Skip to content

Ph.D. Program in Information Studies Admissions

Qualifications

Admission to a graduate program at UCLA requires that applicants hold a bachelor’s degree from a university-level institution, and, in addition, have at the minimum achieved a “B” (3.0 grade point average) or its equivalent in the last 60 semester-units or last 90 quarter-units of undergraduate work. See the UCLA Graduate Division’s Criteria for Admission for full details. Applicants not meeting the required grade point average of 3.0 (“B”) may be recommended to the Graduate Division for provisional admission in exceptional cases, if GRE scores, letters of recommendation, work experience, or other factors indicate unusual promise.

Applicants to the Ph.D. program in Information Studies may enter with the M.L.S. or M.L.I.S. degree, other advanced degree, or directly out of a bachelor’s degree program. If the prior graduate degree does not include coursework equivalent to the core identified for the M.L.I.S. program, the applicant must complete the M.L.I.S. core after admission to the Ph.D. program.

Admissions Guides

Application for admission to the Ph.D. program in Information Studies must be made in compliance with procedures established by the UCLA Graduate Division. Applicants can review the application procedures and prepare an online application by accessing Admissions – Steps for Applying. Statement of purpose, letters of recommendation résumés/CVs, and writing samples must be submitted online. If necessary, forms for ordering official transcripts are available from the Supplementary Materials page on the same site. The name of the Ph.D. program is Information Studies, and the degree code for the doctoral program is 045A.

Step-by-Step Guide to Information Studies PhD Admissions

Application Materials: Checklist

The UCLA Graduate Division accepts only online applications.

  • All of the following items must be uploaded to the appropriate area of the online application:
    o   Statement of purpose
    o   Résumé or CV
    o   Evidence of research and writing. This could be published work, a master’s thesis, or two research papers written in English.
    o   Three letters of recommendation. You must enter the names and other information about your recommenders in the online application.
    o Fellowship application. Review the criteria for each fellowship, and if you are qualified, complete the appropriate section(s).
  • One copy of official transcript from all academic institutions you have attended beyond secondary school. Transcripts must be sent to the Department directly from the institutions or collected in sealed envelopes. Transcripts must be sent to Student Affairs Office, Information Studies, 207 GSE&IS Bldg., Box 951520, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1520.


In addition, International applicants must submit the following:

  • Test Of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or International English Language Testing System (IELTS) scores. These tests are required of all applicants whose native language is not English. You are responsible for arranging to take these examinations and having official scores sent to the Department.
  • Evidence of completion of Departmental entrance requirement (when complete). It is your responsibility to make sure this entrance requirement is met.

Application Materials: Details