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Postgraduate Admission Requirements

Postgraduate work in Trinity is academically challenging and the University has high academic entry requirements.

Applicants will need to:

  • hold at least a 2.1 honors degree from an Irish university or equivalent result from a university in another country.
  • display a high level of competence in the English language in one of the examination systems recognised by Trinity College Dublin.

To qualify for admission to a degree course at the University you must meet the requirements outlined above. For more information on what you must include in your application, please see our detailed guide on Making an Application.

Postgraduate English Language Requirements

All applicants whose first language is not English and who have not been educated through the medium of English must present one of the following qualifications in the English language:

  • IELTS (Academic version) and IELTS Indicator : Grade 6.5 overall.
  • TOEFL and TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition: 88 internet-based, 570 paper-based, 230 computer-based.
  • University of Cambridge: 
    Proficiency Certificate, Grade C or better (CEFR Level C1 or C2) 
    Advanced Certificate, Grade C or better (CEFR Level C1 or C2) 
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) - PTE Academic: a minimum score of 63 to be eligible (with no section score below 59)
  • Duolingo English Test: minimum overall score of 120/160 with no section below 105, dated since January 2020. Test score must be shared with institution "Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin - Postgraduate".
  • An award certificate with a minimum II.1 overall score from Trinity's Centre for English Language Learning and Teaching's Pre-Master's Pathway Programme. The Pre-Master’s Pathway Programme is an academic English course for international students with conditional offers for postgraduate study at Trinity. Passing the programme means you meet Trinity’s English language requirement and can progress to your postgraduate course without retaking IELTS or any other exam.

Please also note that existing IELTS, TOEFL, Cambridge and PET scores up to two years old will be accepted for 2023/24 applications in light of test centre closures.

For further details on these English Language Proficiency Tests, please contact the appropriate organisation directly.

An applicant whose first language is not English but who has taken a degree through the medium of English may be eligible. However some courses may request applicants to present an English Language qualification under certain circumstances.

Further Admissions Information

Some courses may require higher standards or require you to take further tests or attend an interview. More detailed requirements for each course are listed on their applicable course page at www.tcd.ie/courses


If you have questions about the specifics of the admission requirements for a given course, or about the course itself, you should contract the course coordinator directly using the contact information available on the course's page.