Regular admission to the Graduate School and the Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences requires a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale, three letters of recommendation, official transcripts, and a one- to two-page statement of interests and objectives. Admission to the graduate program is contingent upon the willingness of a geography faculty member to serve as the student’s advisor. In some cases, applicants with less than a 3.0 grade point average may be admitted to the M.S. program on a probationary basis.

Students who are in the process of completing a Master's degree may apply to our Ph.D. program. Note, however, that Ph.D. students who have not completed the Master’s degree by the end of their first semester in the Ph.D. program are subject to dismissal.

Contacting a possible advisor before applying is not required, but a very good idea. This is especially true for prospective doctoral students and those applicants pursuing a graduate research assistantship. If you share your research ideas with a faculty member before applying, they can assess overlap with their interests and expertise, give useful feedback, and consider you for their funded projects.

The Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences aims to offer a small number of Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA) to new applicants every fall semester. These assistantships are offered on a competitive basis and consist of a tuition waiver and stipend. The department graduate admissions committee ranks all admitted applicants on perceived academic strength and offers assistantships to the top candidates.

In addition, individual faculty may offer Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA) to admitted candidates for assistance with funded projects. Depending on the project, such assistantships can also consist of a tuition waiver and a stipend.

All applications must be submitted through the Graduate School at Kansas State University. Visit the Graduate School's Applying for Graduate School page to get started.

Please consult the Graduate School at Kansas State University for current application deadlines. The Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences strictly adheres to these dates and does not impose earlier deadlines. Note that deadlines are usually earlier for international applicants to allow time for the additional administration involved.

Unfortunately, the fee cannot be waived, even though we are aware of the financial difficulties that this imposes on some candidates. The Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences is not the recipient of the application fee and we cannot waive it. In exceptional cases, individual faculty members may be able to pay for the application fee for applicants with whom they have made detailed plans for research.

No, the Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences does not require applicants to provide GRE test results.