International Students Admissions Process

With alumni in more than 100 countries worldwide, Lincoln Christian University has a long history of reaching out to students from other countries and sending its own students overseas.

Applying for admission as an international student is not a simple process but we are glad to help you with the necessary steps. We strongly encourage you to plan ahead in order to allow time to complete all the requirements.

Application and Application Fee
To start the admission procedure, submit LCU's International Student Undergraduate Application for Admission form [available here], with the $50 (US) application fee. Please note that LCU's online application for admission does not collect all of the information needed from international applicants so please do not apply online.

Tuition and fees may be paid by credit card or wire transfer. Click here for more information or to make a payment.

References
The International Student Undergraduate Application for Admission packet includes two reference forms. One must be completed by a leader in the church or ministry you are associated with. The other may be completed by any adult who knows you well. We ask that your references either return the form directly to LCU by mail or fax or that they give the form to you in a sealed envelope to forward on to LCU.

Academic Records
Lincoln Christian University needs to receive official academic transcripts of all of your secondary (high school) and postsecondary (university) course work. Schools in some countries call transcripts “mark sheets” or “grade reports.” We are referring to a comprehensive listing of all courses and results you have completed, provided directly by the institution(s) you attended.

If your academic records are not written in English, we will also need to receive an official English translation of each one.

For university course work done outside the USA, you will need to have your transcripts reviewed by an evaluation service.  We will need to receive a “course-by-course evaluation” or a “detail report.” There are several such services that are acceptable, including:

• AACRAO (www.aacrao.org/credential/index.htm)
• World Education Services (www.wes.org)
• Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc. (www.ece.org)
• Josef Silny & Associates (www.jsilny.com)
• International Education Research Foundation (http://www.ierf.org)

TOEFL
Because of requirements set by the US Bureau of Immigration and Citizenship (BCIS) we need to document that you are competent in English. Therefore, LCU requires that international students score at least 550 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language. This is equivalent to a 79 on the Internet-based TOEFL (iBT). This requirement may be waived for some students whose primary language is English.

Generally speaking, we require TOEFL results from any international applicant who has not completed a significant amount of college-level work in the US or who is not from one of the following countries:

Nevis
New Zealand
Northern Ireland
Scotland
St. Kitts
St. Vincent
Trinidad
Tobago
Wales

Financial Documents
You will also need to provide us with evidence of your ability to meet your educational expenses at LCU. Complete the Statement of Financial Responsibility form and return it with the necessary documentation, such as official bank statements and tax returns.

More About Money
Finances can be a major barrier for many international students, whether we like it or not. The US Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) requires us to show that each international student has sufficient funding to cover their expenses for the entire time they are studying at LCU. The BCIS will not grant a student visa until this has been done.

Lincoln Christian University is considered to be a very affordable private university and yet the cost of attendance can easily reach US$22,000 per year. While LCU does have a scholarship program, financial aid is limited. As a general rule, if you do not have at least $14,000 per year in sponsorship or personal financial resources, it probably will not be possible for you to attend LCU. On rare occasions, financial aid can reach as much as $13,000 a year (leaving a $9,000 gap) but these are very unusual.

The I-20 and I-901 Forms
If you are accepted for admission, you will be sent two forms developed by the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services: the I-20 and a blank I-901. You will use the I-901 to mail a $100 processing fee to a collection point in St. Louis, Missouri. Instructions for payment will be included with the I-901 form. The SEVIS office will notify you that the fee has been received by sending you an I-797 form. This form is your receipt for the $100 processing fee. When you have received the I-797, you will take it and your I-20 to the U.S. Embassy in your home country to apply for an F-1 student visa. When the U.S. Embassy has granted the F-1 visa, you can make travel preparations for coming to Lincoln to study.