Deadlines and Procedures

Deadlines

Fall admission:
Domestic application deadline: December 1
International application deadline: December 1

Your application must be submitted by the deadline, December 1, for admission in the fall semester.

Please note, while the department does accept late application materials it is in the applicant’s best interests to submit all application materials as soon as possible.  If ALL Letters of Recommendation have not been provided within 10 days after the application deadline, the application will be automatically withdrawn by the office of admissions.

Procedures

An applicant for admission must present complete application materials that include:

  • The graduate application (online)
  • For review and decision purposes you are required to upload an unofficial copy of your transcript(s) in the online application (see more information below).
  • Three letters of recommendation (submitted online or mailed to the department).  If you would like to add additional letters, please contact atocgrad@colorado.edu.  If ALL Letters of Recommendation have not been provided within 10 days after the application deadline, the application will be automatically withdrawn by the office of admissions. See more information below.
  • A personal statement of academic interests 
  • $60 non-refundable application fee for domestic applicants or $80 non-refundable application fee for international applicants

Personal statements should be one to two pages in length and describe the following: 

  1. Motivation for applying to graduate school;

  2. Research experience or important class projects (which do not need to be in atmospheric or oceanic sciences), if available; 
  3. Other job experience or experience that helps us understand your leadership skills or qualifications relevant for graduate school;

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  5. If known, please also describe your ATOC-specific research interests, including faculty members or scientists with whom you would like to work. We recognize that not everyone knows at this point what specific field of interest they will join, but we do want to understand your motivation for studying atmospheric and oceanic sciences. 

If known, please also describe your specific field of interest, including faculty members or scientists with whom you would like to work. The personal statement will be evaluated not only for content, but also to gauge writing ability.

Answers to frequently asked questions regarding the application process can be found here.

How to submit letters of recommendation

Applicants can request letters of recommendation well before they submit their full application.  The applicant simply needs to provide the name and email of the recommender(s) on the online application, and hit the 'send to recommender' button. The email will be immediately sent, and links them directly to the online recommendation form. They simply fill it out and submit the form online, along with their letter. We will receive it automatically, and the applicant will be notified by email that we have received the recommendation. The recommender will receive an email confirmation as well after they submit.

How to submit transcripts

For review and decision purposes you are required to upload an unofficial copy of your transcript(s) in the online application. We require one copy of the scanned transcript from each undergraduate and graduate institution that you attended. This includes community colleges, summer sessions, and extension programs. While credits from one institution may appear on the transcript of a second institution, unofficial transcripts must be submitted from each institution, regardless of the length of attendance, and whether or not courses were completed.  Failure to list and submit transcripts from all institutions previously attended is considered to be a violation of academic ethics and may result in the cancellation of your admission or dismissal from the university.

ONLY after you are recommended for admission will you need to provide official transcripts. Click here for Instructions for Uploading Unofficial Transcripts to Your Application.