International Students

International students are an essential and valuable part of the NMSU community. International students are subject to different responsibilities than domestic students and must ensure to follow federal regulations to maintain their status. The Office of International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) ensures these requirements are met and works with international students to maintain their immigration status. Some students not seeking degrees, such as international exchange students, may work directly with the Office of Education Abroad. 

Federal Regulations

The United States Department of Homeland Security has established rules for students in non-immigrant status, such as those with F-1 or J-1 visa types. Some of these rules include the following:

  1. For immigration purposes, each student must maintain full-time student status 
    1. Full-time status for fall and spring semesters is defined as 12 or more credits for undergraduates (only three online credits can apply to the full-time requirement).
    2. Full-time status for fall and spring semesters is defined as 9 or more credits for graduate students (only three online credits can apply to the full-time requirement).
    3. Full-time status for summer is defined according to NMSU requirements. Exceptions possible for final semester. Consult ISSS officials for more details. 
  2. International students may not work off campus without authorization. On-campus employment may be authorized under certain conditions.
  3. All international students must maintain an up-to-date record in the ISSS Office. This record must indicate the student’s current living address, phone number, and email address.
  4. Before admission, a prospective international student must demonstrate the following:
  5.  Academic ability to succeed in the chosen course of study.
  6.  Adequate financial support to complete the chosen course of study.
  7.  English language proficiency as defined by the university.

University Procedures for International Students

Undergraduate Admission

International students are subject to the same admissions standards as all other NMSU students, but some additional requirements apply. This section addresses those additional requirements.  Visit https://isss.nmsu.edu/ for more information. 

Applications for admission that include the transfer of credits earned at a non-U.S. university must include a professional Foreign Credential Evaluation (FCE) report from a member institution of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) for every transcript from a foreign secondary school and/or post-secondary institution attended. The ISSS department highly recommends that applicants consider using SpanTran for their FCE. NMSU has worked with SpanTran to provide applicants with a clear understanding of which evaluation is needed. SpanTran provides an applicant portal to track and access evaluations. SpanTran is a long-standing member of NACES. For more information, please visit https://spantran.com/web/

Undergraduate – New

  • GPA requirement of 2.75 or higher 
  • Minimum TOEFL of 68 iBT, or 6.0 IELTS, or Duolingo 95 or higher 
  • Secondary school equivalency with a minimum 2.75 GPA or ACT composite score of 21 or SAT score of 1060 or Ranked in the top 20 percent of their high school graduating class or a GED cumulative score of 480 or HiSET cumulative score of 45.  

Undergraduate – Transfer

  • 2.00 or better GPA on transfer college or university credits. 
  • Students transferring from a two-year college, community college, or university in the United States who have earned a minimum of 30 acceptable semester credits (45 acceptable quarter credits) with a GPA of 2.0 or better (acceptable credit means classes that require a high proficiency in both written and oral English). 

English Language Proficiency Requirements

For undergraduate admission to the university, NMSU requires a score of 68 (internet-based) or better on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or a score of 6.0 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or a score of 95 on the Duolingo English Test (DET) for international students for both non-degree and degree seeking. International students attending another US institution and having a valid I-20 may enroll as a non-degree seeking student and take course(s) at the undergraduate level. 

Students who are citizens from one of the following countries will be exempt from providing a TOEFL, IELTS, or DET score for admission purposes. NMSU requires all admitted international students to take the English Language Placement Test (ELPT) for placement purposes. 

Anguilla, Antigua, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Barbuda, Belize, Bermuda, Botswana, Caicos Islands, Cameroon (Anglophone), Canada (except Quebec), Cayman Islands, Christmas Islands, Cook Island, Dominica, England, Eritrea, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Grand Cayman Islands, Grenada, Grenada and the Grenadines, Guernsey, Guyana, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati Islands, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Malta, Mauritius, Micronesia (Federated States of), Montserrat, Namibia, Nauru, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norfolk Island, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Scotland, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Africa, St. Christopher, St. Helena, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & Grenadines, Swaziland, Tanzania, Trinidad & Tobago, Tristan da Cunha Island, Turks & Caicos Islands, Uganda, Virgin Islands, Wales, Zambia, Zimbabwe

For students not from the countries listed above, a waiver of the TOEFL/IELTS/DET requirement may be considered for: 

  1. Students completing high school in the United States who have attended the high school for at least two full years. 
  2. Students transferring from an institutional accredited two-year college, community college, or university in the United States who have earned a minimum of 24 semester credits or 36 quarter credits (all classes having English as the language of instruction) with a GPA of 2.0. 
  3. The university reserves the right to require any prospective international student to meet the TOEFL, IELTS or DET requirement.

All application material, transcripts, national examination scores, transcripts from colleges or universities (with an English translation), and test scores (including the TOEFL or IELTS) should be sent directly to the NMSU Undergraduate Admissions at admissions@nmsu.edu. Please note that transcripts, test scores, and foreign credential evaluations sent directly from an applicant/student to NMSU will be considered unofficial. To be considered official, transcripts, test scores and foreign credential evaluations must come directly from the school, testing agency, or evaluation agency. All documents should be emailed to admissions@nmsu.edu.  

Admission Restrictions 

Admissions to summer terms in not available to new undergraduate international students due to the limited number of face-to-face course offerings. 

Admission Deadlines 

For full consideration for undergraduate admission, applicants are subject to the following deadlines:

July 1 (application initiated) Fall Semester
July 15th (all documents submitted) Fall Semester
October 1st* (Study Abroad) Spring Semester
November 15th (application initiated) Spring Semester
December 1st (all documents submitted) Spring Semester

Post Admission 

Immigration Document Requirement (I-20)
  1. Valid passport 
  2. Each prospective international student must submit a current financial support document with their application. This document must show that: 
  3. Availability of liquid funds to support the student’s education and other related expenses for at least one academic year. 
  4. Proof of adequate financial support should be sent directly to ISSS. 
  5. Affidavit of Support Form provided by ISSS 

Post Arrival 

1. Aggie Welcome and Orientation 

Orientation for all new first-time and transfer students is mandatory. At NMSU's Aggie Welcome and Orientation (AWO) programs, students will attend information sessions, learn about campus resources and college life, meet with an academic advisor, and register for classes 

More information about Aggie Welcome and Orientation is available at https://awo.nmsu.edu/. 

2. English Language Placement Test 

Placement in writing classes for international students is determined by the results of the English Language Placement Test (ELPT).   

Based on the results of the ELPT, the student is either assigned to ENGL 1105M (a bridge course designed to ensure success in ENGL 1110M) or is allowed to enroll directly in ENGL 1110M (for multilingual students).  Please note that these classes are only available on NMSU's Las Cruces Campus. International students excused from ENGL 1105M will be required to take ENGL 1110M. The student may then be required to complete one or more regular English classes as required for a particular degree. Completing basic English courses at other U.S. institutions does not automatically satisfy the ENGL 1110M requirement. Equivalencies for ENGL 1105M and equivalencies for ENGL 1110M or ENGL 1110G are determined by the University Student Records Office, who may refer exceptional cases to the English Department in the College of Arts and Sciences. 

In cases of dramatic discrepancies between TOEFL/ IELTS scores and the ELPT, the ELPT results shall determine placement. 

3. Mandatory SEVIS check-in 

SEVIS check-in is orientation for new and transfer international students and it is mandatory to attend. This is a federal requirement for students to comply. Mandatory SEVIS check-in MUST be completed by all new and transfer students one day before classes begin depending on the semester they are admitted to. The location of the Sevis check-in will be communicated by the ISSS office.  

4. Canvas Course & Document Upload Portal 

The Canvas Course & Document Upload Portal is mandatory for new undergraduate and graduate international students to NMSU. Students will receive an email invitation to the course once they have set up their NMSU email address. 

*** All the 4 items listed above must be completed by New and Transfer International students. 

Graduate International Students

For more information on graduate international student procedures, please visit the Graduate School section of this catalog. 

Miscellaneous Regulations

​Health Insurance

New Mexico State University (NMSU) requires all F-1 international students studying at NMSU to have health insurance coverage. It is the student’s responsibility to purchase and maintain health insurance coverage while enrolled at NMSU. The health insurance coverage must cover the student while they are physically present in the U.S. including summer and winter breaks. NMSU will provide an educative role whereby NMSU will inform international graduate students with their options for obtaining health insurance along with the advantages and disadvantages of each option and allow the students to make an informed decision on their own.

Canvas Health Insurance Course - All new international students at NMSU are required to complete the Canvas Health Insurance Course. Students will be sent a link to the course after they have enrolled in classes and activated their NMSU email address. Participation in the course is mandatory. Completion of the course acknowledges that you have been provided with the information necessary to make an informed decision regarding the purchase of your health insurance coverage. It acknowledges that you understand the pros and cons of the plan you selected, including taxes and potential complications during subsequent change of status procedures.

  1. New international students are not permitted to enroll in classes until all ISSS requirements are met, including attending Aggie Welcome and Orientation, the Mandatory SEVIS Check-in Session, and taking the English Language Placement Test (when applicable, see English Language Proficiency Requirements section).  All international students, are required to the campus to which they were admitted. The following are the offices that a student may need to report to:
    1. Las Cruces campus: International Student & Scholar Services, Suite 101 of the Educational Services Building (575) 646-2834, isss@nmsu.edu.  (Note:  Exchange students need to report to the Office of Study Abroad in 132 Garcia Center.)
    2. Doña Ana Community College: International Student & Scholar Services, Sufficient classroom-based courses are not available to maintain visa status (e.g., courses are online).
    3. Alamogordo Community College: Office of Student Services, Student Services Building, second floor
    4. Grants Community College: Office of Student Services, Walter Martinez Building, Main Office Complex
  2. Students in non-degree exchange J-1 visa status must be engaged full time in a prescribed course of study.  Consult the Education Abroad Office for more details.
  3. All international students are required to register at the Aggie Health and Wellness Center within a week of arriving to undergo a TB test or submit results of a current TB test done in the home country within a week of arriving.  Guidelines will be provided by the Aggie Health and Wellness Center.

TB test done in the home country within a week of arriving.  Guidelines will be provided by the Aggie Health and Wellness Center.

International Exchange Students

An Exchange Student is defined as a visiting student who is coming to NMSU for one semester to one Academic Year but is not seeking a degree. An Exchange Student typically comes to NMSU from one of NMSU’s partner universities or one of NMSU’s partner consortiums. 

All international exchange students are required to be enrolled in NMSU-approved health insurance.  Education Abroad & National Student Exchange will enroll the students and bill the insurance amount to the student’s account.  

Exchange Students are required to attend a mandatory Orientation before courses begin. Orientation will be scheduled and facilitated by the Education Abroad & National Student Exchange, abiding by guidelines set forth by the US government per J-1 visa requirements. 

Exchange students are subject to the same English Language Proficiency policies outlined in the section on University Procedures for International Students. 

Application Process for International Exchange Students

Prior to admission to NMSU, a prospective international exchange student must be nominated from their home university, complete an application with Education Abroad & National Student Exchange and submit their required documents. The process is as follows: 

  1. Nomination for exchange must be submitted by the Home University to the Incoming Exchange Coordinator by March 15 for Fall semester and September 15 for Spring semester. Please see your home university exchange coordinator for more information and to complete the nomination process. 
  2. Once a nomination is received, students will be directed to make an account at: https://educationabroad.nmsu.edu/incoming-exchange-students.html.
  3. The student is then required to complete the Exchange Student Nomination Form Questionnaire and upload the following documents: 
    1. Passport 
    2. Transcripts (in English)
    3. Financial document showing proof of $8,000 per semester attended.
  4. ​​Current TOEFL scores (2 years or less). See below for acceptable scores.  Information on current test scores can be found at Education Abroad & National Student Exchange’s website: https://educationabroad.nmsu.edu/exchange-students-application-deadlines-and-processes.html. All international students, regardless of status, must apply for Admissions to NMSU. Education Abroad & National Student Exchange staff will send the students specific instructions on how to apply non-degree, guest matriculant to NMSU.

Academic Restrictions

The majority of the NMSU catalog applies to Exchange Students, with the following exceptions: 

  • Courses must be taken at the Main Campus only. Community college courses, including DACC, are not available to Exchange Students. 
  • The Nursing Department is the only department strictly off limits to exchange students, with case-by-case exception by the department, and this would have to be approved well in advance of the student being nominated. 
  • Exchange students are required to abide by all pre-requisite requirements and class size restrictions (i.e., if a course is closed when the student goes to register, an exception cannot be made). 
  • Online courses are restricted due to visa requirements (no more than three credits can be taken online. Additional fees will apply.