Graduate Application deadline: 8:59 PM (PST) December 4, 2023
Graduate Admissions Online Application
Hardcopies of the Graduate Admissions Application will not be accepted. The application and all supporting documents, i.e., 3 letters of recommendation, GRE Scores,* and TOEFL or IELTS scores (if applicable) MUST be submitted via the online Graduate Admissions Application.
The online application (essays, payment, all degree information, recommender information, writing samples, etc) are due Monday, December 4 and will not be accepted after the deadline for any reason. Supporting documentation (recommendation letters, transcripts, scores) may come in through December 12th. We will not accept materials after this date.
Late applications will not be considered after the December 4, 2023 deadline, and incomplete applications will not be considered after December 12th.
Application Fee Waiver
Alums of the American Economic Association Summer Training and Scholarship Program qualify, for more information please visit: https://grad.berkeley.edu/admissions/apply/fee-waiver/.
Required Supporting Documents:
- Unofficial and Official Transcripts
- 3 Letters of Recommendation
- GRE Scores*
- Evidence of English Language Proficiency (if applicable)
All supporting documents must be uploaded to your Graduate Application file. DO NOT mail in your documents, we will not print any supporting documents for your application file.
Optional Supporting Documents:
- CV/Resume and Writing Sample (Optional)
Key Areas to Note for the Graduate Admission Online Application
It is required that you list your cumulative GPA, all coursework after the first two years, major GPA , and graduate GPA (if applicable). International students with a different grading system should not try to convert their grades into U.S. standard grades. Please leave this area blank if this applies to you.
- For Areas of Emphasis 1 and Areas of Emphasis 2 YOU MUST list two fields that you are interested in pursuing from the list of available fields on the Year 2 page.
- The Department does not require you to list faculty you have contacted or expect to contact concerning your application for admission and, in fact, discourages prospective students from contacting faculty prior to being admitted.
- The online application requires that you list two faculty members in the department whose research is of particular interest to you. This information is considered preliminary as it is helpful for the department to know in advance; it is expected that one's research interest will change and refine over time.
- Please make sure to list all of your current and/or pending financial resources, i.e., external fellowships, grants, loans and personal savings.
- Students applying to the Ph.D. program in Economics are typically not eligible for Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships.
- The Statement of Purpose and Personal History Statement should be no longer than 3 pages, double spaced each. For information you consider to be special circumstances, such as illness, personal hardships, parent's status, etc. please write this in your Personal History Statement. Resources for writing the Statement of Purpose and Personal History statement can be found on the UC Berkeley Graduate Division website.
Unofficial and Official Transcripts
Unofficial Transcripts are accepted and uploaded online ONLY for graduate application process and review.
All unofficial copies transcripts for domestic and international applicants must be uploaded onto your online application. All transcripts should show courses, grades, and dates the courses were taken.
International applicants with a different grading system should not try to convert their grades into US standard grades.
Official Transcripts are required ONLY if an applicant accepts an offer of admission.
An applicant who is recommended for admission AND accepts the offer of admission must submit official transcripts.
International applicants who accept the offer of admission must submit official transcripts, degree certificates, diplomas, etc. in the original language accompanied by a translation. We accept translations from proper school officials and from government and/or official translators. The translator's statement must be prepared on the letterhead of the translator's institution and must state "This is a complete and exact word-for-word translation of the original." Every page must be signed in ink with the translator's title and, if possible, the seal or stamp of their institution. Stamps and signatures must be originals.
Letters of Recommendation
We require only three (3) letters of recommendation from professors who know your academic history. Letters from non-academic sources (e.g., employers) may be submitted.
Please request that your letter writers complete and submit your letters of recommendation via the online Graduate Application system by December 4, 2023 (early submissions appreciated).
GRE Test Scores
Applicants who want to submit their General GRE test scores should do so on the online application and have an official score report sent to the department so that it ARRIVES BY the application deadline - December 4, 2023. We do not require or accept GRE subject tests. The GRE may not be substituted with the GMAT. Tests should be taken in October, but no later than November. Applicants with scores below 165 on the Quantitative portion of the GRE should retake the test. Scores from tests taken before October 2019 are no longer valid. If you took the GRE between October 2019 and the time of application, you need to order the reports to be sent to the department. Make sure that the institution and department codes are correct when ordering reports to be sent. If you have taken the GRE more than once, make sure that you enter the correct registration number for the score you would like to be reported on your application - you receive a new registration number every time you take the exam. The registration number is crucial to making sure your official score report is appropriately matched to your online application. If your GRE score is not properly matched to your application, it may appear as though your application is incomplete.
* Please note that GRE is optional for the 2023-2024 admissions season (admits to be matriculated in 2024/2025)
****Official score reports are required and must be received by the department by the application deadline. Official scores cannot be substituted with self-reported scores.****
The institution code for UC Berkeley is 4833.
The Department of Economics code is 1801.
Evidence of Evidence of English Lanuage Proficiency
Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
International English Language Testing System (IELTS)
For Fall 2024 matriculation, tests taken before June 1, 2022 will not be accepted by Graduate Admissions. Requests to waive either the TOEFL or IELTS requirements must to sent to Graduate Admissions.
CV/Resume and Writing Sample
CV/resumes and/or a writing sample are NOT required and are optional for your application. If you would like to submit optional materials, please upload your CV/resumes and/or a writing sample onto your online application in PDF format. CV/resume and/or a writing sample WILL NOT be accepted via email or the mail.