International Undergraduate Admission

Admission of Undergraduate International Applicants
(Student and Scholar Visa Holders)

Golden Gate University welcomes applicants and students from all over the world. Following are a few notes of particular importance to our international applicants.

You should submit an original or certified transcript and certified English translation to the Admissions Office from each school previously attended. Examination scores and mark sheets may be submitted if the institutions attended do not maintain transcripts.

We recommend that international applicants submit all supporting materials by the following dates to allow time for receiving credentials and processing the government documents necessary for their attendance:

• For the Fall Term: May 15
• For the Spring Term: September 15
• For the Summer Term: January 15

Please note that these are recommended dates and that we continue to accept applications after these dates have passed. These dates are most important for students currently living outside the United States who will need to apply for an F or J visa in their home country.

If you are applying for undergraduate admission you must have completed a high school or approved secondary school program. If you have more than two semesters of full-time coursework at the college or university level you will be considered as a transfer student.

Proof of fulfillment of GGU's English Language Proficiency Admission Requirements is required of all undergraduate and graduate applicants who are non-native speakers of English. Click here for more information on how to satisfy the requirement. Test score reports must be sent directly from the Educational Testing Service (ETS) or (IELTS) directly to the Admissions Office. Alternatively, an institutionally administered TOEFL exam may be scheduled through the Office of Admissions and Student Affairs (admissions@ggu.edu or 415-442-7800).

A Certification of Finances form must be submitted by all applicants intending to study while on student and scholar visas. This form gives us information that is required by the US Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It can be downloaded here, or it can be obtained from the Office of Enrollment Services. It is also included in the application packet that is sent upon request.

International applicants who are admitted as degree candidates may be required to complete more than the number of units specified as required for the degree, regardless of the extent of previous work, if it is determined by the Admissions Office and/or the faculty that additional academic preparation is necessary.

The university is authorized under federal law to enroll nonimmigrant alien students. The university will not issue the appropriate documentation until the student has been admitted as a full degree or certificate candidate, and has been financially certified by the university's Certification of Finances approval process.

Students holding student or scholar visa status may attend only the Monterey Bay, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Jose and Walnut Creek sites of GGU.

New students should be prepared to pay the first term's tuition and fees in full at the time of registration.

The US Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement requires international students holding student visas to be enrolled for consecutive terms of sufficient duration and units, typically consisting of no fewer than twelve (12) units per term at the undergraduate level and nine (9) units per term at the graduate level. For more information, go to the International Admissions and Advising website.