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Ph.D. Admission Information

Doctoral Program in Special Education


Admission Criteria

Applications for the doctoral program are reviewed on a rolling admissions basis.

For admission into the Ph.D. program, applicants must have a master’s degree and 2-3 years of certified classroom teaching or comparable applied experience working with individuals with disabilities.  In addition, an undergraduate and graduate cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above is required.  However, a graduate GPA of 3.5 or above is recommended.

Before submitting your application for consideration, please contact the Department Chair for a preliminary interview. Following this interview, the Department Chair will then recommend a tenured faculty member to conduct your second interview. This second interview will be in your intended research area. 

The Ph.D. Admissions Committee will review the following information when evaluating a candidate’s qualifications for admission:

  • Application for admission (SLATE Application UofU)
  • Applicant’s letter of intent
  • Professional Resume of Curriculum Vitae
  • Professional statement
  • Written response on a professional issue in the field
  • Three letters of recommendation (at least two of the three letters must be from persons who can address the applicant’s academic abilities)
  • Proof of USBE cleared background check
  • Official english proficiency scores for international students
  • Transcripts for all colleges and universities applicants

Application through SLATE

Application for admission is on the University web site through SLATE:

Apply for admission

Please do not attempt to upload university transcripts or any other documents that are password-protected.  The SLATE system will not be able to access them and the application will be considered incomplete.

Last Updated: 2/16/24