Admissions in Ph.D. Finance
The Ph.D. program is a full-time program, no part-time enrollment is possible. Only through exclusive commitment and interaction with faculty members and other graduate students can the individual benefit from the Ph.D. program experience.
Before You Apply
Applicants must comply with all college and university applications requirements, including application deadlines. Enrollment in the Finance Ph.D. program is limited. Usually, the Department of Finance admits 4 students for the Fall semester. Our recently accepted applicants tend to have a GMAT/GRE score in the high 600's (GRE score = [Quantitative+Verbal]/2), with a GMAT/GRE quantitative score in the 90% percentile. Excellent proficiency in English is expected.
Submitting Your Application
The application for admission to the doctoral program consists of two parts. You must submit both parts in order for your application file to be reviewed. Please follow the instructions carefully.
Part 1: The following materials must be sent to the University of Houston.
| US Applicants | International Applicants |
|---|---|
Office of Admissions |
Office of International Admissions |
Please send the materials, if possible, in one envelope by February 1st, which is the application deadline.
(Note: Late applications after February 1st incur a non-refundable $25 late fee)
U.S. Applicants must submit:
1. Application Form: A completed standard graduate application form. If you are sending international transcripts, use the international application form instead of the standard graduate admission form.
2. Transcripts: of all undergraduate and graduate course work completed. The transcripts going to the University of Houston need to be sent directly from the institutions providing them, but the copy sent to the Ph.D. Applicant Materials Coordinator at the Bauer College of Business may be a student copy sent by you.
3. GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) or GRE (Graduate Record Exam) scores. They must be sent directly from Educational Testing Service to the University of Houston. (UH Code for the GMAT/GRE is XT1-26-69)
4. Application Fee: a payment of $45 must be made via personal U.S. check or U.S. money order payable to the University of Houston. (If you are a U.S. applicant, sending international transcripts, you also need to pay an extra $75, to pay for the cost of evaluating your international transcript.) Credit card payment is also accepted online. No cash is accepted. Only applicants whose Bauer College of Business application fees and international evaluation fees have been paid will have their applications reviewed. The application fee is non-refundable.
International Applicants must submit:
1. Application Form: A completed international application form.
2. Transcripts: of all undergraduate and graduate course work completed. The transcripts going to the University of Houston need to be sent directly from the institutions providing them, but the copy sent to the Ph.D. Applicant Materials Coordinator at the Bauer College of Business may be a student copy sent by you.
3. GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) or GRE (Graduate Record Exam) scores. They must be sent directly from Educational Testing Service to the University of Houston. (UH Code for the GMAT/GRE is XT1-26-69)
4. Application Fee: a payment of $120 must be made via personal U.S. check or U.S. money order payable to the University of Houston. Credit card payment is also accepted online. ( This payment includes the $45 application fee required by the Bauer College and the $75 evaluation fee required by the Office of International Admissions.) No cash is accepted. Only applicants whose Bauer College of Business application fees and international evaluation fees have been paid will have their applications reviewed. All application fees are non-refundable.
5. TOEFL score. A score of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). International applicants who speak English as their native language, have a U.S. high school diploma or have completed a prior college degree from an English speaking country -the U.S., Australia, Belize, Canada, Jamaica, New Zealand, South Africa, the U.K., etc.- are exempt from the TOEFL requirement. TOEFL scores may not be more than two years old at the time of application.
6. Letter of Financial Backing
Part 2: The following materials must be sent to the Bauer College (do not include payments):
Ph.D. Applicant Materials Coordinator
334 Melcher Hall, Suite 315
C.T. Bauer College of Business
University of Houston
Houston, TX 77204-6021
Please send the materials in one envelope by the application deadline.
- A copy of your application form.
- A copy of all your transcripts.
- A copy of your GMAT/GRE score.
- A copy of your TOEFL (if applicable).
- A curriculum vitae or resume.
- Three letters of recommendation, directly from the sender. We have a very strong preference for academic references. You can use the Bauer letter of recommendation.
- A statement of purpose. You should discuss your interest in doing a Ph.D. in Finance and your research interests. Briefly discuss a research idea. Your statement should be no more than two pages long. Your statement of purpose is an important part of your application.
