Application Requirements
Applications for 2026 admissions are now open.The Graduate School at Northwestern University sets minimum application requirements for applicants to our PhD and master's programs. Each program may also set additional application requirements beyond what is listed on this webpage. As a result, when preparing your application materials, we highly recommend reviewing the website of the program to which you are applying to find information regarding their requirements and application deadline.
Individuals admitted to programs at The Graduate School must hold a U.S. bachelor’s degree — or a non-U.S. degree equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree — from a regionally accredited institution. Applicants can check whether their non-U.S. degree is the equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree on our "International Applicants" page under "Degree Equivalency." You may be considered for admission before you finish your undergraduate degree, but you must complete that degree before you enroll at Northwestern.
In general, to apply to The Graduate School (TGS), you will be required to:
- Submit an application online.
- Pay an online application fee by credit card.
- Submit your essays.
- Upload your transcript(s) or academic record(s).
- Submit your test scores (international applicants are required to submit English language test scores; programs may also require scores from additional tests such as the GRE or GMAT)
- Upload two Letters of Recommendation.
Online Applications
TGS only accepts online applications during each application cycle, beginning in September. You do not, however, need to complete the online application in one sitting. You can access your application and change your answers as many times as you like. Keep in mind, once you have submitted your online application, you cannot make changes to it.
Once you have created an account with the online application tool, please be sure to read the application instructions thoroughly and check with your program department for additional information before submitting.
Please note:
- TGS only allows applicants to submit one application to one program per year. For example, if you submit an application for Fall Quarter 2025, the earliest you may submit an application again is for Fall Quarter 2026. Duplicate applications will not be reviewed and duplicate application fees cannot be refunded.
- Your application will not be submitted until you have answered all of the required questions and paid the application fee (by credit or debit card only).
- Many departments accept students for the fall quarter only.
- All materials submitted in support of your application become the property of the University and will not be returned or forwarded.
- To expedite the admission process, admission decisions will be conveyed via the online application. You may access the online application as many times as you like to check if a decision has been made on your file. If a decision is available, a "View Decision" link will appear. If a decision has not yet been made, no link will be present.
- TGS also reserves the right to admit or deny admission whenever it believes that it has sufficient evidence to do so.
Guidance for Ethical Use of GenAI for TGS Applicants
Note: The following guidance incorporates and draws from language from the University of Michigan Rackham Graduate School.
Your application will include several essays, including the Academic Statement and Personal Statement. Given that scholars should not represent the ideas or work of others as their own, including ideas generated using Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), your application essays should reflect your unique academic, research, and life experiences, and you should be the sole author of all written passages in your essays. It is appropriate to ask other individuals for guidance on the application process, or to review your essays for grammatical mistakes. However, it is not appropriate to ask other individuals to substantively draft, write, or fully translate your essays. TGS’ guidance for the ethical use of GenAI is similar to guidance for involving other individuals in the preparation of your graduate school applications.
Below are several considerations for how you can ethically use GenAI in your graduate school application process:
- GenAI tools may be used to search for guidance and suggestions on the application process to graduate school. Note: We strongly encourage you to review the TGS application webpages and your program’s admissions webpage for application information, as GenAI Tools may mislead or provide inaccurate information.
- GenAI tools, like Grammarly, may be used to review grammar and spelling of your application essays.
- GenAI tools, like Google Translate, may be used to aid and check translation of words and phrases. Note: Machine-aided translation tools may produce errors.
Unethical use of GenAI in your application process would include:
- Use of GenAI tools to outline, substantively draft, or write the content of your application essays, including copying and pasting language generated by GenAI tools.
- Use of GenAI tools to generate prose or replace your unique voice and style as a sole author of your essays.
- Use of GenAI tools to translate substantial portions of an essay written in another language into English.
Finally, please note that the TGS application will require your attestation that all substantive written application materials (e.g., essays, personal statements, writing samples, etc.) are your own personal work and not the product of generative AI. Admission to Northwestern University may be revoked if any part of the application contains falsifications, misrepresentations, or omissions. This includes falsely attesting that you have not used GenAI in unethical ways in your application.