Low TOEFL: Should You Mention It in Your SOP?

Low TOEFL: Should You Mention It in Your SOP?

No. Do not explain a TOEFL score in your statement of purpose. US universities publish two separate numbers: an admission minimum and a speaking minimum for teaching assistants. At UC Berkeley, admission needs 5 overall with 4.5 speaking on the new scale, but teaching needs speaking 6. No paragraph changes either number.

Our view: the fix for a low TOEFL is a retake, the campus oral English test, or a funding plan that does not depend on teaching. It is not a sentence. An apology paragraph spends SOP space on the one thing the SOP cannot change. If you have room to fill, spend it on your preparation; a statement of purpose review reads the draft for that.

Every university page quoted below was checked on October 31, 2026. Berkeley's page states its minimums for Fall 2027 entry; the Illinois and Washington pages state no entry term, so recheck them, and your department's own page, before you book a test.

Two numbers, not one

All three universities say in plain words that the numbers are separate:

• Illinois: "Admissions minimums are not equivalent to minimums required for holding a teaching assistantship; and not all exemptions apply for those holding a teaching assistantship."
• Berkeley: "Please note that the oral English proficiency level required for GSI positions is higher than for admissions."
• Washington: non-native speakers "may be appointed as TAs with teaching duties only if the student fulfills the three requirements below".

What the table means for one applicant (our arithmetic): a Speaking score of 4.5 on the new scale meets Berkeley's admission section minimum but is below its teaching minimum of 6. At Washington the same 4.5 does not clear teaching, but it lets the program request the one-time assessment. At Illinois it is below the 5.0 teaching minimum, so the route is the OEAI.

If your funding offer includes teaching, the teaching number decides whether you can be appointed. Washington allows a student still working on the spoken requirement to be "assigned teaching duties that do not include direct interaction with students", such as grading. Ask your department what that means for your package.

The January 2026 scale change

Every page above prints two sets of numbers because TOEFL iBT scores changed scale in January 2026. Illinois says "for scores dated after 1/20/2026" and "for scores dated prior to 1/21/2026". Washington says "for exams taken prior to January 21, 2026". Berkeley says "Tests taken on or after January 21, 2026".

Before you compare anything, check the test date on your score report and use the matching column. Do not convert between scales yourself. The pages show why: Berkeley's teaching table puts old Speaking scores of 23–25 in the same row as new scores of "5.5 and below", so there is no one-to-one conversion to rely on.

Also check the oldest test date a program accepts. Berkeley: "For Fall 2027, tests taken before June 1, 2025 will not be accepted, even if your score was reported to UC Berkeley."

When one sentence is justified

There are three cases. In each, the sentence states facts and a plan, and it goes in the additional information field, not the SOP. The guide to the optional essay and additional information covers that field.

1. The program asks. If the form asks you to explain test scores, answer in one or two factual lines.
2. A retake is booked. If your score is below a program's minimum and a retest is scheduled, give the test date and say the report will be sent from ETS. Some programs say how they handle late scores. MIT EECS: "we will continue to accept IELTS/TOEFL Test results after the deadline. The IELTS/TOEFL check will be the final check of the decision." That is MIT EECS's rule; do not assume it elsewhere.
3. You are between two admission levels. At Illinois, a score between 4.0 and 5.0 is below "full status", and the English as a Second Language Placement Test (EPT) "will be required prior to enrolling at Illinois for all students who score below the full status minimums". If you are retesting to reach full status, one plan line says so.

The countercase: if you have taught in English (tutorials, lab sections, a teaching job), and you are applying for a teaching-funded PhD, one factual sentence in the SOP about that teaching is fair evidence for the reader. It does not clear the university's teaching requirement, which the table above still governs.

What the SOP can do instead

The SOP is the one place a reader sees your English at length. Clear, plain sentences are better evidence of your English than any claim about it. The guide to simple English for non-native speakers covers how to write that way without sounding basic.

Decision procedure: retake, oral test, or leave it

1. Find your scale. Read the test date on your score report. Pass condition: you know whether to use the old (0–120) or new (1–6) column.
2. Check admission. Compare your overall and section scores with each program's admission minimum. Pass: you meet it everywhere you apply. If not, go to step 4.
3. Check teaching, only if your funding includes teaching. Compare your Speaking score with the teaching minimum. Pass: you meet it. If not, go to step 5.
4. Below admission: book a retake that reports before each program's score deadline, or drop programs whose minimum you cannot reach in time.
5. Above admission, below teaching: plan for the campus route (OEAI, UW assessment, Berkeley OPT) or a retake for Speaking, and ask the department whether first-year funding depends on teaching.
6. Leave the SOP alone. In every branch, the SOP does not mention the score.

Constructed example: the apology paragraph vs the plan line

Constructed example, written by us, not a real applicant statement. Context (invented): an applicant to an Illinois PhD has a TOEFL iBT taken in September 2026, overall 4.5 and Speaking 4.0, and wants a teaching assistantship.

Before, in the SOP:

My TOEFL speaking score does not reflect my true English ability. I was nervous on the test day and had problems with my microphone. Since then I have practiced English every day and watched many lectures online, and I believe my English is now good enough for graduate study and for working as a teaching assistant.

After, in the additional information field:

TOEFL iBT, September 2026: overall 4.5, Speaking 4.0. I have a retest booked for November 2026 and will have ETS send the new report directly.

The first version asks the reader to accept a claim the published minimums do not allow them to accept. The second states the facts and the plan. By this page's own table, 4.5 overall is above Illinois's limited-status minimum of 4.0 and below full status at 5.0, and Speaking 4.0 is below the 5.0 teaching minimum, so the retake is the right move and the SOP stays free for the research.

Questions about low TOEFL and the SOP

Can I combine my best section scores from different tests?

Not at these three. Illinois: "We do not accept the TOEFL Essentials test, TOEFL MyBest scores, or IELTS One Skill Retake scores." Washington: "TOEFL MyBest and IELTS One Skill Retake tests scores are not admissible". Berkeley: "We do not accept the TOEFL ITP or My Best Scores." Other programs differ; the guide to TOEFL MyBest scores in graduate admissions compares them.

Will a Duolingo score work for a PhD with teaching funding?

Not at Illinois: "The Duolingo English Test cannot be used to satisfy the English proficiency requirement for teaching assistants." Berkeley does not accept Duolingo for admission. Washington accepts a Duolingo Conversation score of 140 for teaching. The Duolingo guide for US grad schools covers admission acceptance.

My degree was taught in English. Does that clear the teaching requirement?

Not automatically. Illinois says "not all exemptions apply for those holding a teaching assistantship". See the guides to the English-medium TOEFL waiver and to whether an admission waiver counts for TA English.

I am applying to the UK or Australia with a low IELTS. Same answer?

The logic is the same, but the rules are different. See the guide to a low IELTS score for a master's.

Get a free review of your statement of purpose

Get a free Quick Review of your statement of purpose against GradPilot's general MS statement of purpose rubric. It reads whether your statement explains your academic interests, preparation, goals and reasons for the program, in writing that is organized, precise and easy to follow. PhD applicants can use the general PhD statement of purpose rubric.

More guides for international applicants are in the graduate school essays hub.

Sources

Retrieved October 31, 2026, except where noted.

• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Graduate College, International Applicants (no entry term stated): admission and teaching minimums on both scales; MyBest and Duolingo rules; OEAI.
• University of Washington Graduate School, Policy 3.2: English Language Proficiency Requirements (revised September 2026): admission minimum and recommended scores; MyBest not admissible.
• University of Washington Graduate School, Policy 5.2: Conditions of Appointment for TAs who are not Native Speakers of English (revised September 2026): teaching minimums; one-time assessment; English 105; non-interactive duties.
• UC Berkeley Graduate Division, Admissions Requirements (Fall 2027): admission minimums; test-date window; GSI level higher than admission.
• UC Berkeley GSI Teaching & Resource Center, How to Satisfy the Oral English Proficiency Requirement for a GSI Appointment (no entry term stated): teaching Speaking scores on both scales; OPT and Lan Pro 380.
• MIT EECS, Graduate Admissions FAQs (no cycle stated): late English test results.