Applying to UW Psychology

GRE Policy:

We do NOT require the GRE. To remove any pressure on applicants to take the GRE, we will not be reviewing GRE scores for any applicants, even when those scores have been submitted along with the application. In addition, please do not comment on your scores (if you have taken the exam) in your materials and ask your letter writers to refrain from commenting on them as well.

 

Application Process

Please complete the online application submitted through the University application portal at: https://wyoming-edu.secure.force.com/. 

Applicants will upload the following documents to the online application:

• Personal Statement 
• CV
• Unofficial Transcripts.

Only students admitted into our program will be required to send official documents.

[for general information on UW Graduate Admissions, see https://acalogcatalog.uwyo.edu/content.php?catoid=4&navoid=135]

Review Process

The Admissions Committees meet in late January and develop a short-list of students who appear to fit well with our program. Students on the short list receive a phone call from one of our faculty and are invited to come to campus for our Graduate Recruitment Days in late February. The Recruiting Days give prospective students a chance to see the campus and to interact with other graduate students and departmental faculty.

Applicants are considered for graduate assistantships at the time of admission. Graduate students typically receive some departmental financial support for the first four years. 

 

Information for Post-Masters Applicants

We occasionally admit students who have completed an MA or MS degree in psychology (or a closely related field). If a student's master's degree program included an empirical thesis, that thesis may be accepted as satisfying our program's empirical thesis requirement, pending the outcome of a review to determine if the thesis is comparable to those produced in our department. If a thesis is accepted as satisfying our requirement, up to 21 hours may be transferred to the doctoral program of study.

However, exemption from our required courses is made on a case-by-case basis, following a review of course syllabi, approval by the relevant course instructors, and review by the relevant program (clinical or experimental) Transfer/Substitution Committee.

Post masters students whose MA or MS programs did not include an empirical thesis (or whose empirical theses are not judged comparable to those from UW) will be required to conduct an empirical thesis as part of our program's MS degree (earned en-route to the PhD in our program). In these cases, only 9 hours of previous graduate work will be applied to the UW master's degree program of study. For more information regarding this policy, please refer to the UW Department of Psychology Graduate Handbook.

 

Application Procedure for International Students

The application and admission procedures for international students are more complex than for students who are citizens of the United States (see https://www.uwyo.edu/admissions/international/requirements-graduate.html). At the time of application, the international student must provide unofficial transcripts that are in English (or have English translations attached). International applicants who are non-Native English speakers and have not earned a university-level degree within an English-speaking country must also provide evidence of English proficiency (e.g., TOEFFL or IELTS; see https://www.uwyo.edu/admissions/international/english-alternatives.html for further information). 

If the student's application is successful, then they must provide an official transcript in English, either from their previous institution directly or through a transcript evaluation service such as WES or NACES. Accepted students must also complete a statement of financial security verifying that support funds are guaranteed. Usually, the amount guaranteed is about $8,000 (U.S.) per year of study. If the international student is awarded financial support through the university, (Graduate Assistant, non-resident tuition waiver, etc.) the amount of the award can be included as part of the guaranteed funds.

International applicants should visit the website https://www.uwyo.edu/admissions/international/requirements-graduate.html for more information on obtaining your student visa.