Undergraduate Entry Requirements

The application procedure varies for undergraduate and postgraduate students, so we publish separate information for each. You'll also need to be able to provide evidence of a specified level of ability in the English language.

USA Admissions Guide

Please note that there is no requirement to have completed the necessary testing requirements at the point of application to study at Queen’s. We operate a conditional offer system, meaning that you can apply before you have completed tests and exams. This means that your offer letter would be conditional upon completing your exams at a later point.

When submitting your application it is essential that you provide details of predicted scores for tests/exams you are due to take in Senior Year, as well as achieved scores for all tests/qualifications you have already completed.  Failure to do so will delay the processing of your application.

The grades required for admission to our undergraduate Bachelor degree programmes will vary according to your chosen course of study. Please check our Course Finder for detailed entry requirements which are normally expressed in terms of three A-level grades.  The comparable US qualifications and grade requirements are shown in the table below.  Subject-specific requirements must be met.

We expect our applicants to have taken:

• A rigorous curriculum at high school, which should include a college preparatory curriculum
• Grades A or B in three Grade 12 honours or college level classes on your high school record (or equivalent), or three Advanced Placement (AP) classes/exams or International Baccalaureate Higher Level subject tests (or equivalent).

Honours/College level classes may be accepted in lieu of AP exams for most programmes, excluding Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Nursing & Midwifery, and Social Work.    We look for grades A or B in three Grade 12 honours or college level classes, or three AP exams with scores of 4+, within the context of your school’s curriculum; for example, applicants should have taken classes to the most advanced level offered at your school, if the AP curriculum is not available as a study option.

In order for Queen’s to assess your application please provide an up-to-date scanned copy of your US High School transcript and evidence of any previous qualifications undertaken and/or courses currently being undertaken.  At the time of application, we can accept ‘unofficial’ and ‘online’ transcripts. These documents can be emailed to intl.admissions@qub.ac.uk in support of your application.  In all cases, your School Profile document (or a website link) should be submitted along with your application.

Many of our courses require you to have a particular background in the subject(s).  This is known as ‘pre-requisite’ knowledge.  Pre-requisite qualifications, if required, will be listed on our Course Finder pages

For admission to degree programmes which do not have subject requirements at A-Level, any combination of three of the following in academic subjects could be accepted in lieu of AP tests:

• Grade 12 Honours Class
• Dual Enrolment Class
• College Level Class

Either the SAT 1 or ACT may be accepted (with the appropriate scores) if presented along with two of any of the above (for example, an ACT and two Grade 12 honours classes).

*we will only consider grades A or B in honours/college classes to meet our A-Level-equivalent requirements.

For admission to degree programmes for which there are subject-specific (pre-requisite) requirements (eg. Mathematics, Engineering and Science), the Admissions Office will consider both the School Profile and the curriculum which has been studied, to ensure that the content and the performance achieved, would be suitable preparation for admission to the Queen’s degree programme. 

Evidence of pre-requisite requirements are:

• AP exam scores of at least 4 (depending on degree-specific requirements); eg. ‘AP Calculus BC’ (or equivalent) for entry to study Mathematics, Engineering or Computer Science programmes.
• Evidence of top grades across appropriate Honours or college classes taken in the required subject, including the most challenging options available in the school curriculum.  Details of the curriculum will be required and considered on a case-by-case basis.

Subjects cannot be counted twice, ie. if you are submitting an AP exam in US History, you cannot also submit an honours or college course in US History.

SAT and ACT Tests

We will not penalize students for the absence of an SAT or ACT test, however we expect applicants to have taken at least one type of standardized test (AP, SAT, or ACT).  Where at least one standardized test has not been taken, we may be in contact to clarify the reasons for this.

SAT Subject Tests - We are aware that the College Board has discontinued SAT Subject Tests and that there will no longer be an option for students to register for these tests. If you took an SAT Subject Test before they were discontinued, we are still able to accept these. Acceptable grades would be:

• 700 in a SAT Subject = AP exam with a score of 5
• 650 in a SAT Subject = AP exam with a score of 4

Please note that Queen’s University Belfast has institutional codes for the following College Board Exams. You can send score reports directly to Queen’s using the following codes:

ACT: 7799
SAT and AP:  7753

• Applicants who have successfully completed an Associate Degree with an overall GPA of 3.0/4.0 awarded by a recognised US institution will be considered for admission to Stage 1 of an undergraduate degree programme.  Any subject requirements must be met.
• Applications are welcomed from applicants completing the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IBD).  Scores of between 30 and 36 points overall are required depending on individual course requirements. Information on required grades.

Medicine and Dentistry

For Medicine and Dentistry, a High School Graduation Diploma with minimum GPA of 3.5/4.0 will be required, plus four Advanced Placement tests with scores of 5,5 (Chemistry and Biology) 5,4.   Mathematics is also required to GCSE standard, normally Grade 12 in High School.  GCSE Physics or equivalent is also required for Medicine.  SAT Subject tests are not accepted in lieu of AP tests.

A minimum of 36 points overall is required in the International Baccalaureate Diploma with grades 6,6,6 in Higher level subjects including Chemistry and Biology. Mathematics and English (and Physics for Medicine) is also required to Standard Level, or grade 11 (or GCSE equivalent) if not taken as part of the IB. Points obtained for the Extended Essay and Theory of Knowledge can count towards the total. 

Graduates may be considered - a minimum of an Upper Second Class Honours degree or CGPA of 3.3 on scale of 4 (78%) in a four year honours degree would be required, and applicants must also have the appropriate background in the relevant science subjects to satisfy the course entry requirements.

Applicants for Medicine must also undertake the University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) www.ucat.ac.uk and the University will normally interview international applicants.  For Dentistry, shortlisted applicants will be interviewed via an online process.