FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONSWhere should application materials be sent?
Where should application materials be sent? The application and the fee should be filled out and submitted on-line here. The on-line method is the preferred method as it greatly reduces processing time and ensures that you will meet the application deadline. The university is encouraging online applications and thus is not printing anymore hard copies of the application. If you cannot complete the application on-line we can print the information out and send you a copy of the online application. However, please keep in mind that if you apply using paper, only the application form and the application fee should be mailed to the Office of Admissions and Records. The statement of purpose, 3 letters of reference, transcripts & degree certificates, GRE test scores, TOEFL test score, TSE test score, and the Financial Declaration and Certification form should be sent directly to the Economics Department at the address below. It should not be sent to the Admissions and Records Office. University of Illinois Please keep in mind that if you send anything other than the application form and the fee to the Office of Admissions and Records, this will cause a long delay in the processing of your application materials and could cause you to miss the application deadline of January 15, so please be sure to send all supporting documents directly to the Economics Department!!!! Can I get a waiver of the admission fee? No, the admissions fee is paid directly to the University and not to the department. For this reason the department cannot waive the payment of the fee. The application fee is $50 for Domestic students and $60 for International students. The Office of Admissions and Records will not process your application or send it to the Economics Office for admissions consideration until the application fee is received. The application fee should be submitted on-line via credit card at the same time the application is completed on-line. If you must apply using paper, then the fee should be paid via check posted to a US bank account. The check should include the applicant’s name. Can I get a waiver of the TOEFL? All students whose native language is not English are required to have the Educational Testing Service (ETS) submit the results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) before they can be admitted to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. A graduate applicant may be exempt from this testing if, within five years of the proposed term of enrollment, he or she has completed at least two academic years of full-time study as defined by the home institution, or completed a graduate degree, in a country where English is the primary language and in a school where English is the primary language of instruction. TOEFL waivers are rare and we highly encourage all applicants to take the TOEFL at the same time they take GRE and TSE tests. Can I get a waiver of the TSE requirement? Most admitted students receive offers of teaching assistantships. The TSE is required for all non-native English speakers in order to fully qualify for a teaching assistantship. (Note: the TSE is not required for application to the program.) Illinois State Law requires a score of 50 or higher on the TSE. Admitted students who have received an offer of a teaching assistantship are encouraged to arrange to take the TSE as soon as possible after admission. How do I know if my GRE scores are high enough? The Econ. Ph.D. Program accepts the GRE General Test, which is composed of verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing sections. We accept both the computer and paper based test. Admission decisions are made by considering the contents of the entire file, but many ask if their scores are competitive with other candidates. Average GRE scores for students who have been admitted in the past to the program were as follows. International students Note: When you take the TSE, TOEFL, or GRE test, you need to have your score sent directly to the Economics Ph.D. Admissions Department at the University of Illinois. You should choose 1836 for the institution code and 1801 for the department code. This will help the Educational Testing Service know where your score needs to be sent. Is my Grade Point Average high enough? Have I taken enough math courses to qualify for the program? GPA for undergraduate work should be at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. Prospective students should have completed intermediate micro and macro theory, two semesters of economics statistics and one advanced course in micro or macro theory. Completion of two semesters of calculus and one semester of linear algebra are the minimum math requirements. Additional mathematical training is desirable. What are my chances of receiving financial aid? Financial aid is given to all domestic students and many international students depending on their language proficiency. In order to be eligible for financial aid, international students must also submit a TSE (Test of Spoken English) score of 50 or above. The aid is typically in the form of a teaching assistantship, which pays approximately $13,000+ per year plus a tuition and service fee waiver. The Department typically has one or two fellowships each year that are awarded to exceptional students on a highly competitive basis. Do I have to have a Master's degree to apply to the Economics Ph.D. Program? No, many of our students do have a Masters degree when they apply to our program, but it is not a requirement. As long as you have a conferred Bachelor’s degree by the start of the term for which you would be admitted, you may apply to the program. We do admit students with only a Bachelor’s degree. Can I get a research assistantship? Research assistantships are typically only given to students in the second half of their graduate program. The individual faculty member who has research funds will make the decision as to whom they would like to hire. Entering students usually do not receive RA positions. New students to the program do not receive RA positions. Is there funding in the summer? The department has historically employed some students as graders and teachers in the summer. Summer funding will be increased in the coming years. If financial aid is requested do I still need to send the financial certification form? The Declaration and Certification of Finances form is part of a complete application package. Even if you have no source of funding and you will rely solely on funding from the University, you must fill out and sign this form. It should be sent along with your other application materials directly to the Economics Department - - NOT to the Admissions and Records Office. Please keep in mind that the only types of financial certification documents that we accept are original bank statements on official bank letterhead showing the details of checking or savings accounts. No. The department assesses performance in the core courses based on grades in those courses. In order to remain “in good standing,” economics Ph.D. students must achieve a B+ average (3.33) or better in all of the three sequences: micro theory (Econ. 502-504), macro theory (Econ. 503-505) and econometrics (Econ 507 and 508). I would like to learn more about the faculty in the Economics Department. Where can I find out more information about them? The faculty profiles can be found at the following website. I am only interested in a Master’s Degree. Can I still apply? You may apply to The Master of Science in Policy Economics program. If you wish to pursue only a Master’s degree without obtaining a Ph.D., you should contact the Master’s Program directly at mspe@uiuc.edu How long does it take to complete the Ph.D. Program? The average length of time for completion of the program is five years. Admission Statistics for the past admissions cycles: 325 applications were received. Of those, 25 were admitted. Our financial aid is in the form of Teaching Assistantships. We offer Teaching Assistantships to all Domestic students and most International students as long as the International student has a TSE score of 50 or above. Check list for the application to the Ph.D. program A complete application file for international students consists of the following items: The application forms, the $60 application processing fee, the statement of purpose, 3 letters of reference, transcripts (both in the native language and in English) from both undergraduate and graduate studies showing all previous degrees and courses completed, the GRE test scores, the TOEFL test score, the TSE test score, and the financial certification forms. For domestic students, the complete application file consists of the following items: The application forms, the $50 application processing fee, the statement of purpose, 3 letters of reference transcripts from both undergraduate and graduate studies showing all previous degrees and courses completed, and the GRE test scores. Remember that for both international and domestic students, only the application and the fee should be submitted to the Office of Admissions and Records. All supporting should be sent directly to the Economics Department. The deadline to apply to the Economics Ph.D. Program for the fall 2007 semester is January 15, 2007. We usually do not admit entering students for the spring or summer semesters. Thank you for your interest in the Economics Ph.D. Program at the University of Illinois!
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