Graduate Admissions for Experimental Psychology
ADMISSIONS INFORMATION
Admission Information Specific to the Experimental Program
Admission decisions are made by the department faculty and forwarded to the dean of the graduate school for final approval. Only applicants for full-time enrollment toward the Ph.D. will be considered. We do not accept applications for part-time enrollment or to complete a terminal master’s degree. We review applications only once each year for admission the following August.
Admission to the Experimental Program at The University of Mississippi, as at other programs across the country, is extremely competitive. We receive a number of applications each year and, from this group, the experimental faculty invite the top applicants for on-campus interviews. These interviews usually occur in February, and we extend interview invitations weeks in advance. We consider these on-campus interviews to be an important source of information for applicants in making informed decisions about where and how they will spend the next several years of their lives. While on campus, applicants have the opportunity to observe firsthand what graduate training at The University of Mississippi is really like. Applicants usually interview with experimental faculty members, meet with other graduate students, tour the campus and the psychology department and attend two informal dinner gatherings.
Applicants usually are informed of admission decisions before April 1, and those offered admission are required to notify us of their acceptance of our offers by April 15. We typically admit around 4 – 6 students annually.
The Experimental faculty consider all of the information submitted by applicants in making admissions decisions. However, while we do not have absolute cutoffs for GRE scores and grade-point averages, applicants with the highest scores on these two dimensions tend to be the ones offered admission. We also attend to one’s prior experience with research and the rigor of prior coursework.
Because we are a research-oriented program, applications from students who have been involved in empirical research are usually rated higher than those from students with no such involvement. Similarly, we prefer letters of recommendation from academic psychologists who can better assess a student’s potential for success in an academic environment. Those applicants with expressed interests in the research areas supported by our faculty are more likely to receive offers of admission.
In general, we encourage applications from students who have an overall undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher (on a 4-point scale) and a GPA in psychology of 3.2 or higher. Students with lower scores on these measures who have strong backgrounds in research, particularly those with publications, also receive favorable consideration. Our faculty and graduate students recognize the value of a diverse student body and a supportive educational environment that affirms the value of cultural diversity, and thus we encourage applications from members of ethnic minorities, other groups traditionally underrepresented in academia, and those who would contribute diverse perspectives to the program. Our department’s Diversity Statement is located here: https://psychology.olemiss.edu/diversity-statement/. We do not require the GRE General or Psychology Subject Test.
APPLICATION PROCESS
Students should apply to the psychology graduate programs through the Graduate School. The entire application process is completed online, and is initiated by clicking the Graduate School link. Detailed instructions are presented below and should be followed carefully. There is a checklist at the end of this document to make sure your application includes all required materials.
Step-By-Step Instructions for Applying to the Ph.D. Program in Experimental Psychology
ALL application materials are due by December 1.
- Go to https://apply.olemiss.edu/graduate/ and create account.
- Click “New Application”
- Complete application using the left sidebar as a guide.
- You will need to upload supplemental documents and enter in recommender contact info prior to submitting the application. If needed, you can save your progress and log back in and pick up where you left off.
- Once submitted, it will take 24-48 hours for your recommenders to be contacted and your application to be uploaded in the database.
- Official transcripts should be sent to the Graduate School using the following address:
University of MS Graduate School
54 Galtney-Lott Plaza
PO Box 1848
University, MS 38677
Official electronic transcripts from domestic (US only) institutions may be sent to gschool@olemiss.edu
Only transcripts received directly from the college/university will be considered official. (Do not send junior/community college transcripts.)
In addition to the steps above, the Graduate School must receive your official transcripts. It is your responsibility to ensure that your official transcript(s) are sent to the graduate school. See instructions here: https://gradschool.olemiss.edu/prospective-students/items-to-send/
Once your application has been submitted, it takes approximately 24 to 48 hours for your application to be uploaded into the system.
Keep track of your application number.
PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO REVIEW YOUR APPLICATION BEFORE YOU SUBMIT. ONCE YOU HAVE SUBMITTED YOUR APPLICATION, THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IS UNABLE TO CHANGE INFORMATION. After reviewing your application, please select submit.
Recommenders: PLEASE HAVE YOUR RECOMMENDERS UPLOAD THEIR LETTERS ONLINE VIA THE LINK PROVIDED BY THE GRADUATE SCHOOL. PLEASE DO NOT HAVE YOUR RECOMMENDERS MAIL, FAX, OR EMAIL YOUR LETTERS DIRECTLY TO THE DEPARTMENT.
APPLICATION DETAILS
Your personal statement should address the following (no more than 2 pages, single spaced):
- Your reason(s) for pursuing a doctoral degree in Experimental Psychology
- A discussion of how your background led to your decision and has prepared you to pursue graduate education in psychology. This may include, but is not limited to:
- Your academic preparation for your proposed field of study
- Your research experiences
- Personal experiences that have uniquely prepared you for graduate school or that sparked your interest in psychology
- Relevant volunteer or paid work experience
- An explanation of why the University of Mississippi is a good fit for your graduate education, addressing:
- Your current research interests
- The name(s) of faculty with whom you would like to work
- The match between your goals and the department’s mission (https://psychology.olemiss.edu/department/) and commitment to diversity (https://psychology.olemiss.edu/diversity-statement/)
MAKE SURE THAT YOU SUBMIT ALL REQUIRED MATERIALS BY THE DEADLINE. *This includes all letters of recommendation, GRE scores, transcripts, etc. Incomplete applications are unlikely to be given full consideration.
CHECKLIST OF APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
This checklist is included to assist you in ensuring your online application is complete before the December 1 submission deadline.
___ Graduate School Application
___ Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate institutions attended
___ 3 letters of recommendation (uploaded by recommenders)
___ Personal Statement
___ CV and any other materials you wish to submit (e.g., writing sample)
