QUESTIONS?  Contact Melanie Kelley at mkkell5@email.uky.edu or 859-257-9640 (1-800-315-7792)

 

Application Information
Admission to the doctoral programs in psychology at the University of Kentucky is very competitive. We average about 2,000 total inquiries concerning admission to our programs each year and receive about 400 completed applications for consideration.

The Department of Psychology adheres to University policy and public law prohibiting unfair discrimination on the basis of age, ethnic classification, handicap, race, sex, or veteran status in the provision of educational or employment opportunities and benefits. The Department of Psychology is committed to facilitating the recruitment and training of members of groups historically deprived of equal educational and professional opportunity.

Graduate School Admission Requirements

• Applicants must hold a baccalaureate degree from a fully accredited college or university. An overall undergraduate grade-point average of 2.75 (3.0 on all graduate work) is required by The Graduate School.
• Applicants must submit official scores on the verbal, quantitative and analytical portions of the Graduate Record Examination.
• Applicants must have one official transcript sent by each institution of higher learning previously attended. All transcripts must be sent to The Graduate School and must bear the Registrar's signature and/or official seal of the issuing institution.
• The University of Kentucky requires a minimum score of 550 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) for all applicants whose native language is not English.
• Applicants, particularly those outside the U.S., should consult the Graduate School Bulletin for additional details.

Departmental Admission Requirements
Unless certain courses are included in the applicant's background he/she may be requested to fulfill these requirements during his/her first year of study. The courses are:

• One course in psychological statistics
• One course in either:
            o general experimentation
            o sensation-perception
            o learning
            o animal behavior
            o cognition
• One course in either:
            o child
            o personality
            o abnormal
            o testing
            o social psychology

Application Procedure
The application procedure is a time-consuming process and should be initiated as early as possible. Before any formal action can be taken, all required materials must be received by the Graduate School. It usually takes several weeks for all the application materials to be received; therefore, forwarding unofficial copies of transcripts and GRE scores allows us to begin evaluating files more quickly.

Please note that you need approval from both the Graduate School and the Department of Psychology before you can be admitted to the University; thus it is very important to follow the instructions about where to send materials.

To receive full consideration for Fall 2010 admission, all application materials must be on file in the Department of Psychology by the following deadlines:
Clinical Applications are due December 18, 2009
Experimental Applications (Animal Learning, Cognitive Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Behavioral Neuroscience and Psychopharmacology, Social Psychology) are due January 15, 2010

If you would like notification of the completion of your file, send a self-addressed, stamped postcard to the Department. Invitations to visit the Department and/or offers of admission are usually made in writing or by telephone during February and March. Please contact Melanie Kelley at 859-257-9640 or 800-315-7792 or mkkell5@email.uky.edu with any questions or concerns.

Please note that the University of Kentucky post office is closed from Christmas Eve through New Year's Day. Mail will not be delivered during this time.

Application Checklist

Send to the Department of Psychology:

• Departmental application. You can download the application form from the Forms Page at our web site.
• A photocopy of GRE scores. It is recommended that you send a photocopy of your scores to the department in order to activate your file at the earliest date. The advanced test for psychology is not required but may be submitted.
• Autobiographical Statement. This statement should describe your personal interests, expectations and goals. It should answer the following questions: What can you see yourself doing in ten years from now? What issues and content areas do you find exciting? What experiences have led you to this orientation? What, if any, past research experience have you had? What kind of research would you like to pursue in graduate school?
• 3 letters of recommendation. Recommenders should be faculty members or psychologists who know you well. No waiver form is required. We do not use a standardized form for recommendation letters.
• A photocopy of transcripts. One copy of all college transcripts should be sent to the department. Do not send photocopies to the Graduate School.

In order to minimize confusion and time composing an applicant's complete file, please send all materials listed above directly to us at the following address:

         Office of Research and Graduate Studies
          Department of Psychology
          106-B Kastle Hall
          University of Kentucky
          Lexington, KY 40506-0044 

Send to The Graduate School:

• Graduate School application. Complete the form titled "The University of Kentucky Graduate School Application for Admission," which can be downloaded or completed online here.
• Application fee. The fee is $50 for domestic applicants and $65 for international applicants. A check or money order made payable to "The University of Kentucky" should accompany the completed Graduate School application and be sent to the address below. You can also pay the fee online with a debit or credit card at www.research.uky.edu/gs/gsapplication.html.
• Official GRE scores. Arrange to have the Educational Testing Service send one official copy of your Graduate Record Examination scores to the Graduate School. Our institution code is 1837, and our department code is 2016. No photocopies will be accepted by the Graduate School.
• Official transcript. Send one official transcript directly to the Graduate School to activate your file. Be sure the transcript is sent directly from the University. No student copies will be accepted.

      The Graduate School
      University of Kentucky
      106 Gillis Building
      Lexington, KY 40506-0033 

Forms:

• Application
• Application Checklist

This information is all listed online at www.research.uky.edu/gs/gsapplication.html