TOEFL Score Requirements by University Selectivity

By Muntasir Aug 01, 2026 6 min read

TL;DR

TOEFL score minimums rise with university selectivity. Highly selective universities often require 90 to 100 or higher on the old 0 to 120 scale, equal to 4.5 to 5 or higher on the new 1 to 6 scale launched in January 2026. Moderately selective universities often accept 61 to 88. Less selective and open admission universities commonly ask for 61 to 71 depending on the program. Programs inside a university frequently set their own minimum: Arizona State University asks for 61 in general programs but 100 for its journalism school. Always confirm the current minimum on your target university's official admissions page.

TOEFL Score Requirements by University Selectivity

TOEFL iBT score minimums rise with a university's selectivity. Highly selective universities usually set the bar at 90 to 100 or higher on the 0 to 120 scale, or 4.5 to 5 or higher on the new 1 to 6 scale. Moderately selective universities often accept scores in the 61 to 88 range. Less selective and open admission universities commonly list 61 to 71 as the floor, though specific programs inside any tier often ask for more.

ETS moved the TOEFL iBT to a new 1 to 6 score scale on January 21, 2026. Through a transition period ending January 2028, score reports list the new score together with a CEFR level and a comparable 0 to 120 score, so both numbers appear on the same report. This guide lists both scales wherever a university publishes both, and translates old-scale-only figures using ETS's official comparable-score table.

Old and new TOEFL score scales

The table below shows the minimum old-scale score ETS assigns to each new-scale band, published in ETS's comparable-score table. Use it to translate any requirement a university states in only one scale.

New scale (1 to 6)	Old scale minimum (0 to 120)
6	114
5.5	107
5	95
4.5	86
4	72
3.5	58
3	44
2.5	34
2	24
1.5	12
1	0

For a full walkthrough of how each TOEFL section is scored and combined into these totals, see our guide to TOEFL scoring. For a sense of what counts as a strong score outside university admissions, see our guide to good TOEFL scores.

Typical minimums at highly selective universities

Highly selective universities generally ask for a score in the 90s or higher on the old scale. The table below lists published minimums at three highly selective schools. Where a school publishes only the old-scale number, the new-scale figure is labelled ETS equivalent and read from ETS's comparable-score table.

University	Program	Minimum (old scale)	Minimum (new scale)
Harvard GSAS	Graduate, non-native English speakers	95	5
Stanford	Graduate, university-wide minimum	90	4.5 (ETS equivalent)
Stanford GSB	PhD program	100	5 (ETS equivalent)
MIT	Undergraduate, minimum / recommended	90 / 100	4.5 / 5 (ETS equivalent)

Harvard's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences also sets a minimum Speaking sub-score for non-native English speakers, on top of the overall minimum of 95 on the old scale or 5 on the new scale. The Speaking floor is 23 for tests taken before January 21, 2026, and 4.5 for tests taken on or after January 21, 2026. A score of 109 or higher on the old scale waives Stanford's English Placement Test for admitted graduate students. The 90 minimum only opens admission consideration, it does not waive placement testing.

Typical minimums at moderately selective universities

Moderately selective universities set lower floors than the highly selective tier, though the exact number still varies by school.

University	Program	Minimum (old scale)	Minimum (new scale)
Purdue	Undergraduate overall (per-section floor)	88 (20 per section)	4.5 (4.0 per section)
Arizona State University	General undergraduate programs	61	3.5

Purdue's new-scale requirement applies to TOEFL iBT exams taken on or after January 21, 2026. Exams taken earlier are measured against the 88-point overall minimum with a 20-point section floor. Arizona State University's 61-point general minimum is the lowest published figure among the moderately selective examples in this guide, but specific ASU programs set considerably higher minimums, covered below.

Typical minimums at less selective and open admission universities

Less selective and open admission universities generally publish the lowest TOEFL minimums, though engineering and other technical programs sometimes require more than the general floor.

University	Program	Minimum (old scale)	Minimum (new scale)
Wright State University	General undergraduate	61	3.5
Wright State University	College of Engineering and Computer Science	71	not published
University of Toledo	Undergraduate, exams before Jan 21, 2026	71	old scale only
University of Toledo	Undergraduate, exams on or after Jan 21, 2026	not applicable	4

Wright State University's College of Engineering and Computer Science asks for ten points more than the university's general 61-point minimum. The University of Toledo publishes different minimums depending on when you take the test: 71 on the old scale for exams before January 21, 2026, and 4 on the new scale for exams on or after this same date. The gap between Toledo's two figures is explored below.

How program type shifts the bar within a tier

A university's published minimum is often only a starting point. At Arizona State University, the published minimum ranges from 61 for general programs to 100 for the Cronkite School of Journalism, depending on the program.

Arizona State University program	Minimum (old scale)	Minimum (new scale)
General programs	61	3.5
Nursing	76	4.0
Engineering	79	4.0
Cronkite School of Journalism	100	5.0

The 39-point gap between ASU's general minimum and its journalism-school minimum sits entirely inside one moderately selective university. Purdue applies a similar layered rule at the section level: an overall minimum of 88, or 4.5 on the new scale, alongside a 20-point section floor, or 4.0 on the new scale. Stanford shows the same pattern between programs: its graduate-wide minimum is 90, while the Graduate School of Business PhD program sets its own minimum at 100.

Each university sets its own requirement

TOEFL minimums are not a single national standard. Each university, and often each program inside it, sets its own number, so treat every figure in this guide as a starting point rather than a final answer. The tiers also overlap in practice: Arizona State University's general minimum of 61 matches Wright State University's general minimum of 61, and the University of Toledo's 71 sits above both, so a moderately selective university does not automatically ask for more than a less selective one.

The University of Toledo's own figures illustrate the point. The university requires 71 on the old scale for exams taken before January 21, 2026. For exams taken on or after January 21, 2026, the University of Toledo states a minimum of 4 on the new scale. ETS's comparable-score table places an old-scale score of 71 inside the 3.5 band, covering 58 to 71, not the 4 band, which starts at 72. Toledo's own new-scale minimum sits half a band above what a direct ETS conversion would produce, showing universities set their own thresholds rather than following the ETS table point for point.

Confirm the current minimum directly with your target university before applying. Requirements change, admissions offices update pages mid-cycle, and individual programs inside a university often require more than the general published floor. Our guide to TOEFL requirements in university admissions walks through how to find and confirm your target school's current minimum. Once you have set a target score, our free TOEFL practice tests help you check where you stand right now, no signup required.