Admission to the Graduate School requires that the applicant have the preparation and ability that — in the judgment of the program and the Graduate School — are sufficient to enable satisfactory progress in the degree program or certificate. A U.S. bachelor’s degree or the equivalent is required (for example, a four-year/120 credit hour accredited program) with a minimum overall grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. The student must present evidence that such a degree will be awarded by the time graduate work is to begin.
Students who already hold an advanced academic degree from any university may not earn a second degree from Stony Brook University at the same level in the same disciplinary field (e.g., if you have an MS in Computer Science, you cannot also earn a Stony Brook MS in Computer Science).
Application for admission to the Graduate School is made to a specific program for a designated degree or certificate. Additional admission requirements are listed in each program’s section of this publication. To be considered for admission, all applicants must submit a completed application online as well as the following documentation to the graduate program:
• Applicants must submit an official transcript from their undergraduate college or university attended showing bachelor's degree conferral. Applicants must also submit an official transcript from each college or university relating to graduate-level work, regardless of whether a degree was conferred.
In addition to submitting official original documents in the native language, applicants with international credentials must submit an official English translation of all coursework showing a complete course by course record, GPA, degree, and institution, in addition to the original documents. SBU graduate admissions personnel will evaluate coursework, GPA, degree requirements, and institutional equivalence. In some instances where the coursework, degree equivalency, GPA, and/or institution cannot be verified, a course-by-course evaluation from one of Stony Brook University's approved NACES members listed below, may be requested from the applicant.
a. World Education Services (WES)
b. International Education Evaluations, Inc. (IEE)
c. Education Credential Evaluators (ECE)
Unofficial copies for both domestic and international credentials are acceptable for an admission decision to be made. If admitted, the applicant must submit final official transcripts/evaluations. To be deemed official, transcripts must be sent directly from the college/university or evaluation agency via mail or through an approved transcript delivery service.
• Three letters of recommendation
• Statement of purpose
• The GRE General Test is required by several Graduate School programs. Please refer to the admissions requirement information about your specific program of interest. You can also view a list of programs that require the GRE test in Admissions FAQs under Test Scores. Scores for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test sent directly from ETS (photocopies are not acceptable).
• Documented proficiency in English for international students (see the English Proficiency Requirements for Non-Native Speakers of English below for details).
To fill out an application, students must go to www.grad.sunysb.edu and create an online account. A nonrefundable application must be charged via credit card when submitting the online application. All applicants are required to pay the application fee. Exceptions can be found under Waiver of Application Fee.
Early application is suggested for students seeking financial support. To receive full consideration for admission with financial support, complete admission and financial aid applications should be filed by January 15 for the fall semester and October 1 for the spring semester. Admission decisions are made by programs. Late applications will be accepted but will be considered only by the programs where openings still exist.
An offer of admission to graduate study at Stony Brook is for a specific semester. An applicant who is accepted to a program and is unable to enroll for the semester specified should request a deferment of admission from the primary department or program. If the request is granted, the student will be sent a new offer of admission for the subsequent semester, and the Graduate School will be notified accordingly.
Students who do not enroll within 12 months of the original offer of admission must submit a new application and fee.
International students must submit a new “Request for Certificate of Eligibility and Declaration and Certification of Finances” form to request an updated Form I-20 or IAP-66 valid for the updated semester of admission. Unused Forms I-20 or IAP-66 must first be returned. For more information, please see the Visa and International Services site.