Admission Information

Admissions will be based on a comprehensive assessment of an applicant's qualifications including Graduate Record Examination (GRE) test scores, undergraduate and graduate grade point average, and letters of recommendation. Applicants must:

1. Formally apply for admission to the College of Graduate Studies and fulfill all requirements, including submission of official transcripts from all academic work and official scores on the Graduate Record Examination.
2. Hold a baccalaureate, master's, or doctoral degree in a science discipline. Applicants holding a master's degree will be expected to have earned at least 21 semester hours of graduate mathematics, science, or engineering credit, with evidence of strong mathematical skills and experience in computation through coursework, employment, and/or research experiences. Students entering with a master's degree in a mathematics, science, or engineering discipline may, on the recommendation of the program coordination committee and with the approval of the graduate dean, have up to 12 credit hours accepted from their master's if it directly corresponds to coursework in the Computational Science curriculum. Applicants applying from the baccalaureate level must have an appropriate science degree with evidence of strong mathematical skills and experience in computer programming through coursework, employment, and/or research experiences. Applicants lacking necessary foundational coursework in previous degrees will be required to complete these courses as part of their program of study in addition to the degree requirements. In addition, students admitted to the computational science program will be required to participate in an intensive computational science leveling program prior to the beginning of their coursework.
3. Have a grade point average (GPA) in their previous academic degrees that indicates potential for success in doctoral-level study. Successful applicants typically present a minimum 3.5 GPA at the graduate level or a minimum 3.0 GPA when entering with a bachelor's degree.
4. Submit scores for the verbal, quantitative and analytical writing measures of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) that indicate potential for success in the Computational Science program. The GRE is an important measure and is given significant consideration in the admissions review process. Successful applicants typically have scores on the verbal and quantitative measures at or above the 50th percentile for persons intending to pursue graduate study in science with a combined V + Q score that exceeds 1,000.
5. Provide letters of recommendation directly from at least three professors or professionals that address the candidate's potential for successfully completing a Ph.D. in COMS.
6. International students must also meet the College of Graduate Studies requirement for proof of English language proficiency. This may be accomplished by submission of TOEFL, UMELI test, or IELTS scores that meet CGS requirements, or by successful completion of level 112 of ELS coursework.

Applicants who do not meet these minimums but whose application materials indicate high potential for success may be admitted conditionally and would have to meet the conditions of their admission in the time stated to remain in the program of study.

Additional Application Information

1. The application deadline is March 15 for those wishing to be considered for graduate assistantships for the following fall. Late applications may be considered but financial support is not guaranteed.
2. Additional hours may be required for completion of the degree program based upon an assessment of the applicant's prior preparation in the sciences.