Admissions and Funding

The deadline for receipt of a complete application is December 1.

• All materials, including letters of recommendation, must be received by December 1
   
• Recommenders will receive an email from the university approximately 1-3 days after submission of the online application.
   
• We strongly encourage applicants to submit their online application a week or more before the December 1 deadline to allow recommenders ample time to submit their letters.

Students must apply online and submit all required materials electronically through the Office of Graduate Admissions.  

Within three days after you submit the online application, your recommenders will receive an email from the university with instructions for uploading their letters by the December 1 deadline.

• Curriculum Vitae
   
• Academic writing sample 
   
  • A writing sample that demonstrates your critical thinking skills, writing abilities, and potential for success in a rigorous doctoral program
     
  • We recommend that those who have completed an undergraduate honors thesis or master's thesis submit this document as the writing sample
     

• Research Statement (2 pages max)

  Please describe the following:

  • Sociological and interdisciplinary research interests – when and how they developed; you can list topics, methods, general research questions, including avenues that you would like to explore as you develop more specific interests.
  • Research experience, research classes and training, and/or other academic or professional experiences relevant to your ability to succeed in a Sociology Ph.D. program.
  • Potential research interests (broadly) for your MA thesis and PhD. dissertation at Ohio State and potential faculty in the Sociology Department at Ohio State who may overlap with your interests.
  • Career objectives – whether you are seeking a career in academia (teaching and/or research), a non-academic research organization, something else, or undecided.

   

• Personal Statement (2 pages max)

  Please describe the following:

  • Academic and personal experiences that inform your decision to pursue a PhD. in Sociology.
  • If relevant, you may also note any special challenges or circumstances you have faced in pursuing your education.
  • Optional: A description of one more situation or activity in which you demonstrated persistence and/or the ability to overcome adversity.
  • Optional: A brief description of a situation or activity in which you demonstrated leadership and/or commitment to your community.
     
• Three (3) letters of recommendation
   
  • You will be asked to provide contact information for three recommenders when completing your online application. 
     
• English-language proficiency scores
   
  • The university requires official TOEFL, Duolingo or IELTS Academic test scores from applicants who meet any of the following criteria: 
     
    1. Native language is not English
        
    2.  Educated primarily outside of the U.S.
        
    3. OR have held U.S. permanent resident, asylee or refugee status for less than one year from the first term of enrollment.
        
    4. Scores must be no more than 5 years old and must be submitted directly from the testing agency (ETS or IELTS) by your application deadline using the Ohio State University Code: 1592
        
• Transcripts
   
  • Use the "Upload Transcript" button to send copies (front and back) of official transcripts from ALL institutions where college credit was earned--even if you attended while in high school.
     
  • International credentials should include certified educational records and degree certificates or diplomas in the original language with English translations
     
  • If you are admitted to the university as a graduate student, you will be required to submit final official transcripts
     
  • Please do not send official paper transcripts to the Graduate and Professional Admissions Office unless specifically requested by our office
     
  • Transcripts take 2-4 weeks to process once received
     
  • Students are responsible for requesting official transcripts from their institutions in time to allow Ohio State to process them before the deadline
     
• Optional
   
  • The submission of GRE scores is not required
     
  • Those who choose to submit GRE scores should ensure that they are no more than five years old and are submitted to the Ohio State Office of Graduate Admissions using the Ohio State University Code: 1592.  

As a member of the Big Ten Academic Alliance, Ohio State participates in the FreeApp Fee Waiver Program.  For information on the program and to see if you are eligible, go to the Big 10 Academic Alliance web site.

Ohio State works with a variety of other programs that provide fee waivers to applicants as well as several of it's own programs.

Please visit consult Graduate and Professional Admissions for the full list of programs.

Please note: Per Graduate School policy, international applicants are not eligible for application fee waivers.

Our graduate studies faculty use all application materials to evaluate the following:

(1) Test scores and GPA meet minimum requirements, including required minimum of 3.0 or higher in most recent academic program, TOEFL score of 100 or higher, GRE scores if submitted, especially a strong score on the quantitative component. Applicants who meet higher GPA eligibility requirements for fellowships may be given higher priority.

(2) Strength of preparation for graduate studies in sociology, as indicated by academic rigor of undergraduate program, strong performance in previous sociology and/or research methods courses, ability to understand and engage with challenging concepts, comprehension of sociological concepts.

(3) Level of research experience as indicated by record of scholarship (publications, presentations, grants received, etc.) or previous experience with social science research (e.g., through collaboration with faculty members, participation in undergraduate research programs, the completion of undergraduate theses, or other relevant experiences).We recognize that some applicants may have had limited opportunities to engage in research, and we consider the availability of opportunities in evaluating applications.

(4) Applicant contribution to creating a PhD program that includes students with a variety of personal experiences (including applicants who have encountered special challenges in pursuing their education and/or has faced structural barriers) and approaches to sociological research

(5) Fit between the applicant’s research interests and our department strengths and opportunities for growth. We try to admit students for whom our faculty can provide informed and thoughtful mentorship across a wide variety of subareas of sociology. 

If you have questions about your online application, please contact the Office of Graduate Admissions. Phone: (614) 292-9444 or email: gradadmissions@osu.edu.

If you have questions about our application process or materials, please contact the Department of Sociology Graduate Studies Coordinator, Travis Shank at shank.65@osu.edu.

All graduate students admitted to our program are guaranteed financial support for up to six years of graduate study. 

This financial support package includes tuition, most student fees, a monthly stipend, and 100% of OSU's student health insurance. 

Financial support for graduate students comes through a combination of university fellowships and graduate assistantships. Fellowships have no work requirements, while graduate associate positions may be either teaching (GTA) or research (GRA) assistantships.

• Research assistants work with faculty members in sociology or in other departments on faculty research projects.
• Research assistant responsibilities may include data collection and management, analysis of data, writing and presentation of results, or other tasks that contribute to ongoing projects.
• Teaching assistants work with faculty to support large undergraduate courses, typically by grading or by leading small group lab or section meetings. More advanced student graduate teaching assistants may serve as independent instructors.

Funding beyond the sixth year is not guaranteed but may be available. The stipend levels for fellowships and associateships are set by the university and can be found here.

In addition to the primary support through stipends, the department also provides travel funds for graduate students to present papers at professional meetings annually and other professional development funds to support graduate research and workshop attendance.

OSU’s Graduate School offers an array of additional opportunities for securing additional research and travel funds.

Additional financial support for graduate students in sociology comes from a variety of other sources, both inside and outside the University.

In recent years, our advanced graduate students have competed successfully in the university’s Presidential Fellowship for Dissertation Research. 

Extramural support is also common. Current and past graduate students have won prestigious support from programs such as the National Science Foundation, Fulbright Program, National Institutes of Health, and American Sociological Association.