Language Proficiency

English Fluency

English proficiency is required of all incoming students to the Joint Bachelor’s Degree Program and will be assessed during the admission interviews. Students must also provide proof of proficiency in their application file. Applicants whose first language is not English will be required to meet the requirements of both institutions through the submission of TOEFL, IELTS, or Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) scores. 

Alternatively, non-native English speakers who wish to submit an SAT or ACT score instead of a TOEFL, IELTS, or CAE may choose to do so; however, the admissions committee reserves the right to ask students to later submit a TOEFL, IELTS or CAE as part of their application. Please note no student can be admitted to the Program unless they have documented evidence of having met both universities’ requirements for English-language proficiency.

Regardless of the standardized test result used in the admissions process, all admitted students will also be required to take the English Essay Examination offered by the Columbia University American Language Program in their second year at City University of Hong Kong before beginning their coursework at Columbia if English is not their native language and was not the primary language of instruction in their secondary school.