Class Profile & Admissions FAQs

Application steps and required materials vary by program. Find detailed instructions on the admissions page for your level:

Undergraduate
Combined & Accelerated
Graduate

Priority and final deadlines are listed on each program’s admissions page. Applying by the priority deadline is strongly encouraged for the best funding consideration.

The GRE and GMAT are optional for our MPSA, MIA, and MIP degrees.

We encourage testing for applicants with a cumulative GPA below 3.2, or for anyone whose scores would strengthen their application, support merit scholarship consideration, or offset a lower GPA or limited field experience.

Taking the test more than once:
There is no penalty. We use the highest total score from a single test date; scores are not averaged or superscored.

Submitting scores after you apply:
Email your Test Score Report to bushschoolapplications@tamu.edu, ideally by the priority deadline and no later than the final deadline.

Registering and preparing:
Schedule through the GRE website, which also lists preparation tools. Plan to test at least six weeks before your intended deadline, since scores take time to process.

Texas A&M requires proof of English proficiency for admission, though it can be met several ways and some applicants are exempt. See the International Applicants page for proficiency routes, exemptions, and deadlines.

• Checking status: The Bush School Graduate Admissions Office communicates all updates, including missing items, completeness, and final decisions, by email to the address on your application. If you applied through GraduateCAS, you can monitor general status there, but the GradCAS status may not reflect the true status of your file, so rely on an email from the Bush School.
• Withdrawing: Email bushschoolapplications@tamu.edu to withdraw. The application fee cannot be refunded. MIA-MPH applicants should also email the School of Public Health (SPH-GSS@tamu.edu) to withdraw from that side of the review.

This page focuses on College Station graduate admissions. A few graduate programs follow their own path:

• Executive Master of PSAA (EMPSA)
• Graduate Certificates
• Bush School DC Programs (MIP, NSI)

Each program’s Admissions Committee reviews applicants holistically, considering merit, background, experiences, recommendations, personal statements, résumé, coursework, institutions attended, cumulative GPAs across all degrees, test scores if submitted, interview quality if required, and relevant life and work experience.

Strong applicants demonstrate academic potential and leadership and show a propensity for service across the public, nonprofit, and private sectors. Successful candidates tend to have a defined career goal; relevant context through experience, volunteerism, travel, language, or study; evidence they are ready for rigorous graduate work; and demonstrated maturity and drive. Let those qualities come through in your materials.

Every program has an Admissions Committee of faculty and staff who review applications to decide whom to interview and admit. The committees’ decisions are final.

Only the MPSA program currently interviews its applicants. They interview as many candidates as they reasonably can, generally up to double the intended class size.

Decision timing varies with your application date. For example, MIA applicants who apply by the priority deadline typically receive an early decision in February, with funding decisions following in March. MIP applicants are notified within 7 to 10 business days of submitting a complete application. See your program’s admissions page for its full timeline.

The MIA uses a waitlist each year and the MPSA uses one occasionally; the MIP does not. Waitlisted candidates are notified by email, typically in mid-March, and contacted if a seat opens. The waitlist is not ranked.

The fall term opens with a mandatory Bush School New Student Orientation the week before the first day of class, with classes typically starting in mid-to-late August. Check the Texas A&M Academic Calendar for exact dates.

No program requires prerequisites, although some familiarity is helpful: American government, economics, and statistics or research methods for the MPSA; international relations, diplomatic history, American foreign policy, and twentieth-century history for the MIA and MIP; and economics and statistics for the MIA IDEP track.

Curriculum structure differs across degrees, and the MPSA and MIP do not require concentrations. See the Academics pages for each program’s tracks and concentrations.

Requirements vary by program, from the one-year, 30-hour MIP to the two-year, 48-hour MPSA and MIA, to the three-year combined degrees. See each program’s Academics page for its hours, capstone, internship, and language requirements.

With advisor approval, students can apply some Distance Education courses toward their degree, within program-specific limits. Core courses must be taken in the degree’s modality. See the Academics pages for details.

Programs accept a limited number of transfer hours, including Bush School certificate coursework, subject to grade, recency, and approval requirements that differ by degree.

See each program’s Academics page and the Graduate Catalog for limits.

The Cost & Funding overview covers tuition and any aid the Bush School and Texas A&M offer, including merit scholarships, non-resident tuition waivers, fellowships, assistantships, and federal and international aid. Each program’s Cost page carries its own tuition estimate.

Cost & Funding page

International students admitted to the MPSA or MIA are eligible for merit-based Bush School Scholarships. They are not eligible for federal loan programs.

For additional guidance, see the Cost & Funding page and Texas A&M International Student & Scholar Services.

The Bush School does not offer assistantships to incoming students. A limited number are awarded to second-year MPSA and MIA students by merit, skills, and fit, and they replace the first-year scholarship.

Details are on the Cost & Funding page.

University financial aid is handled by:

Texas A&M Scholarships & Financial Aid

• Reachable through Aggie One Stop
• or by phone at (979) 847-1787
• Monday through Friday

Career Services staff help students bridge academics and the profession through workshops, internship and job-search support, alumni talks, and employer connections. They also work with faculty to source internship leads.

Limited internship funding, in the form of a location-based stipend, is available to students who complete the required career workshops.

See Career Services for details.

Detailed employment outcomes, including employment rates and where graduates work, are maintained on the Careers & Outcomes page.