How to Apply

UNIVERSITY ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS

• Copies of transcripts from each college or university attended (other than Portland State)
• Proof of English Language Proficiency

DEPARTMENT REQUIREMENTS

• 500-word personal statement
• Letters of recommendation
• GRE scores (required only if applying to the Industrial/Organizational or Quantitative areas)
• CV
• Writing sample (optional)

INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

• Please visit the International Graduate Admissions webpage for specific requirements

Admission to graduate study is granted on the basis of evidence of preparedness to undertake advanced work and the probability of successful completion of the degree.  

Admitted students must have:

• B.A. or B.S. degree from a regionally accredited institution (may be in progress at the time of application, but must be completed before admission can be finalized)
• Preparation in research methods, statistics, and experimental psychology or equivalent
• At least a 3.25 undergraduate GPA, with a mean of approximately 3.80 (this is a typical GPA and not a requirement)
• Completed the GRE and scored in the 70-80th percentile (or above) in Verbal, 60-70th percentile (or above) in Quantitative, and 4.5 or above on the Analytical Writing section (this is a typical GRE range and not a requirement)

We offer fives areas of emphasis:

• Applied Developmental
• Applied Quantitative
• Applied Social
• Community
• Industrial/Organizational

When applying to the program you will need to choose one of these areas as your primary interest. Although admitted students often work with more than one faculty member, prospective students are selected and recruited to work with one primary advisor. Thus, the match between the applicant’s professional/research interests and those of the primary advisor are strongly weighted in the application process.

Review the research conducted by our faculty members

If you are ready to start your graduate application, login or create a new account in the application portal. Use this same link to access an existing application and to check your admission status.

• Uploaded scans of official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended. You must scan an official transcript with a watermark or seal.
• Please note that the Graduate School will need a scan of the back of the transcript as well as the front; they want to see the 'key' of abbreviations and methods for calculating GPA.  
• We must see uploads for all schools attended, even if the credits earned were transferred to another school at a later date.

GRE scores are only required if applying to the Industrial/Organizational* or Quantitative areas of the program.

• Submit via testing agency using PSU's School Code:
  • Portland State Code: 4610
  • Psychology Department Code; 2016
• You will be asked to enter your scores into your application and upload your score report at the time you complete your application.

*If you have a 3.5 GPA or above and have received at least an A- in Research Methods and Statistics courses, you are not required to provide GRE documentation when applying to the Industrial/Organizational area; it is optional. However, the General GRE is required for any applicant who has 1) an overall GPA of less than 3.5, or 2) a grade of less than A- in Research Methods courses, or 3) a grade of less than A- in Statistics courses in their undergraduate degree program or a relevant master's program. If one or more of these three situations applies to you, please send official GRE scores to PSU with the rest of your application materials.  International students with GPAs not on the 4.0 scale or course grades not on the A-F scale are encouraged to contact the Department of Psychology (gradapps@pdx.edu) for additional guidance on whether they should submit GRE scores. All applicants should also address any significant experience and/or training with writing and methods (i.e., statistics, research design, measurement) in their personal statement.

Proof of English proficiency is required by submitting minimum required official scores on the International Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the International English Language Testing System-Academic (IELTS) exam, or the Pearson Test of English-Academic (PTE) less than two years old at time of matriculation.

• A 500-word statement of academic and professional goals, with a focus on your background, research interests, as well as your interest in working with particular faculty in the Psychology Department.
• Please explain your reasons for choosing to undertake graduate work in Psychology, your areas of interest, and why you have chosen to apply to Portland State. You will be asked to upload your personal statement in one of the following supported file types: PDF, JPG, PNG, GIF, or TIF.

• A minimum of three (3) letters of recommendation, as well as rating forms, is required. These should come from individuals knowledgeable about the applicant’s abilities (preferably faculty members at colleges or universities attended).
• Upon entering the name and email address of each recommender you choose, that person will be sent instructions for providing a letter of recommendation and rating form.
• Please make sure that all recommendations are submitted before midnight December 15; however, do not delay submitting your application until all recommendations have been received.

Timeline

• In January or early February, the Graduate Committee meets to review and discuss applications. Beginning March 1, graduate advisors may be in contact with applicants.
• All applicants will be notified of application status by April 15.

Reapplying to Program

• Unsuccessful applicants can reapply to the program, but be advised that an application that is not successful in one year is not likely to be successful during the next application cycle without some changes. 
• In general, we do not provide formal feedback to unsuccessful applicants.