What are the Admission requirements, and what is the application process?
When is the application deadline?
The application deadline is December 1 for the following Fall. Applications are accepted for matriculation in the Fall quarter only.
Application reviews begin in December and selected applicants are invited to UCLA for a personal interview in early February. The interview consists of meetings with IDP faculty and students, and an opportunity to visit the campus and surrounding community. Based on the results of the personal interview, the Admissions Committee generally makes its admission offers. Ethnic, gender and cultural diversity are both a strength and a priority at UCLA. Applicants who will increase and strengthen our diversity are encouraged to apply.
May I apply for the Masters program?
No. The program admits only applicants whose educational objective is the Ph.D. degree.
Do I need to take the GRE General Exam and subject exams?
You do NOT need to take a GRE subject exam, only the General Exam.
What if my GRE or TOEFL scores won’t be available by December 1?
Applicants should take the general GRE and TOEFL by December. Request ETS to send official GRE scores to University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA): institutional code 4837 and department code 0224 (Biological Sciences – Other); TOEFL code is 30 (Other Biological Sciences). You may submit these scores until January 1. If you have taken the test, but scores will not be available by that date, please contact
BioinformaticsPhD@lifesci.ucla.edu.
Is financial support provided?
During their first academic (nine-month) year in the doctoral program, admitted students receive a stipend and payment of tuition and Non-Resident Supplemental Tuition (as appropriate) through the IDP. Beyond the first year, financial support is based on a 12-month year, is provided by the research mentor, and may be derived from various combinations of sources, such as : stipend from Programmatic, University, or Extramural fellowships, or from institutional or individual training grants; salary from academic apprentice employment, such as Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) appointments and/or Teaching Assistantships. Amounts coming from any of these sources are considered to fulfill the research mentor’s contribution to the annual level of graduate financial support. International students: if you have a fellowship from your country of citizenship, we ask that you provide advance official documentation that indicates the source, amount and duration of the fellowship support.
Where do I describe my research experience?
In the Statement of Purpose under the section titled ‘Pertinent Work Experience.’
My transcripts are in a language other than English. What should I do?
Unless academic records and diplomas are routinely issued in English by the institution, the official records in their original language must be submitted, along with an authorized, complete, and exact English translation.
All official academic records must show the dates of enrollment; the subjects or courses taken, together with the units of credit or time allotted to each subject and, if rank is determined, rank in the total class or group. The records must also include a complete description of the institution’s grading scale or other standard of evaluation. Maximum and minimum marks and the steps between them must be indicated.
Is there an undergraduate bioinformatics program at UCLA?
Undergraduate students interested in bioinformatics are strongly encouraged to consider the Computational and Systems Biology program at UCLA. This program provides ideal preparation for either this graduate program or many other graduate bioinformatics programs. Students in other major programs at UCLA should consider the Bioinformatics Minor program which is available to all students at UCLA.
I am a senior in college and will graduate next June, but the application deadline is Dec 1. Should I wait to apply?
If you are a university/college senior, do not wait for senior-year grades before submitting your application and transcript. Many applicants still have work in progress at the time of the application deadline; submit your most recent transcript.
I still have some questions. . . .
Please read carefully both this page and the program’s Admissions page Admissions page.
If you still have questions, please contact BioinformaticsPhD@lifesci.ucla.edu.