The Graduate School’s Select Admission Program encourages undergraduate students with top academic records to remain at the university for a graduate degree.
The Graduate School Select Admission Program may be of special benefit to graduate programs with no undergraduate degree offered on campus, or for those programs that recruit new students from different majors. Select admission may also be of benefit to those graduate programs engaged in proactive recruitment initiatives.
It enables programs to attract academically exceptional undergraduates by:
Identifying potential candidates
Encouraging programs to identify potential candidates as early as the junior year of study and to extend an “early” (i.e., preemptive) offer of admission and financial aid;
Removing costs
Removing financial and other costs associated with regular application (the application fee will be waived);
Waiving test requirements
Waiving the Graduate School requirement for submission of GRE scores (although some programs may wish to retain this requirement for diagnostic or statistical purposes and fellowship opportunities);
Waiving the transcript fee
Waiving the Graduate School requirement of a transcript fee;
Reducing the length of time to a graduate degree
In some cases, reducing the length of time to the graduate degree through the Reservation of Course for Graduate Credit provision (form linked above) for students who enroll in graduate courses while in undergraduate status; and
Saving students money
Saving students money—they pay for reserved graduate credit at undergraduate tuition rates.
Questions
If you have questions, email
Associate Dean Marv Hackert.
Nominations
Graduate programs interested in participating in the Select Admission Program are strongly encouraged to limit their nominations each year to a few outstanding undergraduates. Nominations must be forwarded to the Graduate School by the graduate program and must include the following documents:
Cover letter
A cover letter from the graduate adviser or graduate admissions officer recommending admission to the Select Admission Program. The letter must document that the student is of extraordinary capability, should rank where the nominee would place within a conventional graduate admission cohort (e.g., 2 of 30), and note the benefit to the student of being admitted via Select Admissions. The letter must also include the student’s UT EID, information on the semester the nominee intends to complete the baccalaureate from UT Austin, the major and degree sought, the EID of the Graduate Advisor for the program, and the semester the student is expected to begin full-time graduate school.
Three letters of recommendation
Three letters of recommendation from tenure-track faculty at UT Austin who are directly familiar with the nominee’s academic abilities and performance in university courses. Letters from lecturers and/or graduate students will not be accepted.
Statement of purpose
A 500-word statement of purpose provided by the nominee that addresses the reason the student is seeking a graduate degree from the nominating program.
Nominee’s résumé
A copy of the nominee’s résumé.
Acceptance is not automatic, as all nomination materials will be reviewed to ensure that the student meets the program criteria. If the nomination is approved, the Graduate School will issue a letter accepting the student to the Select Admission Program and providing instructions for the Graduate School admissions process.
Deadlines
The deadlines for nominations to the Graduate School Select Admission Program are:
Spring Term — May 4
Summer Term — July 12
Fall Term — December 7
Baccalaureate Completion
Accepted students must complete their baccalaureate degree requirements before the start of their full-time graduate studies. A registration hold will be placed on each student by the Office of Graduate Admissions until graduate programs can verify that the student has completed all baccalaureate requirements.