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Admissions Policies
P2 - Determining Academic Eligibility for Admission of International Students – Academic Credentials

Policy

GCAC-305 Admission Requirements for International Students

Procedure

  1. International applicant submits a graduate application via the application portal on the Graduate School website.
    1. Prospective students with questions about eligibility may visit a website to get country-specific information.
  2. Graduate Enrollment Services (GES) reviews applications for eligibility while the graduate program begins the review process. There are three possible outcomes:
    1. The student is eligible for admission.
      1. A full review of eligibility is not conducted until the official transcripts are received.
      2. The official transcripts are not required until a program offer of admission has been accepted.
      3. Therefore, GES Admission coordinators do not make notes verifying eligibility. The indicator that GES has deemed an applicant eligible is the change of status from “POFA-Program Offer Accept” to “PEND-Pending DISSA.”
    2. The applicant is ineligible for admission.
      1. GES Admission coordinators attempt to quickly identify applicants with credentials that deem the applicant ineligible.
      2. GES Admission coordinators update the Graduate Admission Decision System status and notifies the applicant by U.S. postal mail.
    3. The applicant’s eligibility is in question.
      1. GES Admission coordinator places a notation in the Graduate Admission Decision System to inform the graduate program staff that further review is required if the graduate program decides to offer admission.
      2. If the plan wants to offer admission, the graduate plan reaches out to the GES Admission coordinator to discuss what information or credentials are still required to meet eligibility.

Revision History

Approved by The Graduate School, Feb. 12, 2020

This page was generated on April 25, 2024 at 6:17 PM local time. This may not be the most recent version of this page. Check the Penn State Graduate School website for updates.