Frequently Asked Questions

1. I am an international student. What are my chances of full financial aid?

    

   Not good. At FSU, each department is responsible for paying out-of-state waivers from its budget. This makes international students very expensive for the department. In most cases, the best the department can do is offer a teaching assistantship without an out-of-state fee waiver, which leaves approximately $15,000 per year that the student must pay from personal funds. Obviously, this policy has hurt our recruitment of international students.

   The exception to this policy is the University Fellowship program which includes a full out-of-state waiver. Only the strongest applicants have any hope of earning a University Fellowship. Generally, the student must have at least a 3.8 undergraduate GPA and a 1500 (V+Q) GRE score.

    

2. Can you waive the application fee?

    

   No. The university refuses to waive the application fee under any circumstances.

    

3. Can I contact your faculty directly?

    

   If your purpose is to get information about the research interests of our faculty, perhaps to aid in your decision to apply, then I recommend you look at the personal web pages maintained by our faculty. Contacting one of our faculty to suggest that you share common research interests will not improve your chances of admission and/or financial support.

4. Can you tell me the number of internationals admitted and the percentage given financial support in previous years?

    

   We do not keep such statistics. Suffice it to say that many internationals are admitted with very few getting any financial support.

    

5. If I come on my own funding and do well in the program, can I earn a teaching assistantship in subsequent years?

    

   This does happen on rare occasions, but the limiting factor is availability of funds (very hard to predict). In general, I would not offer much hope.

    

6. Do I need to take the TOEFL?

    

   All international students must provide TOEFL scores unless they have a degree from a university where English is the primary language of instruction (generally, the U.S., Canada, and Great Britain). A final decision on such cases is made by the University Admissions Office, not the department.

    

7. Can I substitute the GMAT for the GRE?

    

   No. The GMAT is not considered an acceptable substitute.

    

8. Am I guaranteed admission if I meet the GRE and GPA minimums?

    

   No. The admissions committee reviews the entire application package when making a decision. Weaknesses in the letters of recommendation, transcript, or personal statement may lead to a decision not to admit.

9. Am I automatically rejected if I don't meet both the GRE and GPA minimums?

    

   No. Again, the admissions committee reviews the entire application package when making a decision. Occasionally, a student will be admitted despite a failure to meet the GPA or GRE minimums if the letters of recommendation and personal statement are sufficiently strong.