Admission to graduate study in psychology, with full graduate standing in the School of Psychology, requires foremost a Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent in psychology or a related field (e.g., computer science, biology, linguistics, mathematics). The psychology faculty encourages competent students with undergraduate majors in subjects other than psychology to apply for admission.
Required admission materials
We require three letters of recommendation from persons most familiar with the applicant’s academic competence. For international students, proof of English proficiency (e.g., TOEFL score) is required. GRE scores are required to be submitted with your application (to qualify for fee reductions, please see this link https://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/register/fees/reductions/). If you are unable to take the GRE for financial or other reasons, please contact the Director of Graduate Studies here (scott.moffat@psych.gatech.edu).
GRE Fee Reduction Program (For Test Takers) - Educational Testing Service
ETS provides the GRE ® Fee Reduction Program for individuals who can demonstrate financial need, for those who are unemployed and receiving unemployment compensation, and for national programs that work with underrepresented groups. A GRE Fee Reduction Voucher may be used for one GRE ® General Test and/or one GRE ® Subject Test. Voucher users pay 50% of the regular test fee.
Admissions criteria
Admission to the School of Psychology is based upon recommendations from the major program areas (Cognition and Brain Science, Cognitive Aging, Engineering Psychology, Industrial/Organizational Psychology, and Quantitative Psychology) within the School. Students are evaluated as to their overall preparation to meet the demands of the curriculum within the School, the fit of their interests to the particular program of study to which they have applied, and the match of their research interests with the research focus of the faculty.
Fit matters a lot in our program as we adhere to an apprenticeship model. Please look over our website and get familiar with the work of the professor you want to work with (future advisor). Reach out to them to make sure they are taking students in the next recruitment cycle and that there really is common ground between your interests.
Because of the multiple criteria used to determine admission, there are no firm “cutoff” scores that would preclude an applicant’s acceptance into a given program of study. Applicants with special skills, history of research experience, or a unique fit to the program are given full consideration even if their GPA falls below that guideline.
