Student Applicants

Graduate and Post-baccalaureate Application Procedures

All graduate and post-baccalaureate applicants (e.g., Ed.D., joint Ph.D. applicants, master’s degree applicants, those seeking educational credentials or certificates, and where permitted, and holders of baccalaureate degrees interested in taking courses for personal or professional growth) must file a complete graduate application as described in the graduate and post-baccalaureate admission materials at www.csumentor.edu. Applicants seeking a second bachelor’s degree should submit the graduate application for admission unless specifically requested to do otherwise. Applicants who completed undergraduate degree requirements and graduated the preceding term are also required to complete and submit an application and the $55 nonrefundable application fee. Since applicants for post-baccalaureate programs may be limited to the choice of a single campus on each application, re-routing to alternate campuses or later changes of campus choice are not guaranteed. To be assured of initial consideration by more than one campus, it is necessary to submit separate applications (including fees) to each. Applications submitted by way of www.csumentor.edu are expected unless submission of an electronic application is impossible. An electronic version of the CSU graduate application is available on the World Wide Web at www.csumentor.edu.

Graduate and Post-Baccalaureate Admission Requirements

Graduate and post-baccalaureate applicants may apply for a degree objective, a credential or certificate objective, or where approved, may have no program objective. Depending on the objective, the CSU will consider an application for admission as follows:

General Requirements — The minimum requirements for admission to graduate and post baccalaureate studies at a California State University campus are in accordance with university regulations as well as Title 5, Chapter 1, Subchapter 3 of the California Code of Regulations.
Specifically, a student shall at the time of enrollment: (1) have completed a four-year college course of study and hold an acceptable baccalaureate degree from an institution accredited by a regional accrediting association, or shall have completed equivalent academic preparation as determined by appropriate campus authorities; (2) be in good academic standing at the last college or university attended; (3) have earned a grade point average of at least 2.5 on the last degree completed by the candidate or have attained a grade point average of at least 2.5 (A=4.0) in the last 60 semester (90 quarter) units attempted; and (4) satisfactorily meet the professional, personal, scholastic, and other standards for graduate study, including qualifying examinations, as appropriate campus authorities may prescribe. In unusual circumstances, a campus may make exceptions to these criteria.
Students who meet the minimum requirements for graduate and post-baccalaureate studies may be considered for admission in one of the four following categories:
- Graduate Classified – To pursue a graduate degree, applicants are required to fulfill all of the professional, personal, scholastic, and other standards, including qualifying examinations, prescribed by the campus; or
- Graduate Conditionally Classified – Applicants may be admitted to a graduate degree program in this category if, in the opinion of appropriate campus authority, deficiencies may be remedied by additional preparation; or
- Post-Baccalaureate Classified, e.g. admission to an education credential program – Persons wishing to enroll in a credential or certificate program, will be required to satisfy additional professional, personal, scholastic, and other standards, including qualifying examinations, prescribed by the campus; or
- Post-Baccalaureate Unclassified – To enroll in undergraduate courses as preparation for advanced degree programs or to enroll in graduate courses for professional or personal growth, applicants must be admitted as post-baccalaureate unclassified students. By meeting the general requirements, applicants are eligible for admission as post-baccalaureate unclassified students. Admission in this status does not constitute admission to, or assurance of consideration for admission to, any graduate degree or credential program (Most CSU campuses do not offer admission to unclassified post-baccalaureate students).

These and other CSU admissions requirements are subject to change as policies are revised and laws are amended. The CSU website www.calstate.edu and the CSU admissions portal www.csumentor.edu are good sources of the most up-to-date information.

Graduate and Post-Baccalaureate English Language Requirement

All graduate and post-baccalaureate applicants, regardless of citizenship, whose native language is not English and whose preparatory education was principally in a language other than English must demonstrate competence in English. Those who do not possess a bachelor's degree from a postsecondary institution where English is the principal language of instruction must receive a minimum score, some programs require a higher score, on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (Paper-Based Test: 550, Internet-Based Test: 80), unless the applicant:

1. Submits proof of having obtained a bachelor’s degree from an accredited post-secondary institution where English was the principal language of instruction. CSULB interprets “where English is the principal language of instruction” to mean that a school is located in a country where English is the native language (the daily medium of communication of the majority of residents is English), and the applicant received academic instruction in all subjects (except foreign language courses) at all levels of education in English, or
2. Notification from CSULB’s American Language Institute that the applicant has successfully completed level 6 of the American Language Institute Program.

NOTE: Several CSU campuses may use alternaive methods for assessing fluency in English including Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), and the International Test of English Proficiency (ITEP).

EXCEPTION: Applicants applying for Public Policy and Administration, which requires a 600 TOEFL, will not be waived from the TOEFL requirement. Also, for this exemption to remain valid for other students, once having met the exemption, the student must not have left the U.S.A. for more than two years to reside or study in a country where English is not the predominant language of business, education and day-to-day societal functions.