How to Apply

The College of Engineering and Applied Science at CU Boulder is once again offering a program that allows qualifying PhD applicants to waive their application fees until Nov. 15, 2024

The program is intended to support our college's strategic vision to become a premier destination for U.S. graduate students. The minimum requirements are:

• Applicant must be a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident
• Applicant must be applying for a PhD program in the College of Engineering and Applied Science.
• Applicant must be applying to enroll in fall 2025
• Applicant must have at least a 3.4 GPA from their accredited undergraduate institution.
• Applicant must meet all department requirements for their PhD programs
• Application must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. MST on Nov. 15, 2024.

The offer will be applied automatically to qualifying students in the application portal; no code is needed.

Questions may be directed to Meredith Canode, senior director of graduate programs, at meredith.canode@colorado.edu.

In addition, the Graduate School offers application fee waivers for participants in the following programs.

• AmeriCorps (currently serving)
• Black in AI (domestic/permanent resident applicants only)
• Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity Initiative (BUILD)
• Científico Latino Graduate School Mentorship Initiative (GSMI)
• Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP)
• Gates Millennium Scholars
• GEM Fellows
• Leadership Alliance
• Life Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Program (LSSURP)
• Louis-Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP)
• Math Alliance Scholars
• McNair Scholars Program
• Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program
• Minority Access to Research Careers Scholar Program (MARC)
• Peace Corps (currently serving)
• Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP)
• SMART
• Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS)
• Teach for America (currently serving)
• Women+ of Color Project (W+OCP)
• If you are in the U.S. military you will receive an automatic fee waiver as a thank you for your service (active duty, veteran, previously served, and active reserve are all eligible for this automatic fee waiver).

If you are affiliated with one of these programs, you will be able to indicate your involvement within the online application under ‘Additional Information.’ We ask that you describe your involvement with the program, and upload supporting documentation there. If you are undocumented and/or a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) beneficiary, please contact gradadm@colorado.edu to inquire about possible fee waivers.

Considering that the Graduate School and the College of Engineering and Applied Science at CU Boulder offer application fee waivers to US citizens and Permanent Residents, the Department of Computer Science is introducing a new fee waiver program for Fall 2025 cycle. This program aims to provide application fee waivers to exceptional international students from countries experiencing economic hardships or facing financial sanctions imposed by the US. To facilitate this, qualifying PhD applicants can avail fee waivers until November 20th. It's important to note that due to limited funding, the department can only waive fees for 100 candidates for the Fall 2025 intake. Once this quota is reached, the program will be closed. (This has been closed for Fall 2025 cycle)

To be eligible for the fee waiver, applicants must meet the following minimum requirements:

• The applicant must be an international student hailing from countries where students face economic hardships or are subject to financial sanctions imposed by the US.
• The applicant must be applying for a PhD program within the Department of Computer Science.
• The applicant should seek enrollment for the fall term of 2025.
• The applicant must possess a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 or its equivalent from an accredited undergraduate institution.
• The applicant must fulfill all the department-specific requirements for their chosen PhD program.
• The grad online application along with copy of transcripts, personal statement, and resume along with the Fall 2025 Application Fee Waiver for International Students must be submitted by 9:59 p.m. MST on Nov. 20, 2024. 

The fee waiver offer will be applied automatically to eligible students within the application portal - once you are selected; no code is required. Please DO NOT pay the fee if you are submitting this application, as we are not able to refund any fees that has already been paid.

Following the start of your application, it is recommended that you disregard the payment window and check back at a later time to access your status page. This will allow you to verify that the fee waiver has been successfully applied to your application. If not accepted for the waiver, you will be notified accordingly. These decisions will happen after the Nov 30th deadline, therefore please wait until after the deadline for the decisions on fee waiver to post.

If you have any questions regarding the fee waiver or the application process, please feel free to reach out to Rajshree Shrestha, Sr. Manager of Graduate Programs, at rajshree.shrestha@colorado.edu. She will be glad to assist you.

After submitting this form, please be aware that the committee will require some time to review your application and make decisions regarding the fee waiver. It is essential that you initiate the application process when submitting this form to ensure that the fee waiver can be applied accordingly. Once your eligibility is approved, the application fee waiver will be automatically applied. Kindly allow for a processing time of 24-48 hours after the decision is made.

We have the following suggestions for letters of recommendation:

• A good letter-writer is someone who has worked with you closely or evaluated your work. They should be able to comment on your potential to pursue research in your chosen area(s) of interest.
• Please ask your letter writers at least one to two months in advance, not at the last minute.
• If they agree, provide them with a resume and brief description of your goals, e.g. area(s) of interest.
• Clearly communicate the due dates for your letters and how to submit them.
• If you are asking someone to write you letters for more than one application, remember that they are very busy and keeping track of multiple deadlines is difficult. You can offer to help by asking if they would like you to send reminder emails or if they'd like to use a spreadsheet. Feel free to copy and use this spreadsheet to track applications and letters.

Not all letter writers are familiar with the U.S. Computer Science Ph.D. process, so we have prepared the following paragraph of guidance for you to share with your letter writers if you choose: 

"Thank you for writing a letter of recommendation. We respectfully suggest that the letter will be most helpful if it can include the following information.

1. How you know the applicant and for what length of time.
2. Evaluation of the applicant's potential to contribute to a Ph.D. program in Computer Science or a related discipline, in terms of research aptitude and personal qualities.
3. Comparison to their peers, whether quantitative (e.g. class rank) or qualitative. Comparison to previous students with success in Ph.D. research is especially appreciated.
4. Any additional information, e.g. details of research projects and the applicants' role, or so on."

You must submit your original/official transcripts once you have been accepted to the program. Once you’ve been accepted, your transcripts, supporting credentials and correspondence in reference to your application should be sent directly to:

Graduate Admissions
University of Colorado Boulder
3100 Marine Street, Suite A122
65 UCB
Boulder, CO 80309-0553

For overnight or express mail send to:

Graduate Admissions
University of Colorado Boulder
3100 Marine Street Building RL3
Suite A122
Boulder, CO 80309-1058
303-492-6301

You must submit your original/official transcripts once you have been accepted to the program. Once you’ve been accepted, your transcripts, supporting credentials and correspondence in reference to your application should be sent directly to:

For standard international mail or mail within the US, including USPS Priority and Express:

Office of Admissions/International
University of Colorado Boulder 
3100 Marine St Suite A122 
65 UCB 
Boulder, CO 80309-0065 USA

Overnight/Express Mailing Address (DHL, UPS, FedEx)          

Office of Admissions/International                
University of Colorado Boulder                      
3100 Marine Street - 65 UCB
Bldg RL3 Suite A122
Boulder, CO 80309-1058 USA

Questions should be directed to CS Graduate Admissions.

Our faculty have compiled the following suggestions for the Statement of Purpose. A good Statement of Purpose generally includes these components:

• What research area(s) you are interested in and, specifically, which professors at CU Boulder would be a good potential fit. Consult the faculty's research to find specific overlaps of your interests with ours.
• Relevant past experience, particularly in the above research area(s). Be specific about your role and what you found exciting. Consider including some technical details.
  • In addition to or instead of research projects, this could include challenging courses, industry experience, etc. How did the experience prepare or motivate you to do research?
  • We recognize that not all students were able to access such opportunities. We welcome other work or personal experiences that, even if not directly relevant, demonstrate your experience in overcoming challenges or working with others.
• You may choose to include your motivation and goals for pursuing a PhD. Why do you want to study these area(s) and what do you hope to do with your PhD? However, this section may be kept brief if included.

Some additional suggested material that may be included at your discretion:

• You may choose to include any unique background or experience that would help you bring an unusual perspective to CU.
• You may also choose to explain any unusual circumstances and how they have affected you, such as gaps in your resume or challenges you have faced.
• Apart from the above, an overly-lengthy personal background is generally not helpful.

Finally, some suggestions for style and format of the Statement of Purpose:

• Consider using small section headers to signpost the important parts of your statement, such as area(s) of interest and research experience.
• Ability to communicate clearly through writing is important. However, otherwise, we suggest focusing more on the content than the exact wording and style of the statement.
• Between one and two pages is generally sufficient to communicate the above points. Remember that faculty will be looking through many applications, so help them find the information they need in your application easily.

A statement of purpose should describe the unique pathway to your career choices, why CU, why the program of choice in CS in particular, how our program will help you achieve your professional goals, what unique perspective you bring to the program. Please do not include information from your resume. For research MS, include non-course education experience, teaching or other relevant research experiences, publications, theses, research in progress and other scholarly activities.