Admission of International Students to Ball State University

Students who are not citizens, permanent residents, asylees, refugees, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) of the United States must enroll at Ball State University through the Rinker Center for International Programs. Prospective students must meet all of the university’s international student admission requirements.

In addition to submitting a special admission application and all supporting academic credentials, students must have evidence of adequate financial support for expenses–including tuition, fees, books, supplies, maintenance (lodging and food), health insurance, taxes, and miscellaneous expenditures (clothing, local travel, recreation, toiletries, telephone, etc.).

A student intending to enroll at Ball State University may be required to retake the TOEFL or IELTS before being admitted, regardless of the extent of previous training in English. Any exceptions to these rules must be approved by the Rinker Center for International Programs. For information about this program contact TOEFL at www.toefl.org or IELTS at www.ielts.org. Test results must be submitted to the university before a candidate’s application can be processed.

Any student admitted conditionally with a score lower than 550 (paper-based)/79 (internet-based) on the TOEFL or 6.5 on the IELTS will be required to take an English language proficiency exam during orientation to determine the English language courses that must be taken through the Intensive English Institute. Upon completion of the IEI program, the students must pursue full time academic study. Exceptions to these rules must be approved by the Rinker Center for International Programs and the Intensive English Institute. Any international student may take a course in English as a foreign language, for credit or noncredit, regardless of whether such a course is required. Any student who is required to take a course in English as a foreign language and whose progress is unsatisfactory will be required to repeat the course if the Intensive English Institute, Rinker Center for International Programs, and the chairperson of the relevant department deem it advisable. Before completing their course work in the Intensive English Institute, students are required to pass a test of their proficiency in English.

Upon enrollment, international students are assessed nonresident tuition and fees for undergraduate and graduate courses offered by the university. The university currently has a limited number of scholarships authorized by the University Board of Trustees that may be awarded to outstanding and deserving students from other countries. These scholarships are equivalent in value to a partial waiver of university tuition fees. No scholarships are available for room, board, or transportation costs.

Successful applicants will be sent documentation allowing them to apply for a student visa through United States consular representatives in their home countries. All international students are required to participate in a health insurance plan designed for Ball State University students unless approved for a waiver. The premium must be paid at the time of registration and must be maintained throughout the student’s period of enrollment at the university.

Upon arrival at Ball State, students attend special orientation sessions during which registration information and other relevant student issues are discussed. An English language examination will be administered to those students who require the test at this time to determine language competency.

Prospective students are encouraged to inquire at least one year before proposed enrollment at Ball State by contacting the Rinker Center for International Programs or by visiting bsu.edu/internationaladmit. Students who have a break in continuous semester attendance or who have attended other institutions since last attending Ball State and who were in good standing with Ball State at the time of stop out will be considered reenrolling students. Please refer to the information above.