Admission to the Graduate Program

UCF Math Department has been a silver member of  Math Alliance from 2017.  All underrepresented or underserved American students with the talent and the ambition are encouraged to apply for the UCF math graduate program and to earn a doctoral degree in a mathematical science.

Almost all students in the PhD program will be offered with GTA/GRA/Fellowship, tuition waiver and health insurance coverage. The program has limited  financial support (GTA, tuition waiver and health insurance) to students in the master program and no financial support for  students in the certificate program.

Visit  Application Deadlines and the University Requirements before submitting your application.

 

1. When does the Math graduate program admit new students?

The  program admits new doctoral and master students in every fall and spring semester, and  new graduate certificate students in every fall, spring and summer semester. Above 80% of  students start from fall semester.

2. What is the minimal academic requirement for the Math graduate program admission?

Students entering the  PhD and Master program with regular status are assumed to master undergraduate calculus, differential equations, linear algebra and matrix theory, and maturity in the language of advanced calculus (at the level of MAA 4226).

Students entering the graduate certificate program  should have a working knowledge of the context of undergraduate calculus, differential equations, linear algebra and matrix theory, with preference to those taking advanced  proof-based mathematics courses.

Students who are not adequately prepared in one or more of those course requirements are highly recommended to select appropriate courses from the undergraduate curriculum to make up such deficiencies. Such courses, unless specially approved, do not count toward the graduate degree.

Students who feel ready to start but  not qualified for regular status may be admitted initially to the university in a non-degree-seeking status. Students can try to take core or restricted selective courses listed in the  graduate program with credits earned can be transferred on a course-by-course basis up to the approval.

3. Does the program admits students with a baccalaureate degree not major in Mathematics?

You are encouraged to apply for the  graduate program. To encourage interdisciplinary research,  the UCF math graduate program has open admission policy to accepted talented students with strong mathematical knowledge.  Many faculty in the Math department works on interdisciplinary research problems and they have joint applications in other departments, institution and research centers within the university.

4. What are the university requirements for the graduate program admission?

For admission to the university, students must have obtained the equivalent of a baccalaureate or higher degree, prior to the start of the term for which the student is admitted.  The standard university criterion applies for the admission of the Math graduate program. The university criteria are either: (1) at least the equivalent of a 3.0 (out of 4.0) grade point average (GPA) for the last 60 attempted semester hours of credit earned toward the baccalaureate; or (2) a prior graduate degree from an accredited institution.   For more detailed information, please visit https://graduate.ucf.edu/app-reqs-deadlines/  for domestic applications and https://graduate.ucf.edu/international-applicants/  for international applications.

5. IS GRE required for the graduate program admission?

Students applying to the Math doctoral  and master programs must submit an official competitive score on the General Tests of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) (or an official competitive score on the General Management Admission Test [GMAT] as required), or an equivalent score on an equivalent measure approved by the graduate program and the university.  The program follows the university requirement that  a GRE score must be between 130-170 for the  Verbal Reasoning section and Quantitative Reasoning section of the General (Aptitude) Test. GRE results must be less than five years old. Students are  not necessary to take the  GRE Mathematics Test, however it is recommended.

Students applying to the Math Certificate program are not necessary to submit the GRE scores. However, they are  recommended for the admission in regular degree-seeking status. Students who wish to be considered for university-wide fellowships must submit an official GRE General Test score (or an official GMAT score as required).

6.  Are TOFEL/IELTS required for the international applications?

As required by the university, international students must demonstrate their proficiency in the English language. International students are required to submit a score on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or IELTS before they can be admitted to the university. A computer-based TOEFL score of 80 on the internet-based TOEFL or 6.5 on the IELTS is required unless otherwise specified by the program.

The  exemption for the above language requirement are given to  students who are from countries where English is the only official language, those who have earned a degree from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university, or those who have earned a degree from a country where English is the only official language or from a university at which English is the only official language of instruction. For details on your country’s required documents, included academic credentials and equivalency, please visit our Sample Country Requirements Page.

7. Is that enough for the admission if minimal requirements are met?

Meeting minimum UCF admission criteria does not guarantee program admission. Final admission is mainly based on evaluation of the applicant’s abilities, past academic performance, recommendations, match of the program and faculty expertise to the applicant’s career/academic goals,  the applicant’s potential for completing the degree.

8.  How to apply the graduate teaching/graduate assistantship, tuition waiver and university fellowship?

The program offers a limited number of graduate teaching/research assistantship for incoming full-time PhD and master students. Every assistantship includes a full tuition waiver and paid health insurance. They are available on a competitive base and awarded based on academic merit, and most GTA/GRA are awarded to students in the PhD program starting from the fall semester. In  the application, you should answer “Yes” for the question “Are you interested in an assistantship and/or fellowship? “. The program will nominate some students to the University fellowship, visit  the graduate fellowship website for more information. It is advised that students should apply as early as possible in order to be considered for the assistantship.

9.  How to apply for the Math graduate program? What is the deadline to apply for?

Admission to the graduate program is formalized by the university upon the recommendation of the Department of Mathematics. However, the college of graduate studies handle all application paperwork. Please  follow instructions on the college’s admission website and  click here to apply on-line!

For the domestic and international applications, there are different admission deadline, see the graduate catalog for the detailed information.  It takes times to complete  the application procedure, including official transcript and recommendation letters.  Students are advised to apply at least one month early than the deadline listed in the catalog.

10.  When does the program review your application?

The program starts to review your applications when it is complete.  The review process may take several months for the final recommendation for the admission/rejection of your applications.  For instance, the program may offer the fall admission any time from January to June.  Please double check completeness of your application regularly, in case that your scores are not included in your application even you have submitted,  or your reference letters are not submitted even you have requested etc.  You may contact the program coordinator for your admission status.

Visit the graduate catalog for admission deadlines.

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