Application requirements, MSE and WE
The following items are required before an application may be reviewed for a decision by either the MSE or Welding Engineering Graduate Studies Committees. Note that some items are unique to international applicants.
Application materials are to be submitted via the applicant's OSU Graduate School on-line application.
PhD Applicants from Iran and Ukraine
In light of the current political violence and tensions in Iran and the ongoing war in Ukraine, applicants to the MSE or WE doctoral program from these countries may request a waiver of the $70 application fee. Please email Prof. Maryam Ghazisaeidi (ghazisaeidi.1@osu.edu) with your request and include a copy of your CV. We will review your request and, if approved, reply with instructions on how to apply the fee waiver to your application.
Application deadlines
| Materials Science and Engineering | Master's | Ph.D. |
| Welding Engineering (on-campus) | Master's | Ph.D. |
| Welding Engineering (online MS Non-Thesis) | Master's |
MSE & WE on-campus applications--The deadlines at the links above indicate latest deadlines for application to the term. Both on-campus programs begin reviewing applications for the coming Autumn admission in December of the prior year. In other words, we will begin reviewing applications for Autumn 2023 admission in December 2022. We will continue to accept and review applications, and make admission offers, until we fill our projected Graduate Research Associate needs for Autumn 2023. This can be a time-consuming process, often stretching into March and beyond.
Application materials
Apply on-line (OSU Application Account Menu).
Application involves 1) creating a user account, 2) completing the application, and 3) paying the application fee (credit card required).
Tip: On-line reference submission--please have the e-mail addresses of any references ready for entry prior to starting the application process.
Application fee
Fees are paid by credit card as part of the on-line application process; $60 for domestic applicants, $70 (US funds) for international applicants.
This fee can not be waived or deferred.
Official transcript(s) from all post-secondary institutions (i.e., colleges, universities, technical schools, etc.) you have attended or are now attending.
- One official transcript from each post-secondary school attended, even if credits from one school were transferred into another.
- A scan of an original transcript will be accepted. Applicants may make an electronic copy of an official transcript in PDF format and upload this directly to the application file.
- Advising reports or web-based screen shots will not be accepted.
An applicant will be required to provide final/complete original hard-copy transcripts to the Admissions Office, if admitted. This is to include an official degree completion statement. Such statements may be separate from the complete transcript of grades or completion of the degree may be indicated on the transcript itself.
OSU applicants: Students who have attended The Ohio State University for part or all of their undergrad or graduate course work do not need to submit OSU transcripts. The Admissions Office can access this information, as can the MSE department.
The GRE General and/or Subject Tests are NOT required of our applicants. Effective September 2020 we are no longer requiring the GRE scores from any MSE or WE applicants.
Proof of English language proficiency is required of all applicants whose native language is not English (ref. OSU Admissions Office requirements). No international student will be considered for admission until proof of English proficiency is received.
Minimum scores required for application to Ohio State:
TOEFL paper-based = 550
TOEFL computer-based = 213
TOEFL internet-based = 79
IELTS = 7.0
Duolingo = 105
Notes:
- Applicants who are citizens of or who have received a bachelor's degree or higher in one of the following countries are exempt from the TOEFL / IELTS / Duolingo requirement: Australia, Belize, the British Caribbean and British West Indies, Canada (except Quebec), England, Guyana, Ireland, Liberia, New Zealand, Scotland, the United States, and Wales.
- Test scores are considered valid for two years after the date of testing. If official test scores submitted to the OSU Admissions Office via ETS are valid at the time of receipt by Admissions, the scores will be considered valid, even if the the two year expiration date passes prior to the applicant's admission into the program.
- An application will not be reviewed until official test scores have been received by the OSU Admissions Office from the testing service. Photocopies of the score reports are NOT considered official.
TOEFL--Test of English as a Foreign Language
Information about the TOEFL Info on the test, costs, testing centers, and more.
Please request Educational Testing Service (ETS) to send your scores to the OSU Admissions Office (institution code 1592--sub-code 1499).
The MSE/WE department does not require either the Test of Written English (TWE) or the Test of Spoken English (TSE).
IELTS--International English Language Testing System
Information about the IELTS Info on the test, costs, testing centers, and more.
Duolingo
Information about the Duolingo English Test Info on the test, costs, and more.
Three letters of recommendation, written in English, are required. At least two of the three should come from faculty/academic references. The purpose of these references is to gain a candid assessment from the reference about the applicant's ability to perform well in graduate level course work and carry out research. *
OSU Admissions requires recommendation letters to be uploaded to the applicant's file by the recommender (instructions will be provided to the reference).
Any reference letter that appears to have been generated by the student will be considered invalid and will not be accepted by the Graduate Studies Committee.
On-line submission
During the application process, applicants will be prompted to enter the e-mail addresses of their recommenders. When the application is submitted, the Admissions Office will send an e-mail to these addresses with instructions for the recommender.
Applicants would be wise to follow up with their references to be sure they received the OSU Admissions Office instructions and that recommendations have been provided. Applicants can log in to the application account and send a reminder to any references no yet received.
Email submission, if necessary
If the recommender has difficulty uploading the reference letter to the applicant's account, the reference may be scanned and attached to an email. References must include:
- A completed Graduate School Reference Form (PDF)--recommenders need only complete the student's name and area of study on page 1, and the recommender information on page 2.
- A signed reference letter on business letterhead.
These are to be emailed to gpadocs@osu.edu
See also Graduate Admissions Frequently Asked Questions
* For those students who have not been in relatively recent contact with academic references (i.e., have not been in school for a number of years), non-academic references are permitted. The goal remains the same, we hope to better understand the applicant's ability to succeed as a grad student. An application will be helped to the extent a reference can provide this insight.
A statement of purpose outlining your motivation for attending our program and your goals after receiving the degree. This essay allows you to express your interest in materials science or welding engineering, describe what area(s) interest you the most, and goals that you have for applying the training received here. Since most of the material supplied with the application is little more than numbers, data, and grades, this statement allows you to "speak" to the faculty reviewing your file and gives them a glimpse into your motivations.
- The statement should be about one to two pages, though there is no set minimum or maximum length.
- This document is to be uploaded to your OSU on-line application account.
Please answer the following questions and/or statements in your statement of purpose. Statements that do not address these items will be at a disadvantage.
- Tell us about your research.
- What did you learn from your experience?
- Tell us something you are proud of in your academics or personal life.
- Share an example of a time you encountered a serious obstacle or failure and describe how you handled it.
- What motivates you to obtain a PhD and what are your plans after receiving your degree?
- What worries you when you think about starting graduate school?
- Who do you go to for support or mentorship?
- What extracurricular activities are you engaged in and how has your involvement in these activities enhanced your leadership skills?
Submission of a CV/resume serves as a helpful means of summarizing the background of an applicant.
- Please keep the length of this document to under two pages.
- This document is to be uploaded to your OSU on-line application account.
This document, used by international applicants only, is NOT required of any student whose sole source of funding would be a Graduate Research Associateship (GRA) and/or University Fellowship.
Self-funded or sponsored applicants
Please note that as a matter of policy, we do not admit students who would pay for their schooling out of personal/family funds.
If your studies are to be funded by a source other than a Graduate Research Associateship--such as a government agency, an employer, or a scholarship--then the Affidavit of Financial Support and all necessary bank statements/support letters must be submitted to the Admissions Office. The form and supporting documents are not required until an offer of admission has been made.
We ask that applicants with such third-party funding e-mail the MSE/WE Graduate Studies Coordinator (or call 614-292-7280) and inform us of your intent to apply. The vast majority of our applicants seek GRA funding, so it is helpful if our self-funded applicants alert us to their interest.
Applicants are free to submit any additional materials that might provide the MSE/WE Graduate Studies Committee with a better understanding of the applicant's skills or interests. Please note that this is not required and is purely optional. If submitting research papers, please limit the submission to only an abstract or executive summary; if more detail is sought about a particular item the applicant will be contacted.
Such items are to be emailed to the the MSE/WE Graduate Studies Coordinator.
BS/MS program in MSE and WE
With the items described above, OSU students seeking to enter the MSE or WE BS/MS combined program must also submit the BS/MS Notification Form. When the applicant selects the BS/MS as his/her degree objective, the applicant will be directed to the Combined Program Worksheet.
For information about the Materials Science and Engineering or Welding Engineering BS/MS program, please email the MSE-WE Graduate Coordinator, Mark Cooper.
College of Engineering BS/MS page
The College of Engineering provides basic information about a BS/MS in an engineering department, as well as some tips concerning the BS/MS program in general.
OSU Graduate Admissions Office
OSU Graduate Admissions Office
Telephone:
614-292-9444
FAX:
614-292-3895
(email available at link above)
Supporting documents are to be uploaded to the application account; electronic versions of documents are preferred. However, if it is necessary to mail hard-copy documents, please use the addresses below.
Regular postal mail:
Graduate and Professional Admissions
The Ohio State University
P.O. Box 182004
Columbus, OH 43218-2004
USA
Express mail:
Graduate and Professional Admissions
The Ohio State University
Student Academic Services Building
281 West Lane Avenue
Columbus, Ohio 43210-1132
USA
Questions?
Mark Cooper
MSE-WE Graduate Studies Coordinator
614-292-7280