Admissions

Applications will not be reviewed until the Graduate School Application has been fully completed and the $75 application fee has been paid (the fee no longer applies if you have received one of the fee-waivers mentioned at the top of this page). All incomplete applications and applications from international students who are not cleared for admission will be withdrawn by June 1 for the fall semester and December 1 for the spring semester. Applicants who do not register for the semester for which they are admitted will also have their admission cancelled.

Information and resources required in the application include: 

• Statement of purpose
• Three letters of recommendation from an official institutional email address submitted electronically through the application
• Official original transcripts from all colleges or universities—and English translations for those in other languages—previously attended submitted through the application
• Resume/CV
• * Optional* GRE general test scores using the institution code 5814 and leaving at least 2-4 weeks for receipt

Regardless of your citizenship status, students whose native language is not English and who do not hold a degree from an institution in the U.S. or another English-speaking country are also required to submit proof of English proficiency via TOEFL or IELTS scores.

**We are currenlty offering a fee waiver to the first 200 PhD applicants for Spring and Fall 2024. There is no code or special instructions to receive the waiver, applicants must simply submit a complete application.**

Applications are submitted online via the Graduate School website. When creating your application account, ensure that your name matches the name listed on your official, government-issued identification. 

When you are filling out the online application you will see several tabs that ask for different information—detailed below. Sections not listed here are not required for a complete application.

After responding to all required and relevant items, you may submit your application.

Educational Intent

• College/School: A. James Clark School of Engineering - Research Programs
• Program of Study: Mechanical Engineering (ENME) or Reliability Engineering (ENRE)
• Degree: M.S. or Ph.D.

Previous Education

Enter your cumulative GPA for all schools attended as listed on your transcript. International students should not convert their GPA to the 4.0 scale, instead selecting the appropriate grading scale. 

Upload Requirements

Upload your statement of purpose and resume/CV under items #1 and 2, respectively. Disregard all other items in this section. 

Recommendations

Add a minimum of three recommendation providers. Once entered, the system will send an automatic notification email to the recommenders with instructions on how to electronically submit a letter of recommendation. This process can begin prior to submission of the application.

We recommend that you contact these individuals in advance to ensure the provider will be wiling to write a letter of recommendation.

While final admission decisions are made by the Graduate School, the Department of Mechanical Engineering faculty review all completed applications.

Applicants are notified of the Graduate School’s final decision on a rolling basis through their online application portal. If you submitted a complete application before the deadline, you can expect to receive a notification of admission or rejection between February and May for the fall semester and September and November for the spring semester. We cannot answer questions regarding admission status via email or phone, but will direct applicants to their application portal.

• If you need to make any changes after you have submitted the application, contact gradappsupport@umd.edu.
• For any technical difficulties with the online application, contact the Graduate School at gradappsupport@umd.edu.
• To request a deferment or term change, contact mpetry@umd.edu.
• For all other questions, contact mpetry@umd.edu.