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English-language requirements for post-bachelor study

Some Australian applicants to graduate-entry and postgraduate courses, as well as all international students for whom English is a second language, must include proof of English-language proficiency with their applications.

Any Australian student who gained their undergraduate degree in a country where English was not the first language is required to meet this prerequisite unless the faculty – at its discretion – decides to substitute a personal interview.

The required level of proficiency varies between courses. In the details given below, IETLS refers to the International English Language Testing System and TOEFL to the Test of English as a Foreign Language. Where particular grades in these tests are listed as a prerequisite, only certified copies of a result that is less than two years old will be accepted.


Graduate-entry teaching

Because the BTeach and MTeach are recognised by Australian schools and all teachers in Australian schools must have a good command of English, the English-proficiency requirements for these courses are higher than those for many other graduate courses. Candidates must be 'good' to 'very good' users of English.

The minimum requirements are either:

  • IELTS: 7.5, with a minimum of 7.0 in in 'writing and reading' and a minimum of 8.0 in 'listening and speaking', or

  • TOEFL: 610 for the paper-based version of the TOEFL plus 5.0 on the Test of Written English (TWE); or 253 for the computer-based version of the TOEFL plus an essay rating of 5.0.

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Graduate Certificate in TEFL

Applicants must satisfy the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIC) English-language-proficiency requirement for a visa to study a graduate-certificate course in Australia. This varies depending on what country has issued the applicant's passport. A customised list of necessary documents, including proof of English-language proficiency, can be downloaded by visiting the Visa Application Document Checklist page on the Department of Immigration and Citizenship website and selecting the relevant passport nationality and "573 Higher Education" from the pull-down menus.

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All other postgraduate courses

International applicants who have a bachelor's degree and who are seeking admission to a faculty course other than those listed above must submit evidence of one of the following:

  • IELTS: 6.5, with a minimum of 6.0 in each band

  • TOEFL: 577 for the paper-based version of the TOEFL plus 4.5 on the Test of Written English (TWE); or 233 for the computer-based version of the TOEFL plus an essay rating of 4.5

  • completion of one year of full-time study at a university where English is the language of instruction.

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