Application & Admission Information

• Application Process 
• Forms 
• Fee 
• Letters of Recommendation 
• Transcripts 
• GRE Scores 
• Writing Sample 
• Personal Statement 
• TOEFL Requirements 

Application Process

You should begin your application process early.   Applications for the fall semester will be accepted from September 1, 2009 until February 1, 2010. To make sure scores are available when admission decisions are normally made you should take the GRE, TOEFL, etc. as required by the December before the fall for which you are applying. You should also request transcripts and letters of recommendation by December or earlier in order to give the senders time to get the material to Rice before the deadline.  Potential applicants may  find some helpful general advice an article published some time ago in Perspectives (the newsletter of  the American Historical Association) concerning the graduate school application process. The deadline for completed applications for the Fall semester is February 1.

Application Forms

The application form is only one piece of your application package. The history department must receive all items listed above before your application is complete. The deadline is February 1 for Fall admission.

Mailing address: Attention Graduate Studies Department of History - MS 42 Rice University P. O. Box 1892 Houston, Texas 77251-1892

Physical Address (for FedEx etc.) Graduate Office History Department - MS 42 Rice University 6100 Main Street Houston, Texas  77005

If you have questions about the application process, please email Lisa Tate, Graduate Studies Coordinator, or call  her at (713) 348-2288 and she will be happy to assist you.

• Online Graduate Application for the History Department
  

Application Fee

A nonrefundable application fee of seventy U.S. dollars (U.S. $70) is required and may be paid by credit card or electronic check at the time of your application submission.   The application can be processed ONLY when the application fee has been received.  Specific instructions may be found on the online application.

Fee Information for Foreign Applicants

The application fee is required of all applicants, including foreign students. We recognize that some foreign students may have difficulty with currency exchange. Payment of the fee cannot be deferred until time of enrollment. The application can be processed ONLY when the application fee has been received.   Please contact the Graduate Studies Coordinator if you are having difficulty organizing payment from overseas.

Letters of Recommendation

Three letters are required. The letters should be written by people best qualified to testify to your capacity for graduate work in history. It is always our preference to have academic references representing your major field, though we recognize that there are situations where this may not be possible. In such circumstances, we encourage you to seek out those persons who can comment on qualities that will be relevant to your academic goals, particularly research.

Transcripts

We require one copy of the official, confidential transcript from each institution (undergraduate and graduate) that you have attended. These transcripts are an essential piece of your application. Send transcripts from any institution where you earned (or will earn) a degree, studied for one year or more, or took classes that relate to your current application for graduate study.

Transcripts should be in confidential, signed-across-the-seal envelopes provided to you by the registrar of each institution. It is critical that the transcripts be in confidential envelopes. Personal copies of your records, or copies which have passed through your hands and are therefore not confidential, are not acceptable and will not be regarded as official. If your school will not provide you directly with a confidential copy of your transcript, then you must have them send an official copy to directly to the History Department. Be sure to have them send the transcripts to:

Attention Graduate Studies
Department of History - MS 42
Rice University
P.O. Box 1892
Houston, TX 77251-1892

You may also wish to send us an unofficial copy, for information purposes only; you must still provide an official, confidential transcript.

We must also receive certification of degrees received, including the date the degree was awarded. This information may be included on the final transcript.

Transcript Information for Foreign Applicants

The academic records which we refer to as transcripts should provide a listing, year-by-year, of all courses taken and the grade or marks received for each one. It is helpful to have the grading scale of the institution and the student's rank in class included when such information is available. Do not submit secondary school records. Transcripts must bear an official signature in ink of the appropriate official of your institution(s), such as the registrar or recorder of records, and must bear the institutional seal. If your college or university will not provide original official academic documents, exact copies that have been verified as "Certified True Copies" by the appropriate institutional official of each institution that you have attended should be sent. Uncertified photocopies are not acceptable. To be considered, all documents not in English must be accompanied by official English translations. These translations must bear an original ink signature and seal, and translations alone will not be acceptable.

GRE Scores

We require all applicants to provide GRE (Graduate Record Examination) General Test scores.  The scores must not be more than five years old, and an official copy must be sent to Rice University directly from the Educational Testing Service.   The ETS reporting code for Rice University is 6609.

Rice University receives GRE scores via secure files about twice a month from the Educational Testing Service. Because we match scores by an applicant's name, it is important that you explicitly call our attention to any discrepancies that might occur between your name as reported on your application forms and as recorded on your GRE scores.

Be sure to take the GRE in time for official scores to reach us by the February 1 deadline. For further information on the GRE and registration forms, please contact the Educational Testing Service, P.O. Box 6000, Princeton, New Jersey 08541-6000 USA or telephone (609) 771-7670. Send e-mail to gre-info@ets.org or visit the GRE website at http://www.gre.org.   

NOTE TO FOREIGN APPLICANTS: We realize that language and cultural differences may affect the GRE scores of foreign students, particularly those whose native language is not English. This is taken into consideration when such students' applications are evaluated. The scores are nevertheless required and must come directly from the Educational Testing Service.

Writing Sample

Your writing sample (10-25 pages) is one of the most important parts of your application and the sample should be selected with care. It can be a chapter from your Master's Thesis, a paper you wrote for a history professor, an article you published in a scholarly journal, or a piece of original research you think demonstrates your ability as an historian.   You may send it as an attachment to your online application (uploading instructions provided with the online application)  or as a hard copy.   In either case please be sure to include a cover sheet with your writing sample that has your name and address on it.  Your hard copy may be sent to:

Attention Graduate Studies
Department of History - MS 42
Rice University
P.O. Box 1892
Houston, TX 77251-1892

Personal Statement

Your application and all supporting documents help us know your work, your goals, and your abilities as an historian. Your personal statement should include information about your professional goals and discuss your historical interests.  You may include this as part of your online application, either in the text box entitled 'Additional Information' or as an attachment  (uploading instructions provided with the online application).

TOEFL Requirements (for Foreign Applicants)

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is required of any student whose native language is not English.  The score must not be more than two years old and an official copy must be sent to the Graduate School directly from ETS. The test is administered through the Educational Testing Service, Box 6151, Princeton, New Jersey 08541-6151 USA [telephone (609) 771-7100 or send e-mail to toefl@ets.org] or at a center in your native country.

Much of your success in graduate study in the United States will rest on your ability to understand, read, write, and speak English. If English is not your native language, evidence of proficiency in its use will be decisive in the review for admission.

Applicants whose native language is not English must take the TOEFL test and score at least 600 on the paper-based TOEFL or score at least 250 on the computer-based TOEFL. For students who choose to take the IELTS in lieu of TOEFL, the minimum score is 7.