All requirements for admission to the Graduate School at Southern Illinois University Carbondale must be met. All applicants must take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Other factors will also be considered including professional and academic accomplishments, examples of professional work, awards and honors, graduate examination scores or evidence of scholarship such as research papers.

Generally, applicants must have a grade point average of at least 3.0 (4.0 = A) for their last two years of undergraduate work. Students whose preparation is deemed lacking in certain areas may be required to take undergraduate courses to attain competency. These will not be counted toward the M.S. degree.
International students must take the TOEFL and score at least 550 (paper score) or 80 (Internet score) or have an IELTS score of 6.5 to be admitted.