Graduate Admissions
How to apply to the Graduate Program:
The Graduate School encourages all applicants to use the on-line
system which can be accessed at:
http://gradschool.princeton.edu/admission/.
Applying on-line allows for greater tracking of application materials.
However, students who prefer to use a hard copy of the application,
may download it from the above website. NO HARD COPIES WILL BE MAILED
FROM THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OR THE PHYSICS DEPARTMENT.
Please consult the
Graduate School Office
website to find
due dates for applications, list of required materials and
Application
Forms. The on-line website becomes available in late summer.
In the evaluation of each applicant, the physics department looks not only for the success that the
applicant has achieved so far in his or her study of physics, but also for his or her
promise as a research scientist.
Admissions decisions are made during February by a special committee of physics faculty
members. The Admissions Committee seeks all the relevant information it can gather in
order to assess each candidate's interest in and potential for advanced
research in physics. Admitted students begin their physics study the
following September. They never begin the program in January.
Because of the small number of students, typically 20 per class,
applicants are admitted only as candidates for the degree of Doctor of
Philosophy. There is no separate Master of Arts program and no provision for
part-time students. However, an M.A.
is awarded to those who desire it after they have passed the General
Examination.
Advice to potential applicants
We look for people with a strong physics background, reflected in the courses taken
at the undergraduate level and in the grades received (GPA).
We look at your undergraduate record for breadth, depth, and performance
We require GRE tests (including the Advanced Physics Test),
and we pay attention to GRE scores. We do not have a minimum
GRE score for admission, but we find that almost all of
the students admitted to our program have scored highly on the
GRE Physics exam. Performing well on the physics GRE requires putting some time into it, an investment that
reveals discipline and commitment, which are both good indicators of future success.
Be sure to list Princeton University as one of
the schools to receive your scores. If you have already taken the
GRE and Princeton was not among the schools you listed, contact
ETS and arrange for your score to be sent to Princeton.
The GREs must be taken
no later than November in order for
your scores to be considered by the admissions committee.
Grades and test scores are important, but do not tell the whole story.
We value research experience. Undergraduate theses or research projects
in or out of class are of special interest to the Admission Committee.
For experimentalists, it is important to have lab experience. If you are
a potential experimentalist, then in your application please tell us about
any "hands-on" experience you may have, including hobbies or jobs involving
mechanical work or electronics. Also, computer skills are very valuable both for experimentalists and theorists.
The essay is another important tool that we use in our decision making process.
We look for a thoughtful statement of purpose that shows signs of creativity
and a potential for research. The statement must be convincing and coherent,
based on some familiarity with the proposed area of research.
It is often helpful if you can relate your research and interests
to the research of specific faculty and groups at Princeton.
View our suggestions about the essay.
Finally, we pay much attention to letters of recommendations by people who
really know the candidate and can provide relevant information
about the candidate's potential in physics. Recommendation letters should help us evaluate your capacity for research, a most important criterion for admission.
If possible, choose recommenders who are familiar with the Graduate Physics
Program at Princeton and can gauge your ability compared to previous Princeton
students. Along with the referee form in your application packet, give the advisors
the following letter offering guidelines:
Letter for Recommenders
And lastly, there are many physicists working on interesting physics problems in other
departments at Princeton University. You might want to look at the web pages of the following departments:
Astrophysical Sciences
Plasma Physics
Electrical Engineering
Chemistry
Molecular Biology
Atmospheric SciencesScience
Advice to foreign students.
We pay attention to TOEFL scores. If you plan to apply to Princeton, please work on improving your spoken English skills.
You will need to pass a demanding spoken English test by the end of your first year in Princeton.
It is possible that a phone interview will be arranged with foreign candidates before admission to ascertain his/her spoken English abilities.
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