2023 Application Information

The faculty of the ASL/English Interpreting Program at IUPUI are excited to share with you that they will be accepting applications soon. Please read carefully and follow the guidelines below.

The Screening Committee will review these documents and determine if you meet the criteria for acceptance into the Interpreting Program. Please be advised that we are adhering to a strict, but generous, timeline. You can submit your application from February 1, 2023, through June 1, 2023, with the exception of the Sign Language Proficiency Interview, ASL (SLPI), which needs to be completed no later than April 14, 2023.

Part of the application process is a score from the National Sign Language Proficiency Interview (SLPI). To take the SLPI, you will need to plan ahead. Because the results from the SLPI can take up to 8 weeks to process. You need to complete your interview with one of the agencies listed at the end of this document by April 14, 2023. This means you need to contact them and schedule the interview well in advance of April 14. You are ultimately responsible for scheduling and submitting your SLPI score to the committee, and all scores must be received by June 30, 2023 (email score to ls29@iupui.edu when you receive it).

The following application documents are required:

• A letter of intent (written in English)
• A 2-3 minute video in ASL answering the following prompt: Why are you considering a career as an interpreter? This video needs to be saved as an unlisted video on YouTube with the live link included in your letter of intent.
• An unofficial transcript of your academic records from all colleges and universities, including IUPUI. To access your unofficial transcript for any IU campus including IUPUI, search for “Student Center” in one.iu.edu then find “Academics” and “View unofficial transcript” (also linked here: Unofficial transcript). Once at the transcript page
  • select the campus in the “Institution” drop down menu and then select “Unofficial/Cur Enrol/All Career” in the Report Type drop down menu, then click on View Report and Print it as a PDF.
• Your calculated GPA: please calculate your overall GPA from all of your postsecondary schools and compile that information into a neat summary like the one shown below and include this in your letter of intent. Here is a link to a GPA calculator: GPA Calculator
  • Overall GPA (at least a 2.7 or higher is expected)
  • ASL GPA (at least a 3.0 is expected)
  • A foundational English course with at least a grade of B is expected (ENG-W 131, ENG-W 140, ENG-Z 205, or ENG-Z 206 at IUPUI or equivalent from another institution such as a General Education required English composition course or a foundational English Linguistics course)
• Your SLPI score can be sent after your other materials, but it must be received by June 30, 2023, by email to ls29@iupui.edu.

Please send all materials to Laura Smith in one email to ls29@iupui.edu — please do not send several emails with different documents (except your SLPI score may be sent after the rest of your materials).

You will be notified via email no later than July 15, 2023, of the admissions decision for the program. Students who are accepted into the program will be required to attend a “New Student Orientation” in August, the week before the fall semester begins. The exact date will be communicated well in advance of the orientation.

If you are currently a student at IUPUI, you may enroll in the Fall 2023 courses for the Interpreting program when enrollment opens, but if you are not accepted into the program, you will not be permitted to take those classes and will need to find other coursework. If you are not currently an IUPUI student, you will have access to all necessary courses after acceptance into the program.

SLPI Information (a rating of Survival+ or higher is expected):

1. The National Sign Language Assessment (NSLA) charges $185.00 for a Zoom interview. For an additional $85.00, they will provide a score within 72 hours. They will also provide a detailed explanation of your score for another additional fee. https://bridgesoregon.org/NSLA/
2. Kentucky School for the Deaf Outreach offers SLPI via Zoom for $100. Please contact them directly for additional information: https://www.ksd.kyschools.us/

Additional information about the ASL Interpreting program can be found at https://liberalarts.indianapolis.iu.edu/programs/american-sign-language/