Information (PHD) at The University of Arizona Global

Applicants must meet Graduate College admission requirements and apply to the Graduate College.

Admission to the doctoral program is competitive and based on both the applicant's abilities and faculty interest and expertise in the student's proposed area of study. School of Information may deny entry to an otherwise qualified applicant if there is insufficient faculty intellectual overlap for working with that applicant.

• Admission to the doctoral program is possible with or without a master's degree.
• All applicants must possess an undergraduate degree that is comparable to an undergraduate degree offered by the University of Arizona.

Admission to any graduate program at the University of Arizona is the responsibility of the Graduate College. The School of Information and other schools and departments with graduate programs make recommendations to the Graduate College. Please note that most schools and departments, including School of Information, prefer to set a standard for admission that is higher than the absolute minimum levels for admission to the Graduate College.

The following are guidelines. The faculty consider the overall package when making candidate evaluations:

• An undergraduate or graduate academic record that is indicative of significant achievement. This is normally a GPA of a minimum of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale.
• A minimum of three letters of recommendation that clearly speak to the applicant's promise as a graduate student and as a doctoral student.
• A résumé indicating both employment and educational experience to date.
• A statement of purpose clearly outlining why he/she is applying to this particular program and what he or she considers the outcome of doctoral study will be. Applicants need not, at this point, indicate potential dissertation topics, but an indication of the area(s) in which they propose to study would be very helpful to the faculty.
• A completed set of application forms for the Graduate College and for the School.
• An interview, on campus or by phone, with selected members of the faculty.

Admissions Procedures

Admission to the doctoral program normally occurs in the fall semester, with a deadline of January 2.

The Graduate Committee makes recommendations to the faculty, who then vote for admission or rejection with a simple majority prevailing.  Faculty expertise and interest in the student's area of study are major factors in the admission decision.

Please complete this online application for admission to the Graduate College with a $85 application fee.  As part of the online application, you are required to submit the following materials.  

• Upload unofficial transcripts from ALL higher education institutions attended in ‘Supplemental Questions' section.  Undergraduate preparatory courses should include basic principles of mathematics, probability and statistics, and programming methodology
• Upload unofficial TOEFL scores (international students only)
• Upload a current resumé or curriculum vitae (CV) in the ‘Supplemental Questions' section
• Write a 750-1000 word statement of pupose and interest in the program 
• Provide email addresses and contact information for three recommenders in the ‘Letters of Recommendation' section

Please email official e-Transcripts to [email protected] directly from the institution or mail one official transcript to the following address (do not send to the Graduate College).  Official transcripts from ALL higher education institutions attended are required.

School of Information
The University of Arizona
Harvill Room 409
1103 E. 2nd St.
Tucson, AZ 85721

If an international applicant, please see minimum language test requirements for Graduate College admissions.  Please note: **International Applicants: Per immigration regulations, students admitted to a graduate program must enroll in a total of 9 units, of which 6 of those units must be courses taught in-person and only 3 online units may be used toward full-time enrollment. For questions regarding enrollment, please contact the School of Information ([email protected]) for assistance.

The School of Information views as a priority funding PhD students in their first three years of study.  Opportunities exist within the School and on campus for graduate assistantships, scholarships and other forms of support.

Ph.D. Student Travel Grants

To quality, the student need to have had an active role in a grant proposal development or have applied for support money from other internal/external sources (e.g., SBSRI, Confluence, NSF Dissertation Improvement, see Anthropology for examples: http://sociology.arizona.edu/graduate/grants-external) this year before applying for this SI travel fund. Only doctoral students with annual reports files in year two or beyond and in good standing qualify.The travel grant may be spent only on university allowable travel and conference expenses. You must demonstrate that you are a presenter at the event. No funds are provided to simply attend conferences as a spectator. In your application, a description of the qualifying funding proposal and your proposed research presentation clarifying your role on the project should be included. Description of your participation in the event and outcomes must be included in your annual review materials. 

Dissertation Improvement Grants

To qualify, the student must have filed annual reports in year two and beyond and be in good standing. In addition, the student must have completed comprehensive exams or have them scheduled for the very near future. The activities and expenditures for this support must be after comprehensive examinations are successfully completed. The work must have been approved by your committee as being related to your dissertation or preparation of the dissertation proposal. This small fund for research support can be used for such purchase as equipment needed for gathering pilot data, subject/participant remuneration, fees associated with processing data gathered for the dissertation-related project. All IRB and other requirements for ethical research must be met. Funds may not be used to report findings but could be used to travel to conferences or meetings if that travel is to gather dissertation related data. In principle, one SI dissertation improvement grant is made per dissertation this year. Students must have applied for but not necessarily received a grant in the past year including for example university dissertation improvement grants. Students may resubmit dissertation improvement proposals for this SI funding if it is for the same activity for which you are requesting funding.  You may only legally receive funding for the same expense once.  There should be acknowledgement of the SI Dissertation improvement grant funds in the dissertation and any publication resulted from the dissertation funding. 

Some purchases may be made by the business office to avoid the need for reimbursement. All other expenses may need to be reimbursements based on receipts and on University regulations. All equipment and software remains the property of the School of Information and the University.

Funding Rates for this policy period FY 2015-2016: $500 Maximum

Your application for the funds will be reviewed by the graduate committee. To apply, please send your CV, a 500 word abstract on your research, including statements that you meet each of the qualication requirement, and a short description and predicted costs for what you need.  The business office: Hong Cui, Director of Graduate Studies, [email protected]

Admission Deadline

Fall Semester only: January 2

International applicants may be considered for conditional admission to this program at the department's discretion.