Admission

For US Citizens and Permanent Residents

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At SIUC, you may be admitted to the Graduate School by either applying directly to a particular degree program or by applying as a Nondeclared Graduate Student. For either category of enrollment, you may apply online on at www.gradschool.siu.edu/applygrad.html .

If you are applying to a degree program, please choose your major carefully from the list of programs, as some departments offer more than one degree at the master's level. The application you submit electronically will be sent to the Graduate School Admissions Office in Woody Hall, and to the department you are applying to. All other application materials must be submitted to the department - please address them specifically to the person listed under "Departmental Contact Information" at www.gradschool.siu.edu/complete_listing.html

You must meet minimum general Graduate School requirements to be eligible to be considered for admission by a department. To be eligible to be considered for admission to a graduate program, the following minimum GPA's are normally required:

For admissions to a Master's program:

• 2.7 (on a 4.0 grading scale) on the last two years of your Bachelor's degree
• If you have completed your Bachelor's degree, we will go back from the degree date 60 graded semester hours, and include the entire term where the 60 hours fall.
• If you have not yet completed your Bachelor's degree and are missing one semester, (for example a spring semester and possibly and summer term), we will go back 45 graded semester hours and include the entire term where the 45 hours fall.
• 3.0 on all previous graduate work

For admission to a Ph.D. program:

• 3.25 on all previous graduate level course work

Minimum TOEFL score of 550 / 213 / 80 for International Students and some citizens / PR's; some departments require a higher score. English requirement may also be met in some cases with U.S. course work and/or various additional English testing. Contact Lu Lyons in the Graduate School (Woody Hall B103) for details.

When you have met the above minimum general Graduate School requirements, you are eligible to apply to a department. Departments may have additional requirements of their own, which may include a higher minimum GPA.

It is up to the individual department whether or not they require any of the graduate tests, such as the GRE, GMAT or MAT. Free informational booklets on these tests are available in Woody Hall B103.

While the Graduate School in general does not have an application deadline, many departments do. Check with the program you wish to apply to early in the application process to find out what deadlines may exist.

Some departments only admit students for certain semesters; most departments require 3 letters of recommendation.

Some programs require a "Statement of Purpose", a one or two page statement explaining why the student wishes to pursue graduate studies, why they are particularly interested in that major, what they wish to do with their degree, etc..

All departments require a $50 nonrefundable applicaton fee. This may be paid by credit card at the time you submit the online application, or you may pay the fee by check or money order directly to the department.

Once all of the required materials are submitted, it is up to the individual department to decide whether or not they wish to admit the student. The decision may be made by the Director of Graduate Studies, the Chair, or by committee. They may admit or reject a student for whatever reasons they see fit. You may apply to multiple programs, but must submit separate applications, application fees and sets of required paperwork to each program.

If admission is recommended by the department, the paperwork is then sent to the Graduate School Admissions Office for final evaluation and approval, and the formal paperwork is then done. The official admission letter is sent from our office, and will be signed by the Associate Dean of the Graduate School.

We also have a list of the departments which are approved to admit students via the Direct Entry option and the Accelerated Entry option. Please view our Direct Entry/Accelerated Entry list of departments who participate in this option.

• Direct entry
  If the department wishes, they can choose to admit a student directly from a Bachelor's degree into a Ph.D. program. The student must usually have the GPA on the last two year's of his Bachelor's which is normally required on all graduate work, that is a 3.25.
• Accelerated Entry
  If the department wishes, they may first admit the student as a Master's student, and after one or more semesters they may request that the student be then admitted to the Ph.D. program. The student must have the 3.25 on the course work they have taken at the Master's level.

Also available are several concurrent degree programs. Those established at this time are:

Master of Business Admin/Mass Comm & Media Arts (Telecommunications)
Master of Business Admin/Agribusiness Economics
LAW/Master of Accountancy
LAW/Master of Business Administration
LAW/Master of Public Administration
LAW/Political Science (PhD only - must be Direct Entry)
LAW/Master of Social Work

We also offer the option of doing a Master's degree with double major. Consent of both departments is required. Forms needed and more information regarding this option may be obtained from Nancy Vorhees in Woody B116.

Application processes vary greatly according to department. For some programs, you may need to apply 8-10 months in advance, while others may admit you in 1-2 months. To be safe, students should apply as early as possible.

Any student not meeting the above minimum GPA requirements may apply initially as a Nondeclared Graduate Student through the Graduate School Admissions Office (Woody B103). Once you have earned at least 12 semester hours of graded graduate course work with a "B" average, you are then eligible to be considered for admission into a department. Admission into this category of enrollment requires only an application, a $50 application fee and proof of a Bachelor's degree. There is no minimum GPA requirement. For more information on this option, see www.gradschool.siu.edu/nondeclared.html

Please note that once you are enrolled as a graduate student, you are required to maintain an overall B average (3.0) in your graduate credit course work to remain in good academic standing.

Graduate Catalogues are available online at www.gradschool.siu.edu/catalog.html

Schedules of Classes are available online at registrar.siu.edu/records/schedclass.htm. Copies are available in the Graduate School Registration Office for you to view.

For more information, call 618-536-7791 or email gradschl@siu.edu. The Graduate School Admissions Office is located in Woody Hall B103 on the Carbondale campus.

If you are unable to obtain the information you need, please contact the Supervisor of Graduate Admissions, Ms. Lu Lyons at llyons@siu.edu or 618-453-4512.

Thank you for your interest in SIUC!