Ph.D. Admission
Guidelines for Writing the Admission Application Statement of Purpose
Admission Application Review Form
Admission Requirements
The doctoral program in communication and information is strongly research and theory oriented. Applicants for the Ph.D. program in the College of Communication and Information normally are expected to have completed a thesis in their master's program. Admission will be restricted to the most promising applicants. Applications will be viewed holistically to evaluate the student's likelihood of success in the CCI Ph.D. program. Applicants are normally accepted for admission only for the fall semester, and the deadline for all application materials is Feb. 1.
In addition to regular application requirements of the university, admission to the CCI Doctor of Philosophy program normally requires the following:
- Completion of the academic requirements of a master's degree in one of the disciplines represented in the College of Communication and Information or in a discipline related to the applicant's proposed course of study. Applicants with academic preparation in other fields may be required to enroll in preparatory course work at the Master's level that will not count toward the Ph.D. degree.
- A minimum 3.3 (where A=4.0) graduate GPA (GPA above 3.5 strongly recommended).
- A Verbal score of 600 and a Quantitative score of 600 on the Graduate Record Examination.
- Superior letters of recommendation from those in a position to evaluate graduate academic performance and potential.
- A statement of academic goals and intended topics of study that are compatible with the focus of the college's doctoral program. It is expected that this statement will clearly indicate why the applicant wishes to pursue doctoral education. Included in the statement of purpose should be an indication of the theoretical area or areas the applicant wishes to study and the line of research the applicant wishes to pursue. Statements that make reference only to the applicant's teaching or administrative goals are strongly discouraged. Guidelines for Writing the Statement of Purpose are available here.
- A sample of superior scholarly writing (published paper, major term paper, thesis chapter, etc.)
Applicants who do not meet all of the requirements listed above but who have otherwise exceptional credentials may apply and may be admitted conditionally.
Admission Application Review
Policy
Applicants to the doctoral program are normally expected to have completed a master's degree and also are expected to have completed a thesis in their master's program. Those students who have not written a thesis should provide evidence of other strong scholarly research and writing in their application files.
Applicants who, in the opinion of the College Doctoral Program Policy Committee (CDPPC), lack strong academic preparation in the areas they propose to study at the doctoral level may be required to enroll in preparatory coursework at the master's level, if necessary, that will not count toward the Ph.D. degree.
In rare circumstances, applicants who have earned a graduate GPA below 3.3 may be admitted conditionally.
Applicants who have earned GRE scores of less than 600 on either the Verbal or Quantitative measures or both may be admitted conditionally, provided that their application files provide strong evidence of a high probability of success in the Ph.D. program.
Letters of recommendation should be written by those in a position to evaluate graduate academic performance and potential. Letters that speak to job performance or character alone are not sufficient.
Each applicant must submit a Statement of Purpose. It is expected that this statement will clearly indicate why the applicant wishes to pursue doctoral education. Included in the statement of purpose should be an indication of the theoretical area or areas the applicant wishes to study and the line of research the applicant wishes to pursue. Statements that make reference only to the applicant's teaching or administrative goals are strongly discouraged. If an applicant's Statement of Purpose is not sufficiently clear, he/she may be asked to submit a new statement before the application will be considered.
International applicants who have earned TOEFL scores of less than 590 (or the equivalent in another testing format) may be admitted conditionally.
Applicants who demonstrate a record of or a potential for interdisciplinary work will be noted in the application review. See the Admission Application Review Form.
Procedures for Application Review
Applicants to the Ph.D. program apply online to either the Division of Graduate Studies (domestic applicants) or the Office of International Affairs (international applicants). When applications are complete, they are routed to the workflow of the associate dean for graduate studies. When an application is complete, the associate dean will send the name and Banner ID number of the applicant to CDPPC members so they may review the file.
The deadline for applications is Feb. 1 for the following fall. Applications will be considered for admission action at each regular meeting of the CDPPC through February. If the volume of applications is high, additional special meetings for consideration of applications will be scheduled. Late applications may be considered at the April and May meetings. No applications received after May 1 will be considered for admission for the immediately following fall semester.
Normally, applicants will be admitted to begin coursework in fall semester. In exceptional instances, admission may be offered for spring semester.
The CDPPC will recommend one of the following actions for each applicant: admit, admit conditionally or deny admission.
If the applicant is admitted conditionally, the CDPPC will specify the conditions of admission. Normally, the conditions include up to nine hours of specified coursework that must be completed within a specified amount of time with grades of B or better in each course or the student will be reviewed for dismissal. However, other conditions may be applied. A statement of the conditions of admission will be included with the letter of admission. This statement also must include the rationale for conditional admission as opposed to denial of admission.
The CDPPC will recommend a faculty member as the initial advisor for each admitted student, based on a good fit between the faculty member's area of expertise and the student's research interests as expressed in the Statement of Purpose. See the Forms Library for the Notification of Initial Advisor Letter, which is included with the letter of admission.
The associate dean for graduate studies will notify the applicant of the admission decision according to university procedures.