Applicants who have graduated from an accredited college or
university, or who hold or will be granted by the end of the current
academic year a baccalaureate degree (or its equivalent) comparable in
content and in number of credit hours to that granted by the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, may apply for admission to
the Graduate College of UIUC. Applicants must have an admission
average of at least 4.0 (A = 5.0) computed from the last 60 hours of
undergraduate work and any graduate work completed. Meeting these
minimum admission requirements of the Graduate College, however, does
not guarantee admission; individual departments may set a minimum
grade-point average higher than that of the Graduate College and may
impose other special admission requirements and conditions. Because
applicants to most departments compete for a limited number of
positions, many who exceed minimum requirements may be denied
admission.
Applicants for admission to the Graduate College with
undergraduate academic records showing "pass," "satisfactory,"
"credit," or other similar entries in advanced courses that have a
bearing on the student's field of specialization should submit a
written evaluation or a letter grade by the instructor in each such
course, along with scores on the Graduate Record Examination. Because
some departments have special examination requirements, applicants
should check with their prospective departments; for example, the
Departments of Accountancy and Business Administration use the
Graduate Management Admission Test instead of the Graduate Record
Examination.
Prospective students are urged to apply for admission as early as
possible, preferably in November or December for the summer session
and fall semester, and September or October for the spring
semester. Applications may not be accepted during the three weeks
preceding the beginning of a term.
Application forms for U.S. students may be obtained from the major
department or the Graduate College, University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign, 202 Coble Hall, 801 South Wright Street, Champaign,
IL 61820. Application forms for international students may be obtained
by writing to the Office of Admissions and Records, University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,
10
Henry Administration Building,
506
South Wright Street, Urbana, IL 61801. A nonrefundable application fee
must accompany the application. International applicants must submit
official records of all higher education, including certificates of
degrees with the dates the degrees were conferred. If only one
original is available and would be difficult to replace, an attested
or certified copy should be submitted. All records not in English must
be accompanied by a translated record. Records should show the
individual subjects studied and the grades received in each
subject.
International applicants are required to submit proof of adequate
finances for the entire period of planned study. Applicants unable to
provide satisfactory evidence of adequate finances will not be granted
admission.
Eligible applicants whose native language is not English must take
the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), given several times
a year throughout the world. Applicants should make arrangements
directly with the TOEFL Application Office, P.O. Box 6155, Princeton,
NJ 08541-6155, U.S.A. Graduate applicants are exempt from this testing
if, within five years of the proposed date of enrollment at UIUC, they
have completed at least two academic years of full-time study in a
country where English is the primary language and in a school where
English is the primary language of instruction.
The University requires a score of at least 550 on the TOEFL
examination, and some departments require higher scores. All
non-native English-speaking applicants to the Graduate College who are
admitted on the basis of their academic credentials but score below
607 on the TOEFL or fail to submit a required TOEFL score will be
admitted on limited status and will be required to take the English
Placement Test (EPT) upon their arrival.
The Notice of Admission is issued by the Office of Admissions and
Records to applicants when their admission to the University is
complete, i.e., when they have been recommended for admission by the
department and have been determined to be eligible by the Office of
Admissions and Records. The Notice of Admission is official
verification that admission has been approved; it is issued for a
specific term and should be brought to the initial registration.
A department may request, on an applicant's behalf, that an
applicant admitted for a particular term be allowed to enter in a
different term without having to repeat the application process. These
requests for change of term of entry are granted only if the new term
of entry is within one year of the term originally set. Applicants
should note that a Notice of Admission for the fall term is also valid
for the preceding summer session, and that one issued for the summer
session, if not marked "summers only," is also valid for the following
fall semester.
The Notice of Admission will specify the admission status of the
student: whether the admission is as a degree candidate or as a
nondegree student, whether full graduate standing or limited status
has been approved, and whether additional credentials are still
needed. Each admitted student must submit complete academic
credentials to the Office of Admissions and Records before the
registration period for the student's second term of
attendance. Registration for the second term will be encumbered if the
required official transcripts have not been received.
The Notice of Admission may state specific conditions for
admission. Admitted students should have a clear understanding of the
conditions or should seek clarification from their major
departments. A student may be admitted on limited status if his or her
preadmission grade-point average (GPA), which is based on the last 60
semester hours of undergraduate work, is below the Graduate College
minimum of 4.0 (A = 5.0), or if the academic record shows other
deficiencies or nontraditional academic qualifications. After the
student has satisfied the conditions imposed, his or her major
department should request that the Graduate College change the student
from limited status to full graduate standing. No advanced degree will
be awarded to a student who has not qualified for, and been granted,
full graduate standing.
Each student admitted can choose one of two enrollment patterns:
continuous, in which the student must enroll each fall and spring
semester, with summer sessions optional; or consecutive summers only,
in which the student enrolls only for summer sessions.
Students with nondegree status are admitted to courses on a
part-time basis if there is enough space. Once accepted for admission
by a department and the Graduate College, a nondegree student has the
same enrollment pattern options as a degree candidate. Either the
major department or the Graduate College, however, may discontinue the
nondegree status at the end of any term. A student need not apply each
semester for readmission as a nondegree student as long as he or she
maintains one of the established patterns of enrollment.
Several restrictions and conditions apply to nondegree
status. Nondegree students:
a. Are not eligible to advance enroll.
b. Cannot register until after the third day of classes in the
fall or spring semester. The late registration fee will be waived if
the student completes his or her registration on or before the tenth
day of instruction in a semester.
c. Are required to have approval each term from both their home
department and the department offering the course in which they wish
to enroll. Admission does not guarantee, therefore, that the student
will be able to enroll in all courses desired.
d. Are limited to taking fewer than 3 units per semester. A
nondegree student will not be granted full-time status unless he or
she is participating in a special program for which full-time approval
has been obtained from the Graduate College prior to admission.
e. Are not eligible for financial aid (fellowships,
assistantships) administered by the Graduate College.
f. Must apply for admission if they wish to become candidates for
a degree. If the student is later approved for degree status, a
maximum of 3 units of nondegree credit may be applied to a
degree.
A nondegree student who wishes to enroll only during the summer
sessions need not be admitted by a specific department but may carry
an unassigned student status with the Graduate College. Certification
of an earned degree is all that is required for admission. Such a
student is allowed to register continuously from summer to summer
until his or her pattern of enrollment is broken.
U of I Direct is the system that allows students to register for
courses by computer. Students who register for courses agree to pay
tuition and fees to the University according to the payment policies
and schedules adopted by the Board of Trustees. If a student wishes to
cancel registration, and thus avoid payment of tuition and fee
charges, the student must do so by 5:00 p.m. of the first day of
instruction.
Unauthorized use of University of Illinois computerized systems,
data, or resources; unauthorized use of another individual's
identification, account or password; or an attempt to gain
unauthorized access is prohibited by University policy and may
constitute a violation of Illinois state law.
Because course descriptions found in the
Courses Catalog
are not intended to be complete, students should check with their
department's graduate studies office or talk with instructors involved
to find out about reading lists, papers, projects, and examinations
for particular classes.
Go to Graduate Programs Index
Go to Programs of Study Table of Contents
Go to Graduate College Home Page
Go to University of Illinois Home Page