International Students

The New York Studio School is authorized under federal law to enroll non-immigrant alien students to its programs. Our international students represent many different countries and account for approximately 35% of the student body, making a valuable contribution to the School’s community and enriching its diversity.

International students applying for the full-time programs must complete the full application and fulfill additional application procedures as outlined below.

TOEFL Requirement: Test of English as a Foreign Language

If English is not the primary language of the applicant, he or she must complete the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) exam prior to applying to the School. The School’s minimum score for the internet-based test is 80. For the paper-based test, the minimum score is 550. TOEFL scores must be included with the application form. The TOEFL Test Code for the New York Studio School is: 7453.

Further information about TOEFL can be found by contacting the Student Services Coordinator; online at www.ets.org; or by writing to: Educational Testing Services, P.O. Box 6154, Princeton, NJ 08541.

Alternatively, students may prove English proficiency by submitting proof of a college degree earned at an English-speaking institution.

Transcripts or school records from international institutions

Applicants who have academic documents from institutions outside of the United States are required to provide original, attested or certified true copies of academic records for each year of study. These records should be in the original language issued. If this language is not English, applicants must also submit an official translation of academic documents. Translations must be a complete, literal, word-for-word translation in the same format as the original document.

In addition to submitting the aforementioned materials, all international transcripts must be converted into U.S. educational equivalencies. Those records that are not converted into U.S. equivalencies by the issuing educational institution must be evaluated by an external agency. Such evaluations must be a course-by-course evaluation of university work and should include:

• Name of educational institution
• Location and address of institution
• Length of study
• U.S. educational equivalent (2-year college, 4-year college)
• Area of concentration
• Courses studied per academic year
• Conversion of course hours into U.S. semester hours of credit for each course evaluated
• Credits earned for each course evaluate
• Conversion of grades/marks into equivalent U.S. grades

The New York Studio School strongly recommends that international academic records be evaluated by World Education Services (WES) at http://www.wes.org. There is also the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO)/ Foreign Education Credential Service. Information on these services can be found online at http://www.aacrao.org/international/individual.cfm. Fees for the evaluation of credentials tend to range from $50 to $250 per document, depending on the amount of detail required and the speed of the response. For a list of other resources, visit the EduPass website at http://www.edupass.org/admissions/evaluation.phtml. Students can also contact World Education Services at info@wes.org or www.wes.org

International Student Visa

After acceptance into the full-time program, international students must obtain a student visa. MFA students will apply for an F-1 student visa and Certificate students will apply for an M-1 student visa. In order to do this, the student must submit an application for the Form I-20 with supplemental proof of adequate financial resources to provide for expenses while attending the School. These documents must reflect the total sum of tuition, fees and living expenses for the entire course of study and must be in a readily accessible form such as liquid assets. More information regarding applications for student visas will be provided upon acceptance to the School.

International students must pay the first semester’s tuition in full, as well as an International Student Processing Fee before an I-20 can be issued. This $300 processing fee is non-refundable.
More information may be found at: studyinthestates.dhs.gov

Exchange Programs

The New York Studio School maintains an active exchange program with art schools in Europe. Students who have attended for at least one full year are eligible to study abroad for one semester. Tuition fees are paid to the home institution. Exchanges have been available with major universities and colleges including the Royal College of Art, London; Chelsea School of Art, London; The Slade School of Art, London; the Universitat der Kunste Berlin, Germany and Marseille Ecole d’art, France.