Application Information

Anyone who has or will obtain a U.S. bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution or a comparable foreign degree from an officially recognized college or university may apply for graduate admission.

APPLY EARLY!

We strongly recommend that you submit your completed application (and all required materials) at least two weeks before your application deadline.

HOW TO APPLY

Step 1. If you have not already done so, you should immediately contact your major program of interest or visit its website for admission requirements. Programs that require specific materials may not consider the online application for admission until they receive these materials.

Step 2. The University of Minnesota application for graduate admission must be submitted online via the ApplyYourself admissions system. This includes uploading unofficial copies of your transcripts and academic records directly to the online application. After you submit your materials, you will receive periodic email status updates at each point in the admission process. You will also be able to check the status of your application yourself.

TRANSCRIPTS and CREDENTIALS

You must list on your online application each institution of higher learning from which you have earned credit. You must also submit unofficial transcripts or academic records for each of these institutions. This includes partial or incomplete transcripts.

Unofficial Transcripts

Transcripts or academic records must be uploaded directly to the ApplyYourself online application. English translations should also be uploaded (together with original language transcripts) if the transcript is not in English. Please do not submit paper or fax copies of this material because it will cause delays in your application processing.

Upload your transcripts! - please click here for important instructions.

International applicants - please click here for more details about transcripts (this includes specific instructions for students from Chinese institutions).

University of Minnesota students - If you have been previously enrolled (this includes current students) on any campus of the University of Minnesota system, you can request free electronic copies of your unofficial transcripts from OneStop student services. Please do NOT request copies of official transcripts (paper or electronic) to upload into your online graduate application. If you are admitted, we will simply check our system to confirm your academic record. This will save you the cost and time of dealing with official transcripts.

Official Transcripts

All transcripts and academic records uploaded to the online application are considered unofficial. You will only be asked to submit official transcripts or academic records if you are admitted (U of Minnesota students are exempt from this requirement, see above). These must be submitted before you register and enroll at the University of Minnesota. If you have attended universities that issue official transcripts on request, you must have these materials sent to the Graduate School Admissions Office directly from the institution. An official, certified (signature and seal) English translation should be attached if the transcript is not in English.

For English language translation services in the Twin Cities area, click here or contact the Graduate School Admissions office at 612-625-3014. The University of Minnesota reserves the right to require the submission of official transcripts or credentials any time during the admission review process.

GPA

In general, most graduate programs prefer an undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher (on a 4.0 scale) for admission, but you should consult your program of interest about specific GPA requirements.

TEST SCORES

GRE - Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores may be required by your program. For more information, see Graduate Record Examination (GRE).

English Proficiency Tests - A TOEFL, MELAB, or IELTS test is required of most international applicants whose native language is not English. For more information, see English language requirements.

To learn how to check if your GRE or TOEFL scores have been received by our office, click here.

LETTERS of RECOMMENDATION

Many graduate programs require letters of recommendation, and they may require that these recommendations be submitted via the online application. In most cases you will not have to wait to submit your online application if your recommendation provider has not yet uploaded a recommendation. For recommendation requirements, check with your graduate program of interest. Please do not have recommendation materials sent to the Graduate School Admissions Office.

Current U of M Undergraduates

If admitted,University of Minnesota undergraduates who have no more than seven semester credits or two courses to complete for the bachelor's degree (including both distribution and total credit requirements), may register in the Graduate School to begin a graduate program while simultaneously completing their baccalaureate work.