Duolingo English Test Course for Students in Iraq — AUIS Scores, Destinations and Visa Rules

Universities in Iraq that accept the Duolingo English Test

American University of Iraq, Sulaimani (AUIS) publishes Duolingo bands on its admission-criteria page: 110–115 places you on the concurrent track (degree courses alongside English support), and 120–160 allows a full load of undergraduate credit classes. AUIS adds that Duolingo results are reviewed by Admissions and the Academic Preparatory Program and must be sent through the Duolingo website, so share your score officially rather than as a screenshot.

American University of Iraq, Baghdad (AUIB): its admissions page does not list the Duolingo English Test or any test score, so ask the admissions office directly. Iraqi public universities generally assess English through their own exams or IELTS/TOEFL for postgraduate entry; get any DET acceptance in writing. You can also check the university finder.

Universities abroad that Iraqi students apply to with a DET score

Published DET requirements at destinations Iraqi applicants use:

United Kingdom and Ireland

• University of Hertfordshire (UK campus): 105 overall with no less than 95 in each band where the course asks for IELTS 6.0, and 120 overall with no less than 95 in each band where it asks for IELTS 6.5.
• Trinity College Dublin: 120 overall with 100 in each subscore for standard entry, 130 with 110 for higher entry.
• University College Dublin: 90 with at least 80 in each subscore as the standard requirement, rising to 100/90 and 110/100 for taught master’s tiers and higher for the most demanding programmes.

United States and Canada

• Arizona State University: 95 for most undergraduate majors, 100 for the BSc Nursing, 105 for the Fulton Schools of Engineering and 120 for the Cronkite School of Journalism.
• Northeastern University (College of Professional Studies): 105 for graduate and bachelor’s-completion programmes, 120 for doctoral programmes.
• Concordia University (Montreal): 105 with no subscore under 90 for undergraduate admission.
• University of Ottawa: 120 overall with 120 in Literacy for direct undergraduate entry; conditional entry through its English Intensive Program starts at 85 overall with 85 in Literacy.

Germany and the Gulf

• Constructor University (Bremen, Germany): minimum 110 for graduate study.
• Heriot-Watt University Dubai: 100 overall with 95 in each component for Foundation, 120 with 110 in each component for undergraduate entry and STEM master’s, 120 with Writing 115 for non-STEM master’s, 125 with 120 for research degrees.

Turkey, honestly. It is the most popular destination on this list, and it is where the DET is weakest. The English-proficiency pages we opened at Bilkent, Koç, Sabancı, Özyeğin and Istanbul Medipol list IELTS, TOEFL and their own proficiency exams and do not list the Duolingo English Test; Bahçeşehir (BAU) states outright that Duolingo results are not acceptable. If Turkey is your only target, plan for the university’s own exam or a listed test. The DET earns its place when your list also includes the UK, North America, Ireland or the Gulf.

Malaysia, honestly. The undergraduate English pages we opened at Universiti Malaya, Monash University Malaysia, Asia Pacific University (APU) and Taylor’s University list IELTS, TOEFL, PTE or MUET and do not list the Duolingo English Test. Do not assume Malaysian acceptance from agent websites — ask the university in writing before you book.

Visa rules that decide which test you take

• United Kingdom — the DET is not a Secure English Language Test (SELT). For degree-level study, UK Visas and Immigration lets a licensed Higher Education Provider assess your English itself at CEFR B2, which is how a DET-based offer leads to a CAS. For courses below degree level you need a SELT such as IELTS for UKVI.
• Canada — IRCC discontinued the Student Direct Stream in November 2024, so everyone applies through the regular study-permit process and your designated learning institution decides which English evidence it accepts; many accept the DET.
• Australia — the Department of Home Affairs accepts a fixed list of tests (IELTS, PTE Academic, TOEFL iBT, Cambridge C1 Advanced, OET, LanguageCert Academic, CELPIP General, Michigan English Test) and does not accept tests delivered completely online. The DET will not satisfy the student-visa English requirement.

For Turkey, Malaysia and the Gulf there is no language-test visa rule to worry about; the university’s own acceptance is what matters, which is why the notes above are so important.

Choosing your target score

The DET reports an overall score on the 10–160 scale and four subscores — Literacy, Comprehension, Conversation and Production. For Iraqi applicants the realistic targets cluster like this:

• 90–105: University College Dublin from 90 with 80 in each subscore, Arizona State at 95, Concordia and Northeastern’s professional-studies programmes at 105.
• 110–120: AUIS concurrent track at 110–115 and full credit from 120, Constructor University at 110, Hertfordshire at 105–120, Ottawa at 120 with 120 in Literacy, Heriot-Watt Dubai at 120 with 110 in each component.
• 125–130: Trinity College Dublin’s higher entry at 130 with 110 in every subscore.

Plan a margin above the highest requirement on your list and check your weakest subscore against the floor, because that is what most often sends an application back. Send us your programme page on WhatsApp and we will read it with you.

DET vs IELTS from Iraq

Both exams measure the same four skills in different shapes. Once you have confirmed acceptance, the choice is about format.

Use the DET for AUIS and for every destination above that publishes a Duolingo band; keep IELTS for the Turkish and Malaysian universities that do not, and for UK study below degree level. Compare any IELTS or TOEFL requirement with the DET score converter, and read which Duolingo score you need before you decide.

Studying online from Iraq

Iraq is one hour ahead of Egypt for most of the year, so live classes land at a normal hour in Baghdad and Erbil. Electricity and connection interruptions are a real part of life in Iraq, which is exactly why every lesson recording is uploaded the same day.

Every Teachero course runs as live online classes taught in English by highly qualified, certified instructors, with Arabic-language support available whenever a point is easier to grasp in Arabic. Lesson recordings are uploaded the same day, so a session you miss is never lost. Each course includes personal Speaking and Writing correction, a full mock test before your exam and WhatsApp support between sessions.

• Standard course — more days, fewer hours per day.
• Intensive course — fewer days, more hours per day, for a test that is close.
• Private 1-on-1 course — tailored to you.

Tell us your target university and exam date on WhatsApp and we will say which of the three fits. Iraq is part of our worldwide DET coverage.

Paying from Iraq

Visa and Mastercard cards from Iraqi banks and licensed card issuers work for the course once international online purchases are enabled — most issuers keep them off by default, so switch them on through mobile banking or at the branch before you pay. If your card is refused, message us on WhatsApp and we will find a way that works from where you are. The Arabic version of this page is on our Arab-world DET hub.