Applicants for graduate study in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology must have:
- BA or BS degree or equivalent that provides a strong background in biology
- Strong ability and motivation, as indicated by academic record and letters of recommendation
- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores. Scores from the GRE Biology subject exam are optional but can be helpful, particularly for students with nontraditional backgrounds in biology
These requirements do not preclude admission of qualified applicants who have majored in areas other than biology. Students should have completed course work in physics, mathematics (including calculus), and chemistry (including organic chemistry) prior to admission. Deficiencies in these subject areas or in specific areas of biology should be made up during the first year of residence; some may be waived at the discretion of the student's advisory committee and the department chair.
Although the department offers MA and MS degrees, the department does not guarantee funding for MA/MS students; funding must be provided by the prospective advisor.
Questions about admission to the EEB graduate program should be sent to eebgradapps@rice.edu.
We encourage you to contact faculty and/or graduate students in your area of interest to obtain further information about graduate study in our department. The list of faculty indicates those faculty members that anticipate admitting new students to their groups in Fall 2014.
Completed applications should be received by January 10 to ensure full consideration, although late applications will be considered when possible.
There is no application fee for United States citizens and permanent residents. If you are in this category, please request a fee waiver from eebgradapps. If you are an international student, your application will not be processed until the application fee is received. Fee waivers usually cannot be granted to international students.
Click here to apply
In addition to submitting the application form, all transcripts and other papers should be sent directly to the department:
Admissions Coordinator
Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Rice University, MS-170
P.O. Box 1892
Houston, TX 77251-1892
Questions about admission to the EEB graduate program should be sent to eebgradapps@rice.edu
Transcript
A transcript or transcripts of all previous college or university (including graduate) work must be presented. These records should be sent directly to the department by the institution or institutions attended. A supplementary transcript, covering work in progress at the time of application and any later work, must be furnished as soon as possible.
International applicants should contact our Departmental office or the Office of International Student Affairs for further information.
Recommendations
You should request recommendations from four persons (preferably professors in your major field) who know your personal and scholastic qualities. Forms provided for this purpose should be mailed by the writers directly to the department. Applications will not be reviewed until three recommendations are received.
GRE and TOEFL
Applicants should have their scores on the aptitude portion of the Graduate Record Examination sent directly to the department by Educational Testing Service. Advanced test scores in Biology are preferred, but not required. Tests should be scheduled at least six weeks before the application deadline.
Applicants whose native language is not English should check the Rice TOEFL score requirements. Reporting codes for these scores are as follows: Institutional code is 6609, GRE department code is 0207, TOEFL department code is 35.