IELTS score for university admission
Checked thresholds at 20 universities, accepted alternatives, and the universities that run their own English exam instead.
Half the language question is answered by one number: the score your programme asks for. The other half is that many universities let you skip the certificate altogether.
Admission almost always means the Academic module, not General Training. Some universities accept both — Politecnico di Milano and NABA in Italy, for instance. The certificate is valid for two years; the same applies to TOEFL and PTE, while Cambridge certificates do not expire.
What the thresholds look like
- 5.0–5.5 — most bachelor's programmes in Malaysia, North Cyprus and several Italian universities.
- 6.0 — the usual bar at UK branch campuses in Dubai and on medical programmes in Malaysia and North Cyprus.
- 6.5 — Istanbul Medipol, Bocconi, McDaniel, master's programmes in Cyprus.
- A special case — METU in Türkiye has not accepted IELTS since December 2022; you need TOEFL iBT or PTE.
The overall band is not everything: Bocconi asks 6.5 with at least 6.0 in every part, Middlesex Dubai 6.0 with at least 5.5.
What IELTS score you need
Typical minimum overall IELTS Academic band
- Bachelor's in Malaysia and North Cyprus5.0–5.5
- UK branch campuses in Dubai6.0
- Medicine in Malaysia and North Cyprus6.0
- Istanbul Medipol, Bocconi, McDaniel6.5
- Master's programmes in Cyprus6.5
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When you do not need the certificate
- The university's own exam. CIU and NEU in North Cyprus run their own English test.
- An online interview. Budapest Metropolitan in Hungary admits without a certificate.
- School or a degree in English. Many universities exempt graduates of English-medium programmes; Malaysia also counts school English and the MUET exam.
- A preparatory language year. If your score falls short, universities in Türkiye, North Cyprus and Malaysia enrol you on an English foundation year.
IELTS: the score you need and where you can skip it
Checked thresholds at universities across nine destinations, accepted alternatives, and the cases where no certificate is needed.
- A table of thresholds at 20 universities: bachelor's, master's, medicine
- Where the university's own English exam replaces IELTS
- TOEFL, PTE, Duolingo, MUET: what counts
- Five mistakes that force a retake
Mistakes that force a retake
- Sitting General instead of Academic.
- Hitting the overall band but missing the minimum in one part.
- Sitting online where only a test centre counts: Medipol accepts neither IELTS Online nor TOEFL Home Edition.
- Letting the certificate expire: the two years run to the application date, not to the start of the programme.
- Sitting too late — the university needs time to verify results, so leave a month before the deadline.
Find your programme in 2 minutes
Send us your shortlist — we will check the requirement for each programme, work out how long you need to prepare and tell you where no certificate is needed. The first consultation is free. AcademGo office: Warsaw, ul. Złota 7/28.