What IELTS score do you need for USC?

All international applicants whose native language is not English must submit a USC-approved exam, and USC says it does not grant waivers or exceptions "under any circumstances". Approved: TOEFL (or TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition), IELTS (or IELTS Indicator) at 7, Cambridge C1 Advanced at 185 with 169 per skill, PTE at 68, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 650, or ACT English 27. TOEFL ITP Plus for China is not accepted.

These are recommended minimums; USC says admitted students' average TOEFL is above 111 and applicants below the minimum are admitted at reduced rates. If you cannot sit an approved exam, Duolingo 130 is accepted, but you must then take USC's International Student Exam on arrival. See USC Admission.

USC says it does not set university-wide score minimums for graduate admission; the published scores decide whether an admitted student must take the International Student English (ISE) exam, and individual programs may set higher minimums. Accepted: TOEFL (iBT, Home Edition, Paper Edition), IELTS Academic and IELTS Online, Cambridge C1 Advanced, and PTE Academic and PTE Academic Online. Scores must be dated within two years of your application, and superscores (MyBest, One Skill Retake) are not accepted.

You are exempt if you hold or are completing a USC degree, a US bachelor's, a bachelor's from a qualifying country where English is the only official language and the language of instruction, a completed master's or doctorate from such a country, or English is your native language. Work experience and English-taught programs in non-Anglophone countries do not qualify. See USC Graduate Admission.

The US F-1 student visa sets no English test score of its own. What counts is the requirement USC sets for admission, which leads to your Form I-20. For the wider picture of studying in the US with each test, see IELTS for the USA and PTE for the USA.

Requirements change between admission cycles. Check the USC Graduate Admission page again before you book a test, and check your own program page, which can set a higher bar.