Admission Instructions

Application and Doctoral Fellowship Nomination

Applicants first apply for program entry. Once admissions decisions have been made, successful applicants will be considered for fellowship awards by the department and by the University of Arkansas Graduate School.

In addition to meeting university requirements for admission to the Graduate School, the successful applicants to the program typically have combined GRE scores over 300, an analytic writing score of 4.0 or higher, and a minimum grade-point average of 3.0 undergraduate or 3.5 in a master's program. Admission is based on the individual's total profile, with special attention given to those with professional experience in education policy. Those students who have quantitative GRE scores above the 40th percentile and/or who have completed calculus and statistics courses prior to arriving on campus will more readily satisfy the prerequisites for the program's research methods sequence.

Any questions should be directed to our Graduate Coordinator, Tom Bennett, Ed.D., J.D., at tabennet@uark.edu.

Apply to the Graduate School

You will need to arrange the following application materials for submission to the Graduate School, through the admissions website:

  1. GRE test scores, from a test taken within the past 5 years, sent directly from the Educational Testing Service. This is required of all applicants.
  2. Official transcripts of all college- and university-level coursework, received directly from the registrars of the institutions you have attended.
  3. At least two letters of recommendation. The admissions website has a function that allows you to invite people to upload letters of recommendation. These letters should be written by persons (supervisors, professors, etc.) who are in a position to evaluate your capability to undertake a demanding doctoral program in education policy. Please ensure that all letters are printed on the person's institutional letterhead and are signed by hand.
  4. Education Policy Ph.D. Departmental Application.
  5. Statement of Purpose of 1,000 words or fewer, in which you share your background and reasons for your interest in research related to education policy and reform.
  6. Curriculum vitae.

Deadlines

The Ph.D. in Education Policy program takes in students once a year, in August only. To be eligible for admission and fellowship consideration, all application materials must be received by the Graduate School no later than Jan. 10 in the year of intended entry. Applications for admission received after this date will be evaluated only on a space-available basis at the discretion of the department.

As of the Fall of 2024, the Graduate School will allot some Distinguished Doctoral Fellowships for early nomination. To be considered for early nomination, an applicant must meet the Graduate School's critical criteria, and have all application materials on file at the department no later than December 1st. The critical criteria are a GPA of 3.75 or higher for undergraduate, and if applicable, graduate school, and a GRE writing score of at least 5.0. Applicants who do not meet these criteria may still qualify for a DDF but need not apply earlier than January 10.