Graduate Admissions

Graduate Admission Requirements

Students who wish to pursue an advanced degree or certificate must complete the online application. Fredonia does not have a general application deadline and applications are accepted up to a week prior to the start of the desired admission term. Some degree programs may specify application deadlines; please check the requirements for your desired program. All applicants must pay a $75 application fee.

Funding opportunities, including graduate assistantships, are available to graduate applicants. These opportunities often have deadlines starting early in the calendar year. Please check the Graduate Studies website or contact the office if you have questions about funding opportunities.

Admission to graduate study is based on the following requirements:

• Completion of a baccalaureate degree or equivalent from an accredited post-secondary institution with an appropriate major and depth of undergraduate preparation. Some departments may accept students who have successfully earned a degree from an accredited institution with a different major, but applicants should at least have a minor of 18 credit hours in the desired degree program. Decisions about appropriateness of undergraduate preparation are made on an individual basis during the department review process.

• Completion of the online graduate application and payment of the application fee.

• Submission of official transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended. Submission of Fredonia transcripts is not required. 

• Submission of appropriate academic and professional references. Most programs require two letters of recommendation, preferably written during the last six months, from individuals who can attest to the applicant’s qualifications for advanced study.  Some degree programs may have different requirements for references; please check the requirements for your desired program. 

• Submission of proof of appropriate certification, a requirement for applicants to advanced teacher certification degree programs.

• Submission of program-specific requirements. Some degree programs may have additional admission requirements; please check the admission requirements for your desired program. 

Once an application is considered complete (all admission requirements have been met), the applicant will be notified that the application is in department review status. Applicants will receive a decision email once the department review process is complete; accepted students will receive a welcome packet shortly thereafter. Important information for new students can be found at the Getting Started page. Please email or call the Graduate Studies office with questions about the application process. 

For additional information, please see Graduate Admissions in the Admissions and Financial Aid section of the catalog.

International Graduate Application Requirements

International applicants are eligible to apply for admission to all programs, including those that lead to professional certification to teach in New York public schools. International applicants should note, however, that they will not be eligible for certification to teach in New York public schools. For more information, in certain cases, international students can get certification. Students should contact Graduate Studies at (716) 673-3808 or email graduate.studies@fredonia.edu.

In addition to the general application requirements, international applicants are required to submit additional materials in order to complete immigration paperwork necessary to study in the United States.

International applicants must submit the following additional materials, available on the Graduate Studies website (http://home.fredonia.edu/gradstudies):

• English Proficiency Test Score Report: International applicants are required to show proficiency in the English language sufficient enough to successfully participate in graduate study. Proof of proficiency may be shown by achieving the following test scores:
  

  • TOEFL: 79 or
  • IELTS: 6.5 or
    Fredonia's school code for reporting the TOEFL and IELTS scores electronically is 2539
  • C1 Advanced (Cambridge English Advanced): 176 or
  • C2 Proficiency (Cambridge English Proficiency): 180 or
  • PTE: 53 or
  • Successfully complete Fredonia’s International Pathway Program or
  • If an applicant has earned a post-secondary degree in which their courses were taught in English, the English language proficiency requirement may be waived (e.g. Student has a bachelor’s degree from a U.S. university)

• FSA-4 form: Financial Statement: All international applicants must submit evidence of full financial support for all expenses at Fredonia as a condition of being issued immigration documents for an F-1 student visa. The FSA-4 form must be signed by both the applicant and the applicant's financial sponsor. The submitted form must contain an original signature.

• Proof of financial support: Applicants must submit an original bank statement from the financial sponsor verifying the available funds. Only original financial documentation with original signatures and seals will be accepted.

While an admission decision can be made without the financial documentation, the I-20 or DS-2019 forms cannot be issued until all documents are received.

Applicants must send the FSA-4 form and supporting documentation to the Assistant Director of International Student Services, S226A Williams Center, Fredonia, NY 14063 (or email to iss@fredonia.edu).

Persons who have further questions about these requirements should contact the Assistant Director of International Student Services iss@fredonia.edu.

Individual departments/programs may have additional admissions requirements that must be met. Students should check the Graduate Studies website, degree program pages in this online University Catalog, and/or departmental websites.

Non-degree Study

Reasons for applying to become a non-matriculated (non-degree) student vary, but usually fall into the following categories:

• Personal or professional development: Those who have earned a master's degree or higher at Fredonia or elsewhere are welcome to apply for non-degree graduate study for the purpose of personal or professional development. A maximum of 9 credit hours is allowed, but may be waived.

• Pre-graduate preparation: Students who have earned a bachelor's degree and need to take graduate-level coursework in order to bolster a weak undergraduate GPA or to prove capability for graduate-level work may apply for non-degree study and, if approved, take a maximum of 9 credit hours.

• Visiting graduate students: Graduate students who attend other schools and are interested in taking course work at Fredonia may apply for non-degree graduate study and, if approved, take a maximum of 9 credit hours.

To help maintain the quality of Fredonia's graduate programs and to ensure appropriate enrollment capacity, the university asks that applicants explain reasons for requesting non-matriculated admission and indicate from which department(s) desired classes are sought.

A maximum of 9 credit hours (6 credit hours of education course work) taken as a non-degree student is allowed. The credits may later be applied to a graduate degree program at Fredonia upon the student's request.

As a general rule, students taking graduate courses without pursuing a degree who decide to apply for a degree program must have a grade point average of at least 3.0 at the time they apply. Under unusual circumstances, chairpersons may accept students with a lower GPA into a degree program, but in that case, the students enter with conditional status, with one semester in which to improve their records.

To apply as a non-degree graduate student, please contact the Extended Learning office.