Graduate Application

Thank you for your interest in Iowa State University and the Department of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences.

Applications should be submitted electronically. You can apply from the Graduate College URL:
www.admissions.iastate.edu/graduate/index.php

1. Graduate College Application (form is available at the above website).
2. Application fee of $30 for domestic applications and $70 for international applications. This must be paid with the application. The University and the Department will NOT waive this fee under any circumstances. Failure to pay the fee will mean that the University will not process the application. The University will not allow the application to be processed and the fee to be paid at a later date.
3. Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended.
4. Official test results (GRE, TOEFL)
   
   

The following items should be sent directly to the department at this address:

Graduate Applications Coordinator
Department of Geological & Atmospheric Sciences
253 Science I
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-3212

1. Application for Financial Assistance (Word & PDF). Note that this form requests that you provide a statement of interest typed on a separate sheet of paper. Please try to be as specific as possible at this time. A major consideration in the admission and funding process is how your academic interests match those of the faculty.
2. Curriculum Details (part of the Application for Financial Assistance). This list should include all completed and current courses in science and mathematics. Although this duplicates information that will be on the transcripts, it puts it in a format that is easier to evaluate.
3. Copies of Graduate Record Examination scores (verbal, quantitative, and analytical) are required. GRE scores are required for evaluation of your application.
4. Three Letters of Recommendation. Letters should be from instructors familiar with your academic abilities and performance; at least two should be from persons in your major field.
5. For international students, the results of the TOEFL examination. A score of 530 is required for admission to the department. Your application will not be processed until this score is received.
   Evaluations for admission and for financial assistance are carried out in the department. This evaluation is not made until all materials have been received by the Admissions Office; delays in responding to applications are usually caused by not having received one or more official transcripts. Since decisions on financial assistance are made by March 1, applicants seeking assistantships and submitting materials less than one month prior to March 1 should assure that the submission of transcripts is expedited. Please note, however, that decisions on admission to our graduate program will be made at any time during the year. However, it is less likely that financial support will be given.

The Department of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences offers the following financial assistance:

Teaching Assistantships – starting at $12,765 for a nine-month part-time appointment. These generally involve 20 hours per week in the form of preparation, teaching and grading for laboratories and recitation sections in elementary courses.

Research Assistantships – starting at $12,765 for a nine-month part-time appointment. These are typically funded from a professor's research grant.

Summer Assistantships – part-time and full-time appointments of varying lengths. Duties vary widely but usually involve assisting at the ISU Geology Field Station at Shell, Wyoming, aiding faculty in their research projects, or supporting summer teaching on campus.
Additional support is normally provided for graduate students holding an assistantship. A student on full admission with a full- or part-time assistantship receives a Graduate College Scholarship credit equal to one-quarter or one-half of the resident tuition, respectively.

Non-resident students on an assistantship pay tuition at the resident rates.

Students wishing to apply for financial assistance for the coming academic year should do so as early as possible but before February 1.
Offers of financial assistance will generally be made by the department in early March, and acceptance or rejection is normally required by April 15.

A few appointments may become available during the academic year. If you graduate at mid-year and qualify for financial support, you could begin your graduate study in the Department of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences without delay.

The department considers the teaching experience to be an invaluable part of graduate training; consequently, most initial appointments are teaching assistantships. It is recommended that all graduate students, regardless of the level or type of support, do teaching of some kind during their degree program.

Assistantships are dependent on matching the applicant's research interest to a professor who has similar research interests. There is the potential for a student who meets all requirements to be denied admission because there is not a professor available with similar interests. International students will not be admitted directly into the Ph.D. program unless they have received a Master's degree from an English speaking university.

Good luck on your application process. We look forward to receiving your completed application.

Sincerely

Neal Iverson
Graduate Applications Coordinator