Master of Business Administration (MBA) Programs - Admissions | Standardized Tests

Stern has no minimum standardized test score requirements. In addition to the GMAT and GRE, NYU Stern also accepts the Executive Assessment Test (EA), MCAT, LSAT, and DAT. Read more below. We consider only your highest overall scores. Therefore, feel free to re-take a test if you believe you can improve your performance. A valid standardized test score is required for all MBA applicants to the Full-time MBA and MBA Business: Luxury & Retail programs.

Before submitting an application you must take a standardized test. NYU Stern accepts:

• GMAT or Executive Assessment administered by Pearson VUE
• GRE, administered by Educational Testing Services (ETS)
• LSAT, administered by the Law School Admission Council
• MCAT, administered by the Association of American Medical Colleges
• DAT, administered by the American Dental Association

Stern has no preference for which test applicants include with their application. Applicants who submit an LSAT, MCAT, or DAT may not apply to Stern using the Consortium application.

Scores must be valid at the time that you submit your application. Please confirm your scores are valid prior to submitting your application. You are responsible for including your test score on the online application and ensuring that the respective testing agency is able to release and send your official score report to NYU Stern. While an official test score is required for a final decision, the Admissions Committee can begin the review of your application with an unofficial test score.

Applicants that would like to submit their application with a GMAT test score that is between five and ten years old may request an exception to submit that score. Exception requests should be sent to admchair@stern.nyu.edu, and are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. To satisfy the standardized test requirement for the MBA application, the Admissions Committee must be able to verify any GMAT score with GMAC (the testing agency). Please note that the score verification process may cause delays in the admission review and/or timing of decisions. GRE test scores are not able to be verified after the five-year mark.

​If you plan to retake a test after applying, you must inform the Admissions Committee of the date you intend to take the test in the optional essay or via email to admchair@stern.nyu.edu. The Admissions Committee will proceed with the evaluation of your application using your submitted score and may issue a decision prior to receiving additional test scores.

For those that submit more than one test type, we will consider the standardized test score (submitted with this application or previously sent to Stern) for admission which aids your candidacy. For those who are eligible and submit their application with a standardized test waiver and who have or submit a standardized test score (submitted with this application or previously sent to Stern), we will consider the standardized test score if it aids your candidacy.

Test reporting codes:

2025 Andre Koo Technology and Entrepreneurship MBA Test Optional Policy

The 2025 Andre Koo Tech MBA program is test optional. Applicants will not be required to submit a standardized test score with their application, but may still do so if they feel it aids their candidacy. For applicants who have or submit a standardized test score (submitted with their application or previously sent to Stern), we will consider the standardized test score if it aids your candidacy. For a list of frequently asked questions about the test optional policy, please see the 2025 Tech MBA Standardized Test Optional FAQ's.

Standardized Test Waiver  

If you plan to apply by the January 16th deadline, please submit your test waiver application no later than Friday, December 6th, 2024 to receive a decision by the application deadline.

  The standardized test is a required part of the Full-Time MBA and MBA Business: Luxury & Retail program application and one way we assess your academic readiness. For most applicants, the standardized test is an essential way to establish academic readiness. If you feel that you are not able to prepare for or take a standardized test and are able to demonstrate academic readiness without a standardized test score, you may request a standardized test waiver for the Full-Time MBA and MBA Business: Luxury & Retail programs. Those who provide strong examples of academic readiness (eg: strong analytical or quantitative undergraduate or graduate majors, professional work experience, certifications, etc.) may be more likely to receive a standardized test waiver.

If you are not granted a standardized test waiver, your application may still be competitive for admission; we would like to receive the standardized test as an additional data point in our review of your candidacy. The standardized test score is only one of many components of our holistic application process.

To apply for the standardized test waiver, you must: 

• Have received a bachelor’s degree prior to submitting a request. Students who have not received their undergraduate degrees are not eligible to submit a waiver request.  
• Be planning to apply to the Full-Time MBA and MBA Business: Luxury & Retail program in the 2024-2025 admissions cycle. Those applying through the Consortium are eligible to request a standardized test waiver. Dual degrees are not eligible to request a standardized test waiver. 
• Submit a completed test waiver request by Tuesday, April 1, 2025, 11:59 EST. 

Applicants may only submit one standardized test waiver request per admissions cycle and must select one MBA program when submitting the request. If you were approved for a standardized test waiver during a prior admissions cycle, you will be required to resubmit a standardized test waiver request for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle.

The following items must be submitted with the request: 

• Request form
• Resume
• Transcript(s) for all undergraduate and any graduate programs/degrees. Transcripts must indicate all classes taken, grades received, credits earned, final cumulative GPA(s) and degree conferral(s). Self-reported transcripts will not be accepted for review. If your transcript is not in English, you must provide a certified translation along with a copy of the original transcript. If you have attended more than one undergraduate institution, you must provide a separate transcript from the host institution(s) unless all course titles and grades are listed on your primary transcript.
• If applicable: 
  • Graduate transcript
  • Post-graduate coursework transcripts
  • Professional Certifications (e.g., CFA, CPA, etc.)
• Brief essay response to the prompt: Please list the coursework completed, certifications held, and professional experience you have that demonstrates academic readiness for an MBA program. You may use bullet points. (300 word limit)

If the information provided in your test waiver request differs from the information provided in your MBA application, your waiver may be rescinded and your application made incomplete. 

The Admissions Committee reviews the test waiver requests on a rolling basis, and in most cases will issue a decision within 3 weeks of submission. We strongly encourage submitting your test waiver request at least 3 weeks prior to when you plan to submit your MBA application. If you plan to apply for our January application deadline, we highly recommend submitting your test waiver request no later than Friday, December 6th, 2024 in order to ensure you receive your waiver decision prior to the application deadline. We will make every effort to review your request in time, however, we cannot grant requests to expedite reviews. Therefore, please plan accordingly when submitting your test waiver request. The deadline to submit test waiver requests is Tuesday, April 1, 2025.

If you are approved for a standardized test waiver, you will receive further instructions to submit your application. Applicants who are not approved for the waiver will need to complete the standardized test score requirement to complete their application. 

Please note, any materials uploaded as part of this request will also appear in your NYU Stern record. You will have an opportunity to upload new documents as part of your MBA application (updated resume, etc.). If the information provided in your request differs from the information provided in your Admissions application, the Admissions Committee may review your request and Admissions application to determine your eligibility for the test waiver. 

Standardized test waiver requests must be submitted prior to submitting your 2024-25 application to the Full-Time MBA and MBA Business: Luxury & Retail program. Test waiver requests submitted after your MBA application will not be reviewed.

Begin a Standardized Test Waiver request now. 

Prior to submitting your request, please review our list of frequently asked questions.
  
NYU + MBA Test Waiver  

Applicants who have an undergraduate degree from New York University (including NYU Shanghai and NYU Abu Dhabi) with a final cumulative GPA of 3.20 of higher, will not be required to submit a standardized test score when applying to the Full-time 2-year MBA, Andre Koo Tech MBA, Luxury & Retail MBA, and Langone Part-time MBA. To learn more about this waiver, please visit the NYU + MBA webpage. 

Mastery of English is required for NYU Stern.

Your level of proficiency in English must be demonstrated in at least one of the following three ways:

• Your native language is English
• Your undergraduate or graduate degree was taught in English
• Your test results from either the TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo English Test

Scores are valid for two years from the date that you took the test and must be valid at the time that you submit your application. You are responsible for including your TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo English Test score on the online application and ensuring that your official score report can be released and sent to NYU Stern. For applicants who took the test more than once, the Admissions Committee will consider only the test with the highest total score (MyBest TOEFL scores will not be considered). While an official test score is required for a final decision, the Admissions Committee can begin the review of your application with an unofficial test score. For applicants who took the test more than once, the Admissions Committee will consider only the test with the highest total score taken within two years from the application deadline for which you apply. Please note that students who completed a university degree in India are not required to submit TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo English Test scores. 

If you plan to retake the TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo English Test after applying, please inform the Admissions Committee of the date you intend to take the test in the optional essay. The Admissions Committee will proceed with the evaluation of your application using your submitted score and may issue a decision prior to receiving additional test scores.

The TOEFL, IELTS, and Duolingo English Test reporting codes