Admission

Persons whose records indicate the ability to succeed with advanced work may be admitted for graduate study to the University of Kansas in one of the professional schools or the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Applicants can either apply as degree seeking or nondegree seeking. Applicants applying to an identifiable degree program are degree seeking; applicants who do not have an identified degree program should be admitted under the nondegree-seeking category. No student may work toward a graduate degree without being accepted as a degree-seeking student in a specific graduate program.

Degree-Seeking Admission

Students who wish to work toward graduate degrees should be considered for admission under the degree-seeking category in either the regular or provisional category.

Regular Admission requires a bachelor’s degree and a grade-point average of at least a B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale), from KU or from another regionally accredited institution or foreign university with substantially equivalent bachelor’s degree requirements. The bachelor’s degree is not acceptable if it contains credit awarded for work experience (life experience) that was not directly supervised by faculty members of an accredited university or not evaluated in units that identify the academic content (e.g., P/F, S/U). In exceptional cases, persons not holding bachelor’s degrees may be admitted if they are academically well prepared. In these cases, the dean of Graduate Studies reviews the student’s academic background before the student is admitted.

Regular Graduate Student, Special B. This category is available only to degree-seeking graduate students in the School of Medicine at KU Medical Center. (1) The student is admitted to graduate study in the School of Medicine. (2) The student meets the academic standards of KUMC Graduate Studies and the basic science departments without excessive deficiencies in prerequisites. (Same as current Regular Admission category.) (3) At any time during the first year after admission, the student may seek entrance directly into a specific graduate discipline in one of the basic science departments. The department reviews the application and makes a recommendation to the dean of Graduate Studies, KU Medical Center. If the application is approved, a completed Progress-to-Degree form changes the student’s status. (4) At the end of the first academic year, which begins with the first semester of enrollment, the student retains graduate status if a department has completed a Progress-to-Degree form or submitted a petition to the dean of Graduate Studies, KUMC. The dean may extend the Special-B status for one semester or an appropriate period of time.

Provisional Admission. An applicant who has one or more deficiencies in grade-point average (or English proficiency scores; see Minimum English Proficiency Requirements) or prerequisite course work (or other deficiencies as determined by the department) but meets other admission standards may be admitted on a provisional basis. It is expected that a student who is admitted provisionally for a lack of prerequisite course work or low English proficiency scores will be reviewed within the academic year to see if the requirements for regular admission have been met. A student who meets the requirements will be moved from provisional to regular status when the department submits a Progress-to-Degree form. A student who has not met the requirements for provisional admission at the time of review may be dismissed immediately.

A student admitted provisionally who fails to earn a B average in the first semester may be dismissed immediately. If provisionary continuation is recommended by the department or program and approved by the Graduate Division, the student may remain on provisional status for one additional semester. Students who have been dismissed from a graduate program may be readmitted for further graduate study at KU only by petition of a Graduate Division that will accept the student. The petition must be approved by the dean of Graduate Studies.

Nondegree-Seeking Admission

Nondegree-seeking applicants must meet the admission standards for regular admission status. A nondegree-seeking applicant does not intend to work for an advanced degree or is working toward a graduate certificate. If a nondegree-seeking student later applies for admission as a regular degree-seeking student and is accepted by a department, the total of transfer credit may not exceed 6 hours, or 8 hours if the student holds a baccalaureate degree from KU (this total includes credit from other accredited graduate schools as well as nondegree credit earned at KU).

Nondegree-seeking applicants who do not meet regular admission standards must be admitted under provisional status.

Applicants who wish to attend institutes or workshops may be admitted through the Easy Admit process. This allows any person with a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution to take one course a semester, without meeting the additional requirements for regular nondegree-seeking admission. Note: Current degree-seeking graduate students who wish to pursue a graduate certificate are not required to apply for nondegree-seeking status. See Graduate Certificate Programs for more information.

Admission Procedure

Apply for admission online at www.graduate.ku.edu. To ensure adequate time for review, the applicant should check with each individual degree program for its application deadline date.

Applications must be accompanied by one copy of official transcripts from the institution where the applicant earned the bachelor’s degree (or equivalent). This official transcript is used to verify the completion (or intended completion) of a baccalaureate degree (or equivalent). If the applicant has completed any graduate work, official transcripts from the institution(s) must be included as well. Letters of recommendation and test scores also may be required. Applicants should check with the program to which they are applying for more information. Please note: transcripts and test scores that have been faxed by someone other than a university staff member are not accepted as official copies.

International applicants also must provide English proficiency test scores. The university is unable to issue immigration documents until the international applicant furnishes a financial resources statement. Degree programs may choose not to consider international applications if they are not accompanied by a financial statement. (See Minimum English Proficiency Requirements.)

Nonrefundable application fees payable to the University of Kansas are required. Rates are subject to change. Some departments and programs require deposits from admitted students, to be fully credited against required fees upon enrollment.

On the KU Medical Center campus, send your application for admission, copies of official transcripts, test scores, letters of recommendation, and other required materials directly to the KUMC department in which you wish to study.

Each applicant is notified of the admission decision in writing; this notice clearly explains the admission classification (regular, provisional, nondegree). For all admission categories, enrollment in specific courses may be subject to fulfillment of departmental course prerequisites and consent of the instructor.

Admission to graduate studies does not imply admission to candidacy for a higher degree. A student becomes a candidate for an advanced degree only by demonstrating through resident study at KU the requisite preparation and ability. Requirements for an advanced degree must be regarded as minimum requirements. Additional requirements depend on the student’s undergraduate preparation and the particular field of graduate work chosen.

After an absence of five years from KU, students must apply for readmission to their graduate programs and to the appropriate Graduate Division.

Limitations on Admission

Because of limitations of space, faculty, or general resources for research and instruction, some programs must restrict the number of applicants they admit. Questions should be directed to the program to which the prospective student wishes to apply.

Minimum English Proficiency Requirements

Departments must confirm that all applicants who are not native speakers of English, whether international or U.S. citizens or permanent residents, meet the minimum English proficiency requirements to be admitted to graduate studies with regular or provisional status. Confirmation can come in any one of the following forms:

1. Official transcript showing the applicant graduated with a baccalaureate degree (or higher) earned in residence from an accredited U.S. institution of higher education.
2. Official transcript showing that the applicant graduated with a baccalaureate degree (or higher) from an institution whose medium of instruction is English. This does not apply to degrees earned online. Verification of English instruction from the university is required as part of the application and must be included in the application package. Verification can be from a catalog or program description brochure or an official letter from a department chair, dean, or other university official stipulating English as the language of instruction. The program considering admission should also conduct a phone interview with the prospective student. Individual programs can opt for a more restrictive policy.
3. Receipt of official copy (not student’s copy) of applicant’s proficiency scores achieved not more than two years before the semester of admission.

Note: These guidelines are subject to change by official action of the appropriate governance bodies.

Any non-native English-speaking student who is sponsored may be admitted provisionally without submitting language proficiency scores. In this case, the sponsored student must provide official English proficiency test results (not more than two years old) to the department or must pass a proficiency examination administered by the Applied English Center upon arrival at KU. After the sponsored student’s English proficiency has been verified to meet requirements, the status of the sponsored international graduate student may be changed from provisional to regular.

*Additional Spoken English Proficiency Requirements for Graduate Teaching Assistants. The Kansas Board of Regents requires a spoken language proficiency assessment for employment positions requiring classroom or laboratory instructional responsibility and/or direct tutorial responsibilities. Therefore, GTAs must achieve a minimum TSE or SPEAK score of 50, iBT speaking score of 24; or IELTS score of 8. If this is not achieved,

• The student must provide a personal financial document as required by the U.S. government to issue the DS-2019 or I-20,
• The department may retract the GTA offer,
• The department may still honor the GTA offer, but the student must take the SPEAK test offered by the Applied English Center and achieve a score of at least 50.

Applied English Center. The Applied English Center certifies the English proficiency of non-native speakers of English admitted to the University of Kansas for graduate study. All non-native speakers of English must check in with the AEC upon arrival for verification of English language proficiency. Please note: Students will have an AEC hold on their student accounts until this check-in is completed and will be unable to enroll in courses until the hold is removed.

Admission to a graduate program does not guarantee that a nonnative speaker of English will be able to begin course work immediately. A student will be required to enroll in one or more English language courses at the AEC when evaluation at the AEC determines it necessary. It is also required if

• Any part of the Internet-based TOEFL is below 23,
• Any part of the computer-based TOEFL is below 23 or an essay score is below 5,
• Any part of the paper-based TOEFL is below 57 or an essay score is below 5,
• An IELTS overall score is below 6.5 or any score is below 6.0.

To receive a waiver from the Applied English Center, higher proficiency test results are required than those described here for admission; contact the AEC for more information.

For KU Medical Center minimum English proficiency requirements, see www2.kumc.edu/aa/gradstudies/grad_adm.htm.