Frequently Asked Questions

For master’s programs: Tuition remission, assistantships, and/or stipends are not available. Students can apply for financial aid as applicable.

For doctoral programs: Students will be awarded research or teaching assistantships as appropriate. They can also apply for funding through internal and external sources.

For application fee waivers, please contact the Graduate College Admissions office directly.

Bear in mind that tuition remission, assistantships, and/or stipends are not available for students in the master’s programs.

If you earned a bachelor’s degree or higher at a school in one of the following countries, you can apply for an exemption from the language proficiency test requirement: Anguilla, Antigua, Australia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Cameroon, Canada (except the province of Quebec), Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Ghana, Guyana, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, Liberia, Montserrat, New Zealand, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Singapore, South Africa, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks and Caicos, The United Kingdom, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

There is a place on the application form to request this waiver.

UD accepts TOEFL (paper, Internet, or home edition) and IELTS as proof of English proficiency.

For master’s students: The minimum score must be 550 on paper TOEFL or 79 on the Internet version, with at least 18 on the speaking portion. The minimum IELTS is 6.5 overall with no individual speaking sub-score below 6.0.

For doctoral students: The minimum score must be 570 on paper TOEFL or 90 on the Internet version, with at least 18 on the speaking portion. The minimum IELTS is 6.5 overall with no individual speaking sub-score below 6.0.

For master’s programs: GRE scores are not required.

For doctoral programs: GRE scores of at least 150 verbal and 148 quantitative are mandatory.

Per University policy, those applicants who meet stated minimum requirements are not guaranteed admission, nor are those who fail to meet all of those requirements necessarily precluded from admission if they offer appropriate strengths.

Our graduate programs require students to maintain a 3.0 GPA to remain in good standing. Applicants’ ability to achieve at least that level of success in their prior academic career is a good indicator of success in graduate school. The admissions committee will take a holistic approach to reviewing applications, including grade history.

Applications are considered on a rolling basis after the deadline. Please be mindful of visa processing times, which vary considerably by home country.

For master’s programs: Students do not need to obtain an advisor prior to enrollment.

For doctoral programs: Applicants need to identify a potential thesis advisor affiliated with the MMSC program and articulate that relationship in the personal statement of the application.

Transcripts from schools outside the U.S./Canada (except Quebec) will need to be evaluated by a service such as World Evaluation Services or Educational Credentials Assessment.

Our master’s programs are not thesis-based. Students complete a capstone research project.

Our doctoral program culminates in a dissertation.