If you plan to apply for admission to the UW-Madison Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) department graduate program, please study the following admission requirements carefully and self-evaluate your credentials for admission.

Applications must meet both CEE admission requirements and Graduate School admission requirements. International students are encouraged to apply early to allow processing time for review of international materials, and for consideration for financial support and timely receipt of visa documents.

Graduate School Admission Requirements

Please visit the Graduate School’s Admission Requirements Website for current admission requirements.

CEE Admission Requirements

Grades: A minimum undergraduate grade-point average (GPA) of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) on the equivalent of the last 60 semester hours (approximately two years of work) is required for domestic applicants. A strong academic performance comparable to a “B” or above average grades for all undergraduate coursework is required for international applicants.

Degree: A bachelor’s degree from an ABET-accredited engineering program or from a recognized international institution is required. Applicants with a bachelor's degree may apply directly to the PhD program.

Applicants who do not have a bachelor's degree as specified above may study for the master of science in civil and environmental engineering; however, to become eligible for this program, applicants must meet these requirements, some of which may be completed as deficiencies after admission. Please contact the Graduate Admissions Team at cee@engr.wisc.edu or 608/265-5570 for more information. As a general rule, students with more than 12 credits in deficiencies are not admitted to the program. Rather, they are encouraged to enroll as special students until more of their deficiencies are satisfied. All plans of study within this option must be approved by the department faculty.

English Proficiency: The CEE department has the same requirements as the Graduate School.

International Financial Information: The CEE department has the same requirements as the Graduate School.

Required CEE Application Materials

Graduate School Application Form: Applicants must submit an online application to the UW-Madison Graduate School. Please visit the Office of Graduate Admissions Website to apply.

Statement of Purpose: A statement of purpose for graduate study must be submitted through an applicant’s online UW-Madison Graduate School application. Please limit this important document to 1,000 words.

Letters of Recommendation: Three letters of recommendation must be submitted through an applicant’s online UW-Madison Graduate School application.

Assistant Professor Gregory Harrington next to a pilot scale drinking water treatment plant. (large image)

Transcripts: Two official transcripts from each institution you have attended must be sent to the department directly. International academic records must be in the original language accompanied by an official English translation. Documents must be issued by the institution with the official seal/stamp and an official signature.

Graduate Record Examinations: Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) General Test scores are required for all applicants.

Deadlines

For fall semester enrollment, applications must be received by January 15th for applicants wishing to be considered for financial support or by March 15th for applicants not wishing to be considered for financial support. For spring semester enrollment, applications must be received by October 15th. For summer semester enrollment, applications must be received by March 15th.

Financial Support

At UW-Madison there are four types of financial support which include: (a) fellowship, (b) project/program assistant, (c) research assistant, and (d) teaching assistant. The most common types of financial support offered to Civil and Environmental Engineering graduate students are research assistantships, teaching assistantships, and fellowships (in that order). Please visit the Graduate School’s Additional Student Financial Resources site for additional information. Applicants apply for financial support when filling out the Graduate School Application Form.

Fellowship: A fellowship is an award that enables a graduate student to pursue a degree full-time. Fellowship recipients are chosen through a competitive process in the national, university, school/college, or department/program level.

Project/Program Assistantship (PA): These titles designate graduate students employed to assist with research, training or other academic programs or projects. Project/Program Assistants are included in the labor agreement between the state of Wisconsin and the Teaching Assistants Association.

Research Assistant (RA): A Research Assistant must be a graduate student working toward a master’s or PhD degree. The work performed is primarily to further the education and training of the student. Research Assistants are required to carry a full load each semester (eight to twelve graduate-level credits including research and thesis for MS or PhD nondissertators, three credits for PhD dissertators), and at least two graduate-level credits during the eight-week Summer session (three credits for PhD dissertators).

Teaching Assistant (TA): Many departments offer teaching assistantships. This title is appropriate for graduate students who have been assigned teaching responsibilities in an instructional department under the supervision of a faculty member. Teaching Assistants are included in a labor agreement between the state of Wisconsin and the Teaching Assistants Association.

Tuition Remission: Graduate students who have the equivalent of at least a 33.33% appointment, as a TA, PA, and/or RA, for the length of the Fall or Spring term receive full tuition remission for that term. Students are still responsible for paying their segregated fees.

Continuing graduate students with TA, PA, and/or RA appointments who earned remission of their instructional and non-resident (if applicable) tuition, in the Spring term, and based on eligible appointments, will have their eligibility carry over automatically to the following Summer term of that year. Students are still responsible for paying their segregated fees. Graduate students who have a TA, PA, and/or RA appointments during the summer and did not have a Spring term full tuition remission must have at least a 33.33% appointment for eight weeks during the Summer term, or an appointment of a different percentage and length that nets to the equivalent, to be eligible for Summer term tuition remission. Students are still responsible for paying their segregated fees.

Please visit the Bursar’s Office Tuition Remission Policy Website for more detailed information on tuition remission.

For further information, contact the Graduate Admissions Team at cee@engr.wisc.edu or 608/265-5570

Copyright 2008 The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System Date last modified: 19-Jun-2008 Date created: 01-Aug-2000 Content by: cee@engr.wisc.edu Accessibility Web services Thank you for visiting http://www.engr.wisc.edu/cee/prospective/grad/admission.html