<p>Hi. Please help. i'm like hyperventilating right now.</p>
<p>I was born in Korea, and Korean is my first language. (and its spoken in the house more than English), but I did get naturalized so I am a US citizen.</p>
<p>I speak fluent English, and I scored 640 on the SAT CR section. (:()
I lived in the states for almost 8 years and I got straight A's in every single one of my English classes (even AP Lang) and I got a 4 on the Lang exam.</p>
<p>DO I HAVE TO TAKE THE TOEFL BECAUSE MY FIRST LANGUAGE IS NOT ENGLISH? (even though i'm a citizen and all that other stuff?)</p>
<p>The biggest reason for me freaking out is that I have already applied to
Carnegie Mellon
Johns Hopkins
Wesleyan
Boston College
and Cornell</p>
<p>Will these colleges not even consider my app bc I haven't taken the TOEFL? (due date is past). OR will they require me to take the TOEFL?</p>
<p>No. The TOEFL is generally for those international students who have little to no experience speaking English, and/or just learned it. If you’ve been educated in the US and have a decent CR score like that, you’ll be fine.</p>
<p>As polarscribe said, the TOEFL is usually, if not always, for International Students. Because you have lived here eight years, you don’t have to take it. That and the fact that you’re a US Citizen. GOOD LUCK!</p>
<p>Most colleges state that: if you have been taught in English (at an American High School) for 2 or more years, you don’t need to take TOEFL. You’re fine.</p>
<p>Whether or not you need to provide a TOEFL score has nothing to do with your citizenship. It has to do with whether or not the college/university believes your English proficiency is good enough to do well in your classes. Each institution sets its own policy as to how many years of education in schools where English is the primary medium of instruction is necessary in order to not have to take the TOEFL. Eight years should be sufficient. However, I know of cases where students who had a different home language were required to take the TOEFL (or another English proficiency exam) even though their entire education was in English in US public schools. Likewise, some institutions will waive TOEFL requirements for applicants who were educated entirely in another language provided the applicant has a score of at least X on the SAT CR section or equivalent sections of the ACT.</p>
<p>You really do indeed need to pick up the phone, and call each of the institutions that you are applying to and ask them what their individual policies are.</p>
<p>I called CMU, and TOEFL is required whether I’m a US citizen or not which I am really annoyed about. What about those people who were born in US, and have parents who speak fluent English but still respect their native culture?? For example, <em>most</em> Hispanics will teach their child how to say mam</p>
<p>DunninLA - As long as each institution sets its own policy, each place can decide what CR score (if any) exempts a student from the TOEFL. The TOEFL has changed a lot over the years, and the current iBT is designed to test a student’s listening, reading, writing, and speaking skills in typical college situations. The sample exams that I have seen include conversations with an advisor or college administrator, samples of recorded college lectures, and typical college reading and writing activities. It is entirely possible that a person could do well on the CR, but wipe out entirely on the listening and speaking activities of the iBT.</p>
<p>jyccinyc - Chances are you will do just fine on the TOEFL. Find out whether any of the other colleges/universities that you are applying to will require it. If they don’t,and you are pretty sure you will get into one of them, well maybe you don’t want to expend any more energy on CMU. If any of the others want TOEFL and/or you don’t feel like kicking CMU to the curb, pick up a TOEFL iBT prep book, and schedule an exam at the closest testing center. Alternately, call the College Board, and find out if there is anyplace near you that still offers the old paper version of the TOEFL. Many college-based ESL centers do. It is more than likely that you would absolutely ace that version.</p>
<p>happymomof1 … I’m very concerned that you’re providing misinformation. The OP clearly does not need to take the TOEFL for any of the colleges to which he’s applying. He provided the list of colleges to which he’s applying. If you have specific information that any one of them requires the TOEFL in his specific situation then let him (and us) know. Putting him on the “defensive” – as by contacting the colleges because you feel that some colleges, in some situations require the TOEFL is very unfair.</p>
<p>Er… I didn’t even need to submit my TOEFL to all the colleges I’m applying to, and I’ve been here for only high school. I still had to shell out about $300… ): I don’t think you need to take it. Don’t take it. It’s a hell lot of money. Don’t take a class even if you decide to take it. IT. IS. EASY. 640 on SAT CR and 4 on AP Lang easily translate to 110+ TOEFL scores. But bottom line: don’t take it. You put on your Common App that you’ve been here for 8 years.</p>
<p>For non-international students the TOEFL is inherently a “remedial” exam. Its presence in the application portfolio immediately marginalizes the application. The concept that one “aces” a remedial exam is a contradiction in terms. The OP is a US citizen. He spent all his high school years in the United States. He’s fluent in English. There is simply no way that college admissions would expect that a TOEFL is required, nor even be concerned that it might be necessary. By asking them “if it’s required” all he’s achieving is raising a red flag. My sense is that the OP with all the good intentions of some CC members is being misinformed.</p>
<p>Fogcity, you need to work on reading comprehension. The OP said that CMU is requiring the TOEFL, so there you go. That did not occur just because it was recommend the OP check with schools.</p>
<p>Um… I’m a she but anyways, a CMU representative has rudely told me that I absolutely cannot exempt the TOEFL. I’m pretty sure the other 10 colleges I have applied to don’t require it. So if CMU rejects me for not having a TOEFL score. That’s their problem I think.</p>
<p>You don’t have to take the TOEFL if you have been in the States for four years of high school. You will be filing a domestic application with a 4-year transcript from a US high school. Nobody will even ask you for your TOEFL score.</p>
<p>Your US citizenship, however, is not a factor.</p>
<p>That is most certainly not true. I am an international student who went to high school in the US for four years. While many schools exempt TOEFL if the primary language of instruction has been English for 3 or 4 years or the applicant has a high enough SAT score, many others do not. For example, NYU and Boston College required my TOEFL score, but Columbia exempted it because my SAT CR was higher than 650, and American University exempted it because I went to an American high school. OP should carefully read the international applicant section on the websites of all the schools s/he is applying to.</p>
<p>The difference is… you were filing an international application because you needed the I-20, while the OP filed a domestic application. The OP can fly under the radar and you couldn’t.</p>
I was born in America, but I just came to US two years ago for high school, i got very stress out about SAT, I started learning English two years ago, so i dont know if i can submit my toefl score instead my SAT score?
but anyways, a CMU representative has rudely told me that I absolutely cannot exempt the TOEFL. I’m pretty sure the other 10 colleges I have applied to don’t require it. So if CMU rejects me for not having a TOEFL score. That’s their problem I think.</p>