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Required Exams

Educational Testing Service (ETS) administers required exams. Applicants are encouraged to register early to maximize the chances of scheduling preferred test dates and times. For details and registration information explore the ETS web site.

Reporting Scores  

Official scores must be reported directly to Stanford from Educational Testing Service. Stanford’s ETS institutional code is 4704.  Individual department code numbers are not necessary.  As long as the institutional code of 4704 is selected, the score will be electronically delivered to Stanford.

GRE (Graduate Record Examination) General Test

Scores from the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) General Test are required of all applicants. In addition, some departments also require the subject exam. Refer to programs.

  • Scores expire after five years and will not be available from ETS.
  • Test scores received by Graduate Admissions prior to September 1, 2014 are no longer retained on file. If you had ETS send test scores to Stanford but you did NOT submit an application, you must request that ETS resend the scores if you submit an application in the future.
  • Find GRE (Graduate Record Exam) information here.

TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)

Adequate command of spoken and written English is required for admission. Applicants whose first language is not English must submit an official test score from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Stanford accepts only ETS (Educational Testing Service) scores.

  • Minimum TOEFL Requirements: Evidence of adequate English proficiency must be submitted before enrollment is approved by Graduate Admissions.
Applicants Applying To Internet-Based TOEFL Paper-Based TOEFL
Doctoral Programs: All Fields 100 600
Master's Programs: Humanities, Social Sciences, Education 100 600
Master's Programs: School of Engineering 89 575
  • Scores must be submitted from a test taken within the last eighteen months.
  • Exemptions are granted to applicants who have earned (or will earn, before enrolling at Stanford) a U.S. bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree from a college or university accredited by a regional accrediting association in the United States, or the international equivalent degree from a university of recognized standing in a country in which all instruction is provided in English. Therefore, applicants with degrees from the U.S., Australia, Canada (except Quebec), New Zealand, Singapore, Ireland, and the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales) are exempt from taking the TOEFL and do not need to submit the TOEFL Waiver Request form.
  • Applicants with degrees from institutions in countries other than those listed above and in which English was the only language of instruction must submit the TOEFL Waiver Request form in order to be evaluated for a waiver to the TOEFL requirement.
  • U.S. citizenship does not automatically exempt an applicant from taking the TOEFL if the applicant’s first language is not English.