Admission Criteria
In addition to meeting the requirements listed on the Graduate Division site, the minimum entrance requirements are as follows:
- Students typically have a baccalaureate major in a biological science or training equivalent to that given in the Plant Science curriculum of the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences . Majors in the physical sciences are welcomed, but students must be prepared to augment their undergraduate preparation with courses in the biological sciences.
- The GRE is no longer required for admission.
- All candidates for the M.S. or the Ph.D. degree should have good basic preparation in chemistry and biology. It is common for students to have completed courses in biochemistry, organic chemistry, cell and molecular biology, elementary college mathematics, general physics, general botany, microbiology, statistics, genetics, plant physiology, mycology, and plant pathology.
This list is intended to represent the minimum background required for students wishing to pursue a graduate degree in Plant Pathology. Additional course work and laboratory experience in microbiology, biochemistry or genetics is highly desirable. However, upon the recommendation of the graduate advisory committee, occasionally a student may be admitted into the graduate program with one or more course work deficiencies; such students must satisfy these course work deficiencies usually within the first and no later than within the second year of graduate study.
Deadlines & How to Apply
The Plant Pathology Program only accepts application for the Fall Quarter. The priority deadline for early consideration and full fellowships for PhD students is December 1st. After January 5th, applications are considered on a rolling basis depending on funding availability.
Please apply online through the Online Application for Graduation Admission. For more detailed information about the application process for admission and financial aid please go to the UC Riverside Graduate Division site. Note: MS students are self-funded.
For Domestic Applicants only: Domestic eligible applicants can apply for an application fee waiver. Further information on this can be found here.
Please attach your unofficial transcripts to your application. If admitted you will be asked to send official transcripts to Graduate Division.
The GRE is no longer required for admission.
The UCR institution code for the GRE and TOEFL is 4839.
The Plant Pathology GRE code is 0215. The TOEFL code is 07.
Financial Support
Prospective Plant Pathology graduate students are encouraged to apply as early as possible for admission to the Fall quarter. The department does not accept applications for the Winter or Spring quarters. Financial fellowships, graduate student research and teaching assistant positions are only available to PhD students; MS students are completely self-funded.
To be considered for financial assistance for your graduate training in the Plant Pathology, your PhD application must be completed by December 4th. The Plant Pathology Admissions Committee recommends PhD applicants for the competitive fellowships, tuition grants, and fee grants that are supported by the UC Riverside Graduate Division.
Plant Pathology PhD graduate students are supported in part by fellowships and grants from the UC Riverside Graduate Division. In addition, financial assistance for Plant Pathology students also includes appointments as teaching assistants or graduate student researchers. Most often, the Plant Pathology Graduate Program, Graduate Division, and a Plant Pathology faculty mentor will partner their funds to offer incoming students multi-year financial packages. The costs of graduate education and specifics about many aspects of financial aid can be found at the UC Riverside Graduate Division website on Financial Support.
Students are encouraged to take independent steps to find alternative sources of funding. Domestic students can find information about alternative funding sources through the UC Riverside Graduate Division. Many of the competitive national fellowships must be submitted during the first few months of graduate school. Please plan ahead. Acquiring a competitive national fellowship is a real sign of achievement.