Admission Process & Application

• Graduate students may be admitted as either classified or conditionally classified.
   
• Applicants must submit a Biology Graduate Program Application in addition to the CalState application. Biology application deadlines:
   
  • February 15 preceding entry into the program for Fall semester.
     
  • September 15 preceding entry into the program for Spring semester.
     
• In addition to University requirements and the Biology Application, the Biology Graduate Committee will judge applications based on:
   
  • Consent of a faculty member to serve as research advisor.
     
  • Demonstrated suitability for the Biology Graduate Program, supported by one or more of the following:
     
    • An undergraduate degree in a biological science with a GPA ≥ 3.0 in undergraduate Biology courses intended for majors, or
       
    • A GPA ≥ 3.0 in coursework comparable to that intended for upper division Biology majors (e.g. Genetics, Evolutionary Biology and Cell Biology), or
       
    • For applicants who do not meet the above criteria, the prospective advisor may request an online interview between the applicant and Biology Graduate Committee.
       
• Although the General Graduate Record Examination is not required, students who believe that their GRE scores will help their application are free to submit them. International students who have been admitted from countries with grading systems different than ours have often benefited from submission of General GRE scores.
   
• For international applicants, TOEFL scores at or above the University’s minimum score.

Students must meet the general University requirements for classified status. If a student meets the department admission requirements but does not meet the requirements for classified status, conditional classification may be given. No more than 12 units of coursework prior to attaining fully classified status will be applied to a master’s program.

• If you choose to take and submit your General Graduate Record Examination (GRE), have the scores sent to CSUN Admissions and Records at CSUN GRE Institutional Code 4707. The General GRE is not required, but excellent scores could improve your application.
   
• Apply to the University through Cal State Apply by the appropriate deadlines.
   
• Request official transcripts to be sent to CSUN Admissions and Records. Ideally this should be done 6 to 8 weeks before the application deadline.

• Contact Biology faculty whose research you are interested in. Do this well in advance of the application deadline if at all possible.
   
• Ask three people familiar with your academic or related work if they will write letters of recommendation.
   
• Submit the Department Application Form. You can upload unofficial copies of GRE scores and transcripts. You should give the system the email addresses of your recommenders, and it will send them a link to submit their letter.