General Requirements for Admission
- A bachelor’s or master’s degree in atmospheric science, meteorology, physics, mathematics, computer science, or engineering.
- A class rank placing you in the upper 25%.
Pre-application Process
The pre-application constitutes our initial screening of applicants. Review of pre-applications normally begins in late November, though we continue to accept and review pre-applications after that date. From the pool of pre-applications received up to that point, we make a preliminary assessment of whom we wish to obtain a full application from. At that time, we determine which faculty have need for new graduate students and who among the application pool are the best fits. We pay the application fee for those asked to provide the full application.
Applicants can submit a pre-application online at the Graduate College website. Pre-applications should include a resume, statement of purpose, and transcripts.
Submit the pre-application materials online (priority will be given to pre-applications received by January 15).
International Applicants
Potential applicants should also review the Graduate Student Handbook and the requirements for the meteorology undergraduate (BS) degree in the ISU Catalog to determine if qualifications for graduate school are satisfied.
Applicants from China, India, and Taiwan
Because of the large number of applications received from China, India, and Taiwan, specific minimum guidelines for applicants from those countries are given below:
- China: A 4-year bachelor’s degree with a cumulative grade point average of 80% or higher.
- India: A 4-year bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree with a First Division degree classification.
- Taiwan: A 4-year bachelor’s degree with a cumulative grade average of 75% or higher or 3.0 based on the 4.0 scale.
Applicants can apply directly online at the Graduate College website.
Submit the application materials online (priority will be given to pre-applications received by January 15):
- Online application
- Official TOEFL test results (English proficiency scores required by the Graduate College are 550 (PBT), 79 (iBT), IELTS (6.5)
- Official academic transcripts
- Application fee
- Online – 3 letters of recommendation (2 of the 3 letters should be from persons in your major field
- Upload additional documents: Resume, list of courses not on official transcripts
NOTE: Your application will not be reviewed without a TOEFL score.
Contact:
Meteorology Graduate Office
1126L Agronomy Hall
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-1010
meteorologygraduateprograms@iastate.edu
Applications will be routed among the Meteorology faculty for review and consideration annually in late January or early February after all required application materials have been received. Evaluations for admission and assistantships are made within the department.
Research Assistantships
Individual faculty members in the department who are responsible for a grant or a contract can offer assistantships. Such assistantship offers to entering students tend to be quite limited and are made only after a faculty member has agreed to serve as the applicant’s major professor.