Hello all,

I recently took the TOEFL Home edition, as part of preparing for applying to an LLM at Colulmbia/LLM/Harvard.

At the time I took the test, none of these schools have specifically referred to it, except for Columbia which stated that scores from the home edition will also be considered.

However, out of curiosity I have checked the institutions websites again and it seems as if Columbia slightly changed their stance, and that NYU has a very worrying policy.

Here is Columbia's policy -

For academic year 2021-2022 only, Columbia Law School will accept the following Toefl exams:*

TOEFL iBT
Paper-based TOEFL
TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition
TOEFL ITP Plus for China

*We strongly encourage all applicants to take the TOEFL iBT test if available in your home country. We recognize that the availability of the TOEFL iBT test will vary widely depending on the public health guidance in your home country and are therefore accepting the TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition and TOEFL ITP Plus for China if you are unable to take the TOEFL iBT.

Here is NYU's -

Applicants are strongly advised to register for and take one of the approved tests at a test center, if at all possible. These tests are currently available at testing centers in many countries around the globe. For applicants unable to submit an official score from a test administered at a center by the application deadline, the Committee on Graduate Admissions will accept the scores after the deadline. Please be sure to enter the test date of any appointment you have scheduled on the online application form. If you schedule an appointment after submitting your application, please email us to share the date on which you plan to take the test so that we can expect your official score. Score reports received after the deadline will be added to your file and included in the Committee’s review. When reported to LSAC, results from versions of these tests not administered at a test center will be included in an applicant’s law school report and may be used by the Committee in the review process. However, the Committee reserves the right to require from any applicant the submission of an official score from one of the approved exams administered at a test center before issuing a decision and/or matriculating at NYU, if admitted. Applicants are advised to choose the semester for which they apply accordingly.

What would you do? retake the exam despite getting a high score at the home edition? do they expect candidates to pay the almost 300usd fee again simply because they were tested at home (under rigorous examination by ETS)?

Thank you!

I have asked some universities about this and some of them told me that they are not accepting the home edition TOEFL (Cornell, Chicago, NYU) and other (Penn) avoided my question twice.