Admission
to the
The University considers applications for admission without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, or disability. It reserves the right to withhold the admission of applicants who fail to meet any of the requirements for admission and to restrict enrollments as required by budgetary or other constraints.
General Requirements for Admission to a Graduate Certificate Program
General Requirements for Admission to a Master's Degree Program
General Requirements for Admission at the Doctoral Level
Additional Admission Requirements for International Applicants
The University considers all applications without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age or religion. The University reserves the right to withhold the admission of an applicant who fails to meet any of the requirements for admission. In addition, it reserves the right to restrict enrollments when necessary because of budgetary or other constraints. Meeting the minimum admissions requirements does not guarantee admission to a graduate program. Applications for admission should be submitted and completed as early as possible and no later than any published deadlines. In some programs, the vacancies will be filled several weeks prior to those deadlines.
In most programs applicants for admission are reviewed as soon as the required credentials are received. All relevant factors are considered, with major emphasis being placed on the academic history of the applicant. The intent of the University is to offer admission to those applicants whose credentials indicate a strong likelihood for success in their selected curricula.
Evidence of good physical and mental health is
required prior to registration. A medical report form is sent to successful
applicants along with the notice of admission. State law requires all students
entering a college in the State of
For application forms and information, address
inquiries to:
International applicants should address inquiries
to:
Application
Processing. An
application for admission to a graduate degree program is processed only after
the application and all its supporting credentials have been filed with the
Graduate Admissions Office. Any supporting credentials that are received
without an application will be maintained on file in the Graduate Admissions
Office for one year. All applications and supporting materials for persons who
are not admitted or who are admitted but do not enroll in the semester for
which they were admitted are maintained on file for one year. Applicants who do
not submit their materials in time to be considered for admission to the
requested term are expected to notify the Graduate Admissions Office to request
consideration for admission to a subsequent term.
Admission to one of these categories does not imply
and should not be confused with later admission to candidacy for a graduate
degree.
Full Standing. Applicants who meet the
general requirements for admission to graduate study plus any additional
requirements specified by the college or department of academic concentration
for the degree sought will be admitted to full standing.
Conditional Standing. Conditional admission
to full standing may be granted to students who have: (a) general or special
deficiencies which require prerequisites or remedial work; (b) degrees awarded
as long as six years prior to admission; or (c) a less clearly predicted chance
of success according to available information. Each student granted a
conditional admission will be responsible for contacting his/her adviser when
he/she has successfully satisfied the conditions for admission to full
standing. The adviser will then be responsible for contacting the
Provisional Standing. Applicants to master’s
programs who have not yet completed their undergraduate degree will be
provisionally admitted, pending the University’s receipt of final transcripts
indicating award of the baccalaureate degree.
Readmission. Post-baccalaureate and graduate students whose enrollment is interrupted will remain eligible to register for two calendar years without having to reapply for admission to the University if they are in good standing and have not exceeded the six or eight-year limit for their degree program. After an absence of more than 24 months, the student must apply for readmission; acceptance is subject to department or program approval.
Students whose enrollment is terminated for
academic reasons may request readmission in accordance with academic
regulations published in this Catalog.
Early-Entry to Graduate Programs. Exceptional undergraduate students may be accepted into a master’s program and begin work toward a graduate degree before completion of the baccalaureate degree. A student may be accepted into the program at any time after completion of 75 or more hours, although it is expected that close to 90 hours will have been earned by the time the first graduate course is taken. These students will have conditional acceptance status, pending the awarding of the baccalaureate degree.
To be accepted in this program an undergraduate student must have at least a 3.2 overall GPA and have taken the appropriate graduate standardized test. A given program may have more rigorous admissions criteria. If an early-entry student has not met the normal admission requirements of a 2.75 overall undergraduate GPA and a 3.0 junior-senior GPA at the end of his/her baccalaureate degree, she/he will be dismissed from the graduate program.
Students accepted into an early-entry program will be subject to the same policies that pertain to other matriculated graduate students. Generally, it will be assumed that early-entry students will finish their baccalaureate degrees before they complete 15 hours of graduate work.
Some early-entry programs are also accelerated.
Under this model, ordinarily up to six hours earned at the graduate level may
be substituted for required undergraduate hours. In other words, up to six
hours of graduate work may be "double counted" toward both the
baccalaureate and graduate degrees. Individual programs may allow additional
hours at the graduate level to be substituted. In no case may more than 12
hours be double-counted.
Auditors. With the consent of the
instructor, any student eligible for admission may register for any class for
audit. The application procedure and fees are the same as for classes taken for
University credit. (See the section on Academic Regulations in this Catalog.)
Non-Matriculation. An applicant admitted to
a degree program who fails to enroll for the term to which he/she has been
admitted is presumed to have withdrawn his/her application. The application may
be reinstated if the request to do so is received within one year from the
originally requested term of entry. This request should be in writing and
addressed to the Graduate Admissions Office at least six weeks prior to the
term in which the applicant seeks to register.
Post-Baccalaureate Students. Students seeking to take courses beyond the baccalaureate degree for license renewal, for transfer to another institution, as prerequisites for admission to a graduate degree program or for personal satisfaction may be admitted as post-baccalaureate students. Foreign nationals must contact the Office of International Admissions before applying for this classification. The following policies apply to applicants for post-baccalaureate status:
1. Post-baccalaureate students must have a
baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher
education.
2. Applications for admission must be accompanied by a $35 application
fee, which is neither deductible nor refundable.
3. Post-baccalaureate students may register for coursework at any level
for which they have the prerequisites.
4. Post-baccalaureate students will be subject to the academic
regulations and standards required of degree-seeking students.
5. The post-baccalaureate classification carries with it no implication
that a student will be admitted to a degree program.
6. Post-baccalaureate students will be assessed tuition and fees based
on the level of courses for which they are enrolled. If enrolled in any course
for graduate credit, they will be assessed graduate fees for all courses.
7. A post-baccalaureate student who is subsequently admitted to a
graduate degree program may request that a maximum of six hours completed for
graduate credit be used for his/her program. All coursework must be approved by
the student's department and listed on the student's Admission to Candidacy
form.
General Requirements for Admission to a Graduate Certificate Program
1. A bachelor’s degree from a regionally
accredited university.
2. Application in writing submitted to the Graduate Admissions Office,
accompanied by a $35 application fee, which is neither deductible nor
refundable.
3. GPA required for entry to a master’s degree program. If the applicant
has earned a post-baccalaureate degree, grades in that program will be taken
into consideration.
4. Official transcripts. (See program descriptions for specific
transcript requirements.)
5. Some programs also may require:
- a. Standardized test scores;
· b. A personal statement outlining why the applicant seeks admission to the program;
· c. Additional admission requirements as specified.
There may be prerequisites for a graduate certificate program. Students should consult the coordinator for the graduate certificate program to identify prerequisites. Admission to a graduate certificate program does not ensure admission into a graduate degree program.
General Requirements for Admission to a Master's Degree Program
1. Application in writing submitted to the Graduate Admissions Office
accompanied by a $35 application fee, which is neither deductible nor
refundable. The application for admission and supporting credentials must be
received in the Office of Graduate Admissions at least 45 days prior to the
first day of class for the semester in which the applicant plans to enter the
Graduate School. (Some programs have earlier deadlines). Materials submitted in
support of this application cannot be returned.
2. Possession of a bachelor's degree, or its equivalent, from a
regionally accredited college or university.
3. Two official transcripts of all previous academic work attempted
beyond high school. Transfer credit posted on the records of other institutions
is unacceptable and official transcripts of these credits must be supplied.
4. Official copies of satisfactory test scores as specified in the
section on graduate programs in this Catalog.
5. An overall grade point average of at least 2.75 (based on a 4.0
scale) on all of the applicant's previous work beyond high school. The average
for the junior and senior years must be 3.0 or better.
6. At least three evaluations from persons familiar with the applicant's
personal and professional qualifications.
7. An essay describing the applicant's experience and objective in
undertaking graduate study.
8. Acceptance into a specific program must be approved by the department
or college offering the program. Meeting minimum requirements for admission
does not guarantee acceptance into a program. The University reserves the right
to restrict enrollments when necessary because of budgetary and other
constraints including the availability of faculty expertise in a specified area
of study and the enrollment limitation established by the North Carolina
General Assembly.
General Requirements for Admission at the Doctoral Level
In order to be considered for admission to a doctoral program, an applicant must have a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university. Some programs admit baccalaureate students directly to the doctoral program. Others require applicants to have earned a master's degree. To be admitted after a master's program, an applicant should have earned an overall GPA of at least 3.5 (on a 4.0 scale) in the graduate degree program. To be admitted after a bachelor's program, an applicant should have earned an overall GPA of at least 3.0 including a 3.0 for the last four semesters of his/her bachelor's degree. In addition, he/she must submit:
1. A written application accompanied by a $35 application fee, which
is neither deductible nor refundable;
2. A satisfactory score on the Graduate Record Examination or in the case
of the Ed.D., the GRE or MAT;
3. At least three evaluations from persons familiar with the applicant’s
personal professional qualifications for graduate study;
4. Two official transcripts of all academic work attempted since high
school;
5. An essay describing applicant’s objective in undertaking graduate
study.
Applicants with records of high quality who do not fulfill these requirements should discuss with the graduate program coordinator other factors that may have a bearing on admission. Some programs have higher standards or additional admission requirements.
Additional Admission Requirements for International Applicants
1. Submission of Official Scores on the Test of English as a Foreign
Language or the Michigan Test, if the applicant is from a non-English-speaking
country. A TOEFL score of at least 550 is expected.
2. A License of Financial Responsibility must be filed showing the
applicant's financial resources during his/her stay in the United States.
All applicants submitting transcripts from non-U.S. educational institutions
should note that some bachelor's degrees given by non-U.S. schools are not
equivalent to the American bachelor's degree. Recipients of these degrees are
not eligible for graduate study at UNC Charlotte.
An I-20 Form will not be issued until the applicant has been admitted to a degree program.
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