English score unless:
  • English is applicant's native language.
  • Applicant has completed 2 college-level courses in English composition at a U.S. college or university with a grade of B or higher.
  • A student successfully completes Level 4 in UNCW's ELC program.

English Proficiency:

International applicants applying as a first-year or transfer student must meet one of the following criteria:

• TOEFL: minimum of 71
• IELTS: minimum of 6.0
• Duolingo: minimum of 95
• Pearson: minimum of 54
• iTEP Academic: minimum of 3.7

English proficiency can be waived if a student meets one of the following:

• English is native language
• English is primary language of secondary/post-secondary school
• Applicant has an SAT-I critical reading score of 450 or higher or an ACT minimum score of 20 on the reading section.
• Completion of two college-level courses of English composition at a U.S. college or university and received a “B” or higher
• Completion of Level 4 ELC program

Financial assistance for UNCW for international students is extremely limited since the out-of-state tuition at UNCW is lower than at many comparable institutions.

To research outside sources for funds, please review the following websites:

Financial Assistance Websites

• UNCW International Student Merit Scholarship- $5,000
• International Financial Aid and College Scholarship Search
• eduPASS scholarship-positions.com
• Scholarships for International Students
• InternationalScholarships.com
• InternationalStudent.com
• PrivateStudentLoans.com
• ScholarshipExperts.com
• InternationalStudentLoan.com
• FundingUSstudy.org
• UNCW International Student Ambassador Scholarship
• Student Savings: The Ultimate Scholarship Resource Guide

Every international undergraduate applicant who wants to have UNCW's F-1 sponsorship must present evidence of sufficient financial resources to meet projected expenses. This information will be requested by the Office of International Programs after a student is admitted if visa sponsorship is needed.