No. The program is structured to be completed on a full-time basis and typically takes five years to complete.

Ph.D. programs at the Moore School are full-time and require residency on the Columbia campus. Residency refers to the requirement to attend classes on campus (no distance education) and it is meant to ensure that doctoral students benefit from and contribute to the full spectrum of educational and professional opportunities provided by our graduate faculty.

Accordingly, and given the demanding nature of the program, we strongly recommend that students live within the Columbia metropolitan area, but it is up to the student to decide how far the student is willing to commute every day. Students typically spend most of the day at the school, either in class, working on their graduate assistantship, or conducting research.

All doctoral students complete a rigorous program which emphasizes three main aspects: academic coursework, dissertation preparation, and graduate assistantship. Together, these aspects provide a cohesive process which focuses on academic training, structured time to conduct research (dissertation), and practical mentoring in research and teaching.

All Ph.D. students are required to successfully complete a qualifying exam (typically the end of the first year), a comprehensive exam (typically at the end of the second year), a presentation of the student’s dissertation proposal (typically in the fourth year), and the final defense of the student’s dissertation. Furthermore, all Ph.D. students are expected to teach, as part of their graduate assistantship, one course at the undergraduate level (supervised by their dissertation advisor).

Typically, Ph.D. students take five years to complete the program, starting in the month of August with graduation expected to take place in the month of May of the fifth year.

No. Ph.D. advisors are assigned after the start of the program. At the beginning of the program, each concentration has one Ph.D. Faculty Coordinator who acts as the initial advisor of the student. As the student progresses in the program, a specific long term Ph.D. Academic Advisor is matched to the student.

Typically, the two deadlines are scheduled for Dec. 15 and Jan. 15.

Please visit the admissions requirements page to confirm that such deadlines are accurate for this specific admissions season. Each department has its own admissions committee, which starts to review applications shortly after each deadline.

Given the limited availability of space in the program, all completed applications received by the first deadline receive preferential review. Applications submitted by the second deadline are welcome and receive consideration as per space availability. To be considered by the committee, applications must be fully completed including: required (official or unofficial) transcripts, test scores and letters of recommendation. All applications receive the same consideration for departmental funding package (typical for all P.hD. students), but applications received Dec.16-Jan.15  may not be eligible for specific fellowships made available by the university.

To submit an application, a non-refundable application fee of $58 is required for all applicants. Payment is only available online via electronic check or credit card. Details are available within the online application for admission.

This is a required fee. The Ph.D. program does not have a mechanism available to provide or process application fee waivers.

No, each department has a different admissions schedule; some admitting every year, some admitting every other year.

Typically:

1. Management, Management Science, Marketing: Admit every year.
2. Economics, Accounting, International Business, Finance: Admit every other year.

For specific information on which program is currently admitting, please visit the admissions requirements page. The admissions calendar is updated every year by early August.

Yes, applicants may decide to apply to more than one Ph.D. concentration at a time. Each application is reviewed by a different admissions committee and each application requires a separate application fee.

Students are considered for admission based on previous academic performance, GMAT/GRE scores, statement of career objectives, letters of reference and work experience. The weight given to these individual criteria varies according to the area of concentration (i.e., accounting, marketing, finance, etc.), but in general terms, all departments take a wholistic approach to reviewing all applications. For more information, please visit the "admissions criteria" section of the admission requirements page.

No. However, students who have master's degrees are more competitive for admission.

To earn a Ph.D., a student must complete at least 60 credit hours beyond a bachelor's degree (including 12 hours of dissertation preparation). Applicants who have earned a master’s degree may waive/exempt—pending departmental approval—some credits (up to 6 credits for Ph.D. in Business Administration, up to 12 credits for Ph.D. in Economics).

It depends on which program/concentration you are applying to. Most accept both tests.

No, the GMAT/GRE is a requirement for all applicants. We don’t have a GMAT/GRE waiver option available.

The admissions committee looks at various parts of the application to make a final decision including test scores, letters of recommendation, statement of career objectives and transcripts. For this reason, and giving the holistic approach of the application review, there is no minimum required score. Space availability is competitive and committee expectations for GRE/GMAT scores tend to be on the high percentile range; typically around 60-70% and above.

Given that each program has a different admissions committee, that each program admits a small amount of applicants (typically two or three), that some programs admit only every other year, and that some applicants take the GRE and some the GMAT, we believe that providing a historical GMAT/GRE average of successful applicants is not statistically relevant and may not provide a realistic and fair benchmark for the applicant. For this reason, rather than providing a historical average, we provide a general expected percentile (around the 60-70% and above) and emphasize the fact that all committees take a holistic approach to reviewing the application; hence taking all aspects into consideration.

Yes.

For more details, refer to Admissions Requirements, under the Admissions Criteria section, English Proficiency Test (TOEFL, IELTS or PTE Academic) sub-section.

If you are required to take a language proficiency test (visit the "admissions criteria" section of the admission requirements page for more information), the minimum required scores are as follows:

To have official test scores sent to us directly by the test administrator, use the following institutional/program codes:

The admissions committee looks at various parts of the application to make a final decision including test scores, letters of recommendation, statement of career objectives and transcripts. For this reason, and giving the holistic approach of the application review, there is no minimum required GPA.

Space availability is competitive and high academic performance is expected, hence committee expectations for GPA tend to be on the high range; typically, in the range of 3.5 to 4.0. Having said that, applicants with under a 3.5 GPA from a U.S. institution are still considered for admissions into the program based on a holistic review of all aspects of the application.

Yes.

Unofficial documents and score reports may be uploaded for application review consideration. If admitted to the program, the student is required to provide official documents before the end of the first semester of enrollment.

Yes.

The application asks that you enter the information (i.e. name, email) of your recommenders. The system will then send an email asking them to complete and upload their recommendation letter. You may submit the application even if they have not yet submitted their letters. Please keep in mind that the application will not be considered as complete until the letters are uploaded. 

The application system will show when your application is complete. Once you reach the complete status, it will be available for review by the corresponding admissions review committee. Only completed applications are sent to the committee for review. For more details on the review process, please refer to Admissions Process section of the Admissions Requirements page.

Our stipends are nationally competitive and vary by department. Detailed information regarding the financial package level is outlined in the admission letter for each accepted candidate. Feel free to contact the program director for more information.

Yes.

With satisfactory academic progress, students can expect to receive a 100 percent tuition waiver for five years. For more detailed information, please review the "Funding Package" section on the Tuition and Fees page.

The university requires for all students to purchase health insurance coverage. All Moore School P.hD. students receive yearly university-sponsored health insurance policy coverage (policy cost covered by the Ph.D. program) for up to five years. Students who chose to use their own insurance policy/provider may do so by opting out of the university’s requirement, but the Ph.D. program only covers the cost of the university-sponsored insurance program, not any other insurance policy.

The Ph.D. program covers the cost of university-sponsored insurance only for the individual student. A spouse and/or child can be covered under the university-sponsored insurance at an additional cost paid by the student.

Yes. All financial aid awards decisions are made on a merit basis.

Yes.

Students receiving graduate assistantships are issued an I-20 form without any additional financial certification needed.