Frequently Asked Questions
Admissions Questions
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How do I apply to the graduate program in chemical
engineering?
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What are the TAMU Institution Code and Graduate Major
Code for the Department of Chemical Engineering?
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How can I check my application status?
-
What is the deadline for applying for admission and
for financial aid?
-
How do I select my research advisor?
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How much do I get paid?
-
Can I defer the application fee until I am admitted?
-
On what basis are admissions decisions made?
-
Is it possible to tell me what my chances are of
being accepted before I apply?
-
Will you consider my application without my final
semester’s transcripts?
-
Is Spring Semester admission possible?
-
What is the deadline for accepting an offer of
admission?
-
What if I have a non-chemical engineering
undergraduate degree?
-
What is the English Language Proficiency Exam?
-
I have read all the information on your web pages but
I still have questions. Whom do I contact?
Financial Aid Questions
-
Is it necessary to submit a separate application for
financial aid?
-
As an M.S. student, can I receive a stipend?
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As a Ph.D. student, can I receive a stipend?
-
Is financial aid possible without a degree in
chemical engineering?
Questions About Our Program
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What is the first year experience like?
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What is the ratio of Ph.D. to M.S. students?
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Is a thesis required for an M.S. degree?
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To get a Ph.D., must I first get an M.S. degree?
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Can I do a part-time graduate degree?
-
How long does it take to get a graduate degree?
Questions About Housing
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What housing accommodations are available to me?
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How do I commute to the campus if I live off-campus?
Admissions Questions
Q. How do I apply to the graduate program
in chemical engineering?
A. You need to submit the following to the graduate school (not the
department):
- Application for admission along with a fee to:
http://www.tamu.edu/admissions/Grad/index.html
- Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended.
- Three letters of recommendation from faculty members (preferably) or
other persons who can discuss your potential for graduate work in
chemical engineering.
- GRE scores: verbal, quantitative, and analytical. We do not require a
subject GRE test.
- Personal statement of purpose (2 to 3 pages are sufficient).
- If you are not a citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. you will
also need to submit TOEFL and TWE scores.
Official copies of these documents are required for admission. However,
photocopies can be used for the initial review process.
Once a complete application is received, the departmental graduate
recruiting & admission committee decides whether admission is
granted. Since admission is highly competitive, it serves the applicant
well to apply early.
Q. What are the TAMU Institution Code and
Graduate Major Code for the Department of Chemical Engineering?
A. For reporting test scores, use code 6003.
Q. How can I check my application status?
A. You may check to see if there are any missing documents by
logging into a site that will be given to you by the graduate school by
e-mail.
Q. What is the deadline for applying for
admission and for financial aid?
A. Application deadlines for international applicants are
established for each session. The deadlines are:
Fall Semester - January 1
Spring Semester - August 1
Summer Session - November 1
Applications received after the deadline are automatically considered
for the next full semester. Applications received too late for the
spring semester will automatically be considered for the next available
fall or spring semester.
Q. How do I select my research advisor?
A. The usual procedure is for new students to first become familiar
with research activities in the Department of Chemical Engineering by
attending a series of seminars given by the faculty during the first
fall semester. All students selecting research advisors are required to
attend all seminars, even if they already have a preferred research
area. Students then submit a list of research advisors they would like
to work for to the department head. The department head will decide in
consultation with the graduate advisor and the rest of the faculty
which students are assigned to which faculty member. Every effort is
made to give the students one of their top choices for research
advisor.
Q. How much do I get paid?
A. All of our Ph.D. students enjoy full competitive stipends (1800$
per month for students starting in Fall 2006) as well as full medical
benefits and tuition and fees. M.S. students are usually not supported.
Q. Can I defer the application fee until
I am admitted?
A. The application fee cannot be deferred or waived under any
application circumstances. It is the policy of the Graduate School that
the fee be received along with all other required documents before that
application is evaluated. Applications received without the fee are
held in the Office of Admissions.
Q. On what basis are admissions decisions
made?
A. These are based on evaluation of your complete undergraduate
(and/or graduate) record, GRE scores and letters of recommendation.
Generally, a minimum GPR of 3.1 is required to be considered for
admission into the graduate program. However, please note that the
average GPR for admitted students in previous years was 3.65 for the
Ph.D program. While there is no minimum GRE score required, the
average quantitative GRE score for Ph.D. students accepted in previous
years was around 780.
Each candidate is evaluated individually by a departmental faculty
committee that has the authority to make admission recommendations to
the graduate school. Note that the department requires a score of 550
on the TOEFL (213 if computer based) for international students.
International students should be in the top 10% of their class.
Q. Is it possible to tell me what my
chances are of being accepted before I apply?
A. Regrettably the department does not have the resources to offer
pre-screening of applications. It is recommended that you contact the
advising staff at your own undergraduate institution for an evaluation
of your current record and suggestions regarding where to apply for
graduate school. Your undergraduate record, performance on the GRE, any
undergraduate research experience, letters of recommendation, and your
personal statement are all considered in our decision regarding
admission.
Q. Will you consider my application
without my final semesters transcripts?
A. If you otherwise meet the qualifications for the department, you
will be accepted, pending receipt of your final transcripts.
Q. Is spring semester admission
possible?
A. Spring admissions with financial aid are possible. Decisions are
made on a case-by-case basis.
Q. What is the deadline for accepting
an offer of admission?
A. The standard deadline for accepting an offer of admission is
April 15. However, we would appreciate your letting us know of your
acceptance decision as soon as possible. This will enable us to
equitably distribute our financial aid to all qualified applicants. For
international applicants the deadline is March 15.
Q. What if I have a non-chemical
engineering undergraduate degree?
A. The department offers a science majors program that is available
and is described in our graduate handbook for those who have
undergraduate degrees in science or engineering, but not in chemical
engineering. These students may be required to take selected
undergraduate courses in the chemical engineering department, and
possibly additional chemistry courses depending on their background.
Admission to the department and the science major program is made on a
case-by-case basis.
Q. What is the English Language
Proficiency Exam?
A. If you are an international student and score below 400 on the
verbal section of the GRE and below 550 on the TOEFL then you are
required to pass an English Language Proficiency Exam (ELPE) before
beginning your coursework. Should you fail the exam, you will be
required to take an English language course (which may involve a fee).
Q. I have read all the information on
your web pages but I still have questions. Whom do I contact?
A. If you still have questions about admission to the program or
the program itself, then please contact
admission@chemail.tamu.edu.
Please refrain from contacting individual faculty members prior to
being admitted and starting your first semester of graduate school.
Students who are admitted to the graduate program are invited to visit
the department, meet with faculty and current graduate students, and
tour labs and facilities at the department's expense in the early
spring. During those visits, faculty and graduate students make every
effort to clear their schedules of the many obligations and
appointments which may make them unavailable at other times. It is
highly recommended to plan to visit the department during the scheduled
"recruiting weekend". The dates and details will be included in the
offer of admission letter.
Financial Aid Questions
Q. Is it necessary to submit a separate
application for financial aid?
A. No. All students who indicate a need for financial aid on the
application for admission to graduate school will automatically be
considered.
Q. As an M.S. student, can I receive a
stipend?
A. As a general rule, M.S. students do not receive a stipend. In
some cases, M.S. students may receive some financial support as a
student worker or are awarded a fellowship (a one-time payment of circa
$1000), which entitles them to in-state tuition and fees for the first
year.
Q. As a Ph.D. student, can I receive a
stipend?
A. As a general rule, students who are accepted to the Ph.D.
program receive a base stipend of $1800/month. In addition, tuition,
fees, and health insurance is provided. For exceptional students, a
bonus may be added. Support for Ph.D. students is provided by the
department until a research advisor is chosen during the first semester
and the support is then continued by the research advisor.
Some students may receive financial support from government, industry,
or foundations. For these students, their monthly stipend depends upon
their funding source. In most cases this support is comparable to the
regular stipend, however, if the funding source is low, then the
department and/or the advisor can provide supplemental funds on a
case-by-case basis.
Q. Is financial aid possible without a
degree in chemical engineering?
A. All requests for financial aid are evaluated on an individual
basis. We expect that a large majority of students offered financial
aid beginning in their first year of graduate study will be those with
B.S. or M.S. degrees in chemical engineering. However, outstanding
students with B.S. or M.S. degrees in other disciplines may also
qualify for financial aid in their first year of graduate study.
Questions About Our Program
Q. What is the first year experience
like?
A. Our first-year students study three core courses during the
first semester (thermodynamics, mathematics, and transport) and do not
have teaching/grading responsibilities during this semester. The most
important decision that students have to make during their first
semester is which research advisor to work for. The choice of a
research advisor usually determines the field of research and the
research project and the research supervisor will serve as the primary
contact person for the student from then on.
In the second semester, students usually take the fourth core course
(kinetics) and spend a significant portion of their time working on
their research project. Ph.D. students also usually serve as assistants
to the course instructor (ACI) during the second semester. See the
graduate student handbook for more detail on the ACI program.
Q. What is the ratio of Ph.D. to M.S.
students?
A. Admissions are heavily weighted toward Ph.D. students over M.S.
students.
Q. Is a thesis required for an M.S.
degree?
A. There is a thesis (M.S. degree) and non-thesis option available
(M.E. degree).
Q. To get a Ph.D., must I first get an
M.S. degree?
A. No, the M.S. degree is not a prerequisite for the Ph.D. degree.
With a B.S. degree, it is possible to be admitted directly into the
Ph.D. program.
Q. Can I do a part-time graduate
degree?
A. Part-time programs are possible. However, a number of graduate
courses are scheduled throughout the day. The department regularly
offers late afternoon courses.
Q. How long does it take to get a
graduate degree?
A. The answer depends primarily upon the student. An M.S. degree
typically requires 1.5 to 2.5 years, with 2 years being the average. A
Ph.D. degree typically requires 3 to 6 years beyond the B.S. with 4
years being the average.
Questions About Housing
Q. What housing accommodations are
available to me?
A. Texas A&M University does not have dormitory housing for the
fall or spring semester for graduate students. The University maintains
a limited number of apartments for married students or single graduate
students who have roommates. For information, contact:
University Apartments Office
Texas A&M University
3365 TAMU
College Station, TX 77843-3365
The Office of Student Life Programs provides listings of apartments and
houses available in the community. For more information contact:
Off-Campus Student Services
Texas A&M University
1257 TAMU
College Station, TX 77843-1257
Please visit the website at studentlife.tamu.edu for additional
information.
Also, the following link is a housing locator service:
http://studentlife.tamu.edu/agoss/resources/OffCampus/locators.htm
There is a wide choice of housing and prices are relatively inexpensive
compared to most universities. Typical monthly prices for housing
follow:
1-bedroom apartment: $400 to $1000 (premium with maid service)
2-bedroom apartment: $500 to $900
2-bedroom 1-bathroom duplex home: $500 to $650
3-bedroom 2-bathroom duplex home: $900 to $1200
3- or 4-bedroom single-family home: $900 to $1500
Q. How do I commute to the campus if I
live off-campus?
A. There is a Texas A&M Shuttle bus that offers free
transportation to local area communities:
http://transport.tamu.edu/transit.aspx
Transit provides a convenient and economical shuttle servicing the
Bryan/College Station community. Service is provided between the hours
of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. The daily Off-Campus
shuttle system is operated using seven (7) routes and twenty-nine (29)
buses. Please visit the website for additional information and
schedules:
http://transport.tamu.edu/transit/offcampus.aspx
