For your application, you will need to complete the following items. Your application is complete only when you submit the on-line application and we receive the other items on this list by mail.
On-line Application. To complete the on-line application, you will need to identify your recommenders and prepare a personal statement. The list of three recommenders and the statement are submitted as part of the on-line application. In the personal statement, you will be asked to provide information about yourself, your aims and plans for the future, reasons for choosing graduate study in political science, areas of specific interest, and experiences in the field (300-750 words). You should include the names of specific professors, if any, with whom you especially wish to study.
Standardized Tests.
Take the GRE general test (department code 1902) and, if applicable, the TOEFL (department code 92) and have your scores sent to the Department of Political Science at the University of Rochester (school code 2928).
Transcripts.
Transcripts should come directly from registrars. Ask the registrar of each college or university you have attended, including the University of Rochester if applicable, to send a transcript directly to the Department of Political Science at the address below.
Letters of Recommendation. (Download and print a PDF version of the forms here.)
The Political Science Department requires three recommenders. Fill in the tops of the forms before giving them to the persons you are asking to recommend you. Supply each recommender with a stamped envelope, addressed to the Department of Political Science at the address below.
Writing Sample.
Send a writing sample directly to the Department of Political Science at the address below. This must be a sample of your own original academic writing in English. (Translations are acceptable, provided the translation is your own work.) This material will not be returned. Send hard copies by mail; we will not accept e-mail attachments. Please indicate the original purpose of the writing sample, and when and to whom it was submitted.
Curriculum Vitae (optional).
You may also submit a brief resume listing any additional information you believe to be relevant to your application for admission. Send this resume as a hard copy by mail to the address below.
Graduate Admissions
Department of Political Science
314 Harkness Hall
University of Rochester
Rochester, NY 14627-0146
U.S.A.
