PhD Application Instructions

• Applicants to the PhD program do not need to complete the experiences, achievements, conferences attended and memberships sections of the standard USC Rossier application. Your resume or CV can serve as a replacement for that section.
• Many universities use the Liaison application system. If you are using the same email address to apply to another university that also uses Liaison, you can log in with the same credentials.

Where to find it on the application: My Application > Personal Information

• Enter your name as it appears on your government issued I.D. Indicate any alternate or previous names in the “other name” field (i.e. maiden name). Indicating prior names is important because it will help USC connect transcripts with former names to your application.
• Enter the email address USC Rossier should use to communicate with you throughout the application process.

Where to find it on the application: My Application > Academic Records

Applicants must upload official transcripts from all colleges, universities, and other post-secondary institutions they have previously attended. Applications received without all required transcripts will be considered incomplete and ineligible for admission review.

Official transcripts and other academic records are issued directly by the registrar’s office of your previous school(s) and bear the official registrar’s stamp or signature. Unofficial transcripts, including print-outs from student portals, are not acceptable for admission review.

International students should refer to USC’s country specific requirements to determine which academic records they need to submit.

To Upload Your Transcript to The Application Portal 

Login to your USC Application Portal and navigate to the Academic History section. Enter detailed information about your academic history from each institution you have attended.

Once you have saved  this information, you will find an option to Upload a Transcript for each institution. You can upload only one PDF per institution. If the transcript consists of multiple pages, you must scan each page and merge them into a single PDF file. If you do not have access to a scanner, you can take clear photos of each page and combine them into one PDF.

There are various online services available to merge multiple files into a single PDF or convert photos into PDFs. Once you have uploaded your transcripts and completed all other sections of the application, you can proceed to submit your application.

Upon admission and submission of the statement of intent to enroll, you must submit degree-conferred transcripts from all attended institutions to the USC Office of Academic Records and Registrar. 

Where to find it on the application: My Application > Supporting Information > Documents > CV/Resume

Your CV or resume (either are acceptable) should highlight your experiences (paid, volunteer, and otherwise) and research background (e.g., publications, presentations, etc.) to help the faculty understand how your experiences and background shape your interest in the program and inform how you would perform in the PhD.

Once you upload your resume or CV, you do not need to duplicate efforts and add to the experiences, achievements, conferences attended and memberships sections of the standard USC Rossier application.

Where to find it on the application: My Application > Program Materials > Documents
Please label the first page of your Personal Statement with a header that states Personal Statement.

Your Personal Statement (no longer than 2 single spaced pages in Times New Roman, 12 point font) should address the following four areas:

• Your interest in the PhD program as it relates to your personal and professional goals.
• Your commitment and anticipated academic and professional contributions to USC Rossier’s mission to “achieve educational equity through practice, research and policy”.
• Your personal history of academic and professional development. Please comment on: What competencies have you developed that will contribute to your academic and professional success? What is your approach to managing long-term goals? How have you contributed to a supportive, collaborative intellectual community?
• Your research interests and how your goals align with the expertise of up to three of our PhD program tenured or tenure-track faculty with whom you would like to work.

Select the “Add Document” button under “Personal Statement”

Where to find it on the application: My Application > Program Materials > Documents

Please label the first page of your Writing Sample with a header that states Writing Sample.

Please submit a writing sample demonstrating your writing skills and thinking. Specifically, faculty reviewers are looking to assess writing competency and demonstration of one’s ability to construct an argument. Papers written in an academic style and that you completed for course work, professional purposes, or presentation/publication are all good options for the writing sample. Applicants can submit a writing sample of any length but they will be asked to direct faculty reviewers to the 5-10 pages faculty reviewers should read. For papers written for a prior purpose, you do not need to reformat the spacing or font size.

If you do not already have a writing sample, please write one on a topic of scholarly interest to you that is at least five pages (Times New Roman 12 point font, double spaced) and follows the above guidelines. Use outside sources and cite references where applicable in a recognized publication style (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago)

On the application, we will ask you to answer the following questions about your writing sample:

• Which 5-10 pages should faculty reviewers read if your document is longer than 10 pages?
• For what purpose was this manuscript developed?
• Is it single or co-authored? If the former, how much feedback, editorial support, and/or coaching did you receive?

Where to find it on the application: My Application > Program Materials > Recommendations > Add Recommendation

The USC Rossier PhD Program requires three letters of recommendation. Recommenders ideally should have a PhD (not required) and be able to speak to your potential and ability to do research.

• To submit the names of your recommenders, go to the “Program Materials” section of the application and click on the tab “Recommendations”
• Click the button “Add Recommendation” to enter the name and email address of each recommender you’d like to ask to electronically submit a letter of recommendation. Each recommender will automatically receive an email from uscsupport@liaisonedu.com that includes a password and directions for submitting the letter of recommendation. If the recommender does not receive the recommendation letter request, advise them to check their spam or junk mail folders.
• The application will ask you to include a submit by date, and we recommend putting November 15th as that will also act as the cutoff date by which they can submit.
• It is your responsibility as the applicant to ensure all recommendation letters are submitted before the appropriate deadline.

Please note: recommendation letters are program-specific and cannot be used to apply to additional programs. If you withdraw your application from a particular program, your letters of recommendation will be deleted along with the application.

Where to find it on the application: Submit Application Tab

Eligibility for fee waivers and how to apply for a fee waiver can be found at the Graduate Admissions website. Fees must be paid via debit or credit card.

Applicants can apply for a fee waiver as soon as they have started their online application. At certain times, the turn-around can take up to two weeks, so applicants should plan for this based upon the November 15th deadline. Do not submit your application before getting your fee waiver approved because USC will not refund the application fee once an application has been submitted.

Applicants who believe they qualify for a fee waiver should complete the following steps:

• Start your online application before applying for a fee waiver and be sure to select the program to which they are planning to apply.
• To apply for a fee waiver at this link and then in the Select an Area box, choose “Graduate Admission” and then click “Graduate Admission” again and select Rossier School of Education. Then under “Category”, choose “Application Fees and Fee Waivers”. Then click “Application Fees and Fee Waivers” again and select the type of fee waiver for which you are applying. Please attach the appropriate documentation for the type of fee waiver. You must use the same email address as your application and must also include the name of the program to which you are applying (PhD in Education Program). Failure to do so could delay your request considerably.
• Applicants will receive an email notification if and when their fee waiver is approved. Applicants must wait to receive this confirmation in order to skip the payment page when they submit your application. No refunds will be issued post-submission.

USC Rossier welcomes international applicants. If your prior study was completed outside of the United States, you must have earned the equivalent of a United States bachelor’s degree to be eligible for admission. View the international application requirements based on your country of study.

International students whose native language is not English and who completed their undergraduate work outside of the United States are required to demonstrate proficiency in English as part of the application process. For more information on English Proficiency requirements, English-language test waivers and other alternate accepted exams, please visit the USC Graduate Admission English-Language Proficiency page.

English Proficiency Scores
Where to find it on the application: My Application > Academic History > Standardized Tests > Add a Standardized Test

International students whose native language is not English and who completed their undergraduate work outside of the United States are required to submit an official English proficiency score as part of their application. You must have taken one of these exams within the past two years. 

To qualify for admission, applicants must meet the minimum score requirements on one of the following exams:

• TOEFL iBT: Minimum composite score of 100, with at least 20 in each subscore.
• New TOEFL iBT: Minimum composite score of 5, with at least 4 in each subscore.
• IELTS: Minimum composite score of 7, with at least 6 in each subscore.

You may upload your test score report in the “Academic History” section of the application to be used in application review. However, only scores received electronically from the testing service are considered official. Official test scores should be sent from the testing agency directly to USC.

• TOEFL: To send official scores, use USC ETS code 4852. Please note that USC does not accept super-scoring for the TOEFL.
• IELTS: Select “University of Southern California” at the time of registration. Alternatively, provide this information to your testing center after taking the test.
• No department code is required to send TOEFL or IELTS scores

For more information on English Proficiency requirements, English-language test waivers, and other alternate accepted exams, please visit the USC Graduate Admission page.