Admissions FAQ

You must have a bachelor's degree in chemistry or closely-related field.  We are primarily a Ph.D. granting graduate program and we prioritize admissions decisions and departmental resources for those interested in obtaining their Ph.D.

You apply to our Chemistry or Chemical Physics graduate programs through the University of Minnesota Graduate School website. That comprehensive site walks you through the application process.

There is a supplemental application for our Chemistry or Chemical Physics programs. Applicants should apply to either the Chemistry or the Chemical Physics program but not both. Applying to both does not increase an applicant’s likelihood to get accepted.

Resource information for graduate students is also available through the College of Science & Engineering.

Items that need to be completed in the application process are outlined in the chart below. The entire application and all materials must be submitted online.  We cannot review your application until all of the required materials are submitted successfully. The deadline is December 1^st.

We will not consider the general or subject GRE scores in making admission decisions; do not submit them.

December 1

Your application will be reviewed in November or early December as soon as all the application information is received. Typically, we admit graduate students for fall semester only.  Notification of admissions decisions are typically sent in late December or January.

If it is decided that you may be a good match for our program, we will also invite you to visit our department and the Twin Cities in Minnesota. During this visit weekend, we will arrange for you to interview with faculty for admission and financial support in the Chemistry graduate program, as well as tour our facilities and meet with our students. We will pay for your travel expenses and provide food and lodging.  However, if airfare is needed, we only pay for flights within the United States.  We do not pay for international flights.  After the interview visit weekend, we will use feedback from faculty and students to make offer decisions, typically before the end of March. Once admitted, you will need to accept or decline the offer by April 15.

For international applicants who do not reside in the U.S. and cannot attend this interview weekend, we will use uploaded video media and may request a virtual interview with one of our faculty members to identify applicants who will be admitted. These decisions are made earlier, typically in January.  Admitted students will be invited to a virtual information session in January to answer questions and assist in the decision making process. Although international applicants are bound by the same April 15 deadline, many choose to make their decisions earlier so that they can begin the (often long) process of obtaining a visa.

A list of questions to ask and things to observe has been compiled from graduate student feedback over the years, and offers a starting point for you as you prepare for your visit.

All students in good academic standing receive complete financial support throughout their graduate career, including tuition, health and dental insurance (health insurance is a minimal fee). Support can include the following:

• Graduate assistantships: stipend is about $34,600 per calendar year
• Department fellowships: we award additional support to a select number of students
• Other fellowship opportunities available from the Graduate School, Federal agencies (National Science Foundation, DOE, etc), and private sector sources.

The department is glad to provide need-based application fee waivers to U.S. citizens and permanent residents who are competitive for admission, but cannot afford the application fee. We do not offer fee waivers for international applicants.

Fee waivers are also given to McNair Scholars, past participants of the Lando–REU program at the University of Minnesota, and to applicants who have presented at National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE), Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS), or Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCAMS) conferences or are student members of those organizations. McNair Scholars, please directly contact the University of Minnesota Graduate School at McNair Scholar Resources.

We also encourage applicants to seek external sources of support to cover application fees. For example, the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) FreeApp program offers fee waivers for selected individuals. To receive the BTAA fee grant, a student must have participated in one of these programs: McNair Scholars, Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC), Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Minority Biomedical Research Support Program (MBRS)-Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement Program (RISE)(MBRS/RISE), Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP), Meyerhoff Scholars Program, North Star STEM Alliance, or Career Opportunities in Research (COR).

Eligible applicants may also find fee waivers and other benefits through programs such as the GEM Consortium.

All other requests for an application fee waiver should be sent by email to [email protected] with a brief statement explaining your situation. Attach to that email a transcript (an unofficial one suffices) and, ifa curriculum vitae (CV) or resume. Any questions about fee waivers are welcome.  We do not make fee waiver decisions until Fall semester (September - November). 

Can I defer payment of the application fee until the department makes a decision?

No, the application fee cannot be deferred. All offers of financial support are pending completion of the application. To be eligible for a Graduate School Fellowship, you must submit the application and pay the fee by December 1.

Can I have a friend or relative in the United States pay the application fee for me?

Yes. The payment must be made by credit card.

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB), or International English Language Testing System (IELTS) are required of all international applicants whose native language is not English, except those who will have completed 48 quarter credits/32 semester credits (within the past 48 months) in residence as a full-time student at a recognized institution of higher learning in the United States before entering the University of Minnesota. 

Minimum scores for admission include at least 90 on the Internet-based TOEFL with section scores of 21 on writing and 19 on reading (550 on the paper based TOEFL) and 23 on speaking; 6.5 on the IELTS writing, reading, and total scores, and a 7.0 on the speaking section; or 80 on the MELAB examinations..

Our department no longer considers the general or subject GRE scores in admission decisions.

No, the complete application is taken into consideration.  However, as a point of reference, the average GPA of our admitted applicants is typically 3.7 on a 4.0 scale.

TOEFL: The Institution Code is 6874, and the Department Code is 62.

When you apply, you will list your references and their electronic contact information. Letters will be solicited from your references by the UMN Graduate School and submitted electronically. Do not send hard copies; this creates confusion with duplicate submissions.

Do the letters of recommendation need to be from faculty in my undergraduate institution? What if I am currently enrolled in another graduate program?

Yes, letters should be from your faculty at your undergraduate institution, or a combination of both undergraduate and graduate faculty, if you are enrolled in a graduate program. You may also include additional letters from previous employers. If enrolled in a graduate program, one letter must be from your research adviser.

Students in our graduate program do not join research groups until the middle of their first year in the program.  In fact, you are not allowed to join a research group before you are admitted to the program.  So we do not recommend that you reach out to faculty to ask them if you can join their group; they cannot and will not accept you into their group until you are admitted and matriculate into the program in your first year.