Home / Universities / CUNY
The City University of New York (CUNY): Translation Requirements for Documents in Another Language
CUNY's central admissions office publishes Document Translation Guidelines for its colleges: a translation must be complete and literal (word-for-word), keep the layout of the original, be typed on letterhead and be signed by the translator, and it may come from a consulate, a translation agency, an immigrant or refugee association, the school you attended or a US faculty member, never from you or your family. The City University of New York (CUNY) accepts certified translations from professional services such as eVerbary. The original-language document is always required, CUNY can evaluate undergraduate records free of charge or you can pay an evaluator from its list, and for graduate study each college sets its rules, with Lehman College requiring a notarized translation and an outside evaluation.
Broad translator list
Agency, consulate, immigrant association, your school or a US professor.
Free UAPC evaluation
Or a paid report from one of 13 listed evaluators.
Records are kept
Documents sent to CUNY, originals included, are not returned.
CUNY requirements at a glance
| What CUNY asks for | |
|---|---|
| Translation | Complete and literal, with no interpretation, in the same format as the original, typed on business or school letterhead and signed by a translator who attests to knowing the language (guidelines); always with the original-language document (secondary records). |
| Who may translate | The issuing country's consulate or embassy; a translation agency; an immigrant or refugee association in the US representing that country; the school you attended; or a faculty member of a US high school, college or university who states institution, department and rank. Not you or your family; CUNY gives no referrals (source). |
| Evaluation (undergraduate) | Optional: CUNY's University Application Processing Center (UAPC) evaluates free, or you pay one of 13 listed agencies for a course-by-course report sent to evaluations@cuny.edu with certified copies of the documents used (how to apply, outside evaluators). |
| Official university records | Sent by the institution in a sealed envelope with registrar-level signature, date and seal, or electronically, to transcripts@cuny.edu. Notarized copies and records certified by a notary, translator or commissioner of oaths are not official (source). |
| Secondary records | Uploaded to the CUNY application; records emailed to admissions@cuny.edu by students educated abroad count as unofficial. A country list names the required credentials, for example Argentina's Bachillerato or Perito Mercantil, or WAEC and NECO certificates with a scratch card. |
| Graduate | Set by each college. CUNY's graduate FAQ prefers a NACES-accredited evaluator where one is needed, and not every program needs one (source); Lehman requires a notarized translation and an evaluation (source). |
| Timing | UAPC evaluates only once every document is in; BMCC puts it at 6 to 8 weeks, sometimes longer (source). Lehman: finish translations and evaluations 8 to 10 weeks before the deadline (source). |
| Does it accept eVerbary? | Yes. CUNY's Document Translation Guidelines list a translation agency among the translators it accepts (translation guidelines), so a certified translation from a professional service such as eVerbary meets it, as long as it is literal, laid out like the original and on letterhead, which is how we prepare ours. Lehman's graduate programs also want the translation notarized (Lehman); eVerbary can add notarization at checkout ($34.90 per order). Policy checked on October 12, 2026. |
Checked on October 12, 2026. Sources are listed at the end of this page. Policies change: confirm on CUNY's own page before you submit.
Who may translate, and what CUNY will not take
CUNY's Document Translation Guidelines name who may translate. Besides a translation agency, a consulate and the school you attended, they accept an immigrant or refugee association in the US that represents your country, and a faculty member of a US high school, college or university who gives institution, department and rank. They bar you and your family, and CUNY will not recommend a translator. The translation must be word-for-word without interpretation, follow the layout of the original, sit on letterhead and carry the translator's signed statement of language competence.
Keep the translation and the record apart in your mind. A translation certified by a translator is what CUNY asks for; a copy of your transcript certified by a notary, a translator or a commissioner of oaths is not an official record, and neither is a notarized or scanned copy (how to apply). University transcripts must come from the institution, sealed or electronically; an International Transcript Request Form is available in English, Spanish, Arabic, Bengali, French, Russian and Mandarin (downloads). Anything you send is kept, so do not send an irreplaceable diploma.
Free evaluation, a paid one, and the graduate colleges
Undergraduate applicants choose: UAPC evaluates foreign records free of charge, or one of 13 listed agencies, among them WES, ECE, Josef Silny, IEE, Scholaro and The Evaluation Company (SpanTran), prepares a course-by-course report with a GPA based on all secondary coursework and external exams (outside evaluators). The Borough of Manhattan Community College says non-US transcripts must be translated and evaluated before it can decide, that the free route needs the original transcript and a word-for-word translation and takes 6 to 8 weeks or more, and that paid agencies are faster; it notes that SpanTran offers walk-in service in New York (BMCC).
Graduate admissions are run by each college. Lehman College asks for a notarized English translation of documents in other languages, and a course-by-course evaluation with a GPA and a US bachelor's equivalency from an agency on its preferred list or any active NACES or AACRAO member; former NACES members are refused, and the evaluator must receive a copy of the original-language transcript (Lehman). Other colleges' graduate pages were not covered in our review.
Where CUNY's pages differ
For transfer applicants with more than one year of university study, the Outside Evaluation Services 2026 PDF asks for a document-by-document report as well as a course-by-course report, while the How to Apply page asks for proof of secondary graduation and course-by-course reports and does not mention document-by-document. We have not resolved that difference; ask UAPC or your evaluator before you order a report.
Documents applicants usually translate
- Complete secondary school record, all years
- National or government leaving certificates
- WAEC or NECO certificates
- Official university transcripts
- Degree certificates, for graduate applications
What an eVerbary translation includes
- A complete English translation of every page, stamps, seals and handwritten notes included, laid out like the original so each line can be matched.
- Grades exactly as recorded, with the grading scale the document prints. We never convert marks to a US GPA.
- A signed certificate of translation accuracy on letterhead, with our contact details, delivered as a PDF you can upload.
- $24.95 per page of up to 250 words, certification included; 24 hours for one to three pages as standard. Regular clients who need it can get delivery in as little as 30 minutes, on request.
Uploading the translation to CUNY
Undergraduates upload secondary records and their translations to the CUNY application; university transcripts come from the institution to transcripts@cuny.edu, and outside evaluations from the agency to evaluations@cuny.edu (source).
Graduate applicants follow their college's application; at Lehman, the translation and a copy of the original-language transcript go to the evaluation agency, which reports to Lehman (source).
What we do not do
eVerbary is a translation service, not a credential evaluation service: we do not issue evaluations, US equivalencies or GPA conversions, and we cannot send documents on behalf of the school that issued them. At CUNY that means we translate in the literal, letterhead format the guidelines describe and can notarize for Lehman; the UAPC or agency evaluation, and the sealed or electronic official records, come from CUNY, the evaluator and your school.
How to order
- Scan or photograph every page of the document, front and back, including any stamps on the reverse.
- Upload it, choose the language and "certified", and see the price before paying.
- Receive the PDF, usually within 24 hours for one to three pages, and upload it with the copy of the original wherever the institution asks for it.
Sources
The City University of New York (CUNY)'s own pages, read on October 12, 2026. Enrollment figure: CUNY is not ranked as a single institution in Open Doors (IIE); in its 2023/24 list of community colleges hosting the most international students, LaGuardia Community College is number 12, with 750 students, and the Borough of Manhattan Community College number 14, with 718.
- CUNY Document Translation Guidelines (PDF)
- Undergraduate admissions: secondary school records
- Undergraduate admissions: how to apply
- Outside Evaluation Services 2026 (PDF)
- Undergraduate admissions: downloads
- BMCC: translation and evaluation of non-US transcripts
- CUNY graduate studies FAQ
- Lehman College graduate admissions: international students
Frequently asked questions
Can a relative who speaks English translate my diploma for CUNY?
No. CUNY's guidelines bar the student and family members; the translation must come from one of the listed sources, such as a translation agency or a consulate (source).
Does a CUNY translation need to be notarized?
Not under the central guidelines, which ask for a literal translation on letterhead signed by the translator (source). Some graduate programs, such as Lehman's, ask for a notarized one (source); eVerbary can add notarization at checkout.
Do I have to pay WES or another evaluator to apply to CUNY as an undergraduate?
No. UAPC evaluates foreign transcripts free; a paid course-by-course report from an agency on CUNY's list is an option, sent directly to evaluations@cuny.edu (source).
How long does CUNY's free evaluation take?
BMCC says normally 6 to 8 weeks, sometimes longer; outside agencies are faster but charge a fee (source).
Can I send CUNY a notarized copy of my university transcript?
No. Official university records must come from the institution, sealed or electronically; notarized copies are not accepted (source).
Will eVerbary convert my grades to a US GPA?
No. The translation reproduces the grades and the grading scale exactly as they appear. A GPA conversion is credential evaluation, which the institution or an evaluation agency does.
Translating documents for CUNY?
Upload a scan of your transcript or diploma and see the price and delivery time before you pay.