personal statement tufts

Application Requirements and Policies

General application requirements, application fee, transcripts, letters of recommendation, personal statement.

• GREs (if required)
• Proof of English proficiency- Duolingo, IELTS, TOEFL (if required)

Some degree programs require additional documents. Please refer to the instructions in the online application to ensure you submit all required documents.

The application fee of $85 is payable through the online application by credit card or e-check (drawn on a US bank). The application fee is not refundable, even if submitted after the application deadline. Your credit card or e-check statement is your receipt. No action can be taken on your application until this fee has been received. Separate applications, including fees, are required if you apply to more than one graduate program at Tufts University. Please note: a maximum of two applications are allowed to be submitted for one admissions cycle and must be degree programs in two separate departments.

Recent Tufts graduates (those who graduated within three years) receive fee waivers and other benefits from the Return to Tufts program . Current Tufts students interested in GSAS programs are also encouraged to review the benefits (including fee waivers) of the Fifth Year Master's program . We provide application fee waivers for numerous organizations, for more information, visit our Application Waivers and Special Funding page.

If the application fee presents a financial hardship, please contact the  Office of Graduate Admissions .

Applicants must list all institutions degree-granting or non-degree granting on their application and upload transcripts from each institution. The transcripts must be uploaded in English and have the applicant's name, institution name, courses taken for credit, and grades received. If your course is currently in progress, a grade does not need to be listed.  Applicants may submit unofficial copies of their transcripts for application review. Please note that an institution indicating a Bachelor’s or equivalent degree must be listed on the application.

For enrolling students:

Enrolling students must request  final   and official  transcripts from all degree-granting institutions to be sent to the Office of Graduate Admissions. For a transcript to be considered final and official, it must be sent directly from the attended institution and contain your name, the type of degree awarded, and the date that it was conferred. If your coursework at an institution did not result in a degree, an official transcript is not required. Additionally, if your transcript is not in English, you are required to submit a certified translation to our office. Many of our students utilize WES.

Transcripts uploaded to the online application or emailed directly by the student will not satisfy our requirements. Final and official transcripts can be sent electronically via a transcript service, through email, or it can be physically mailed to our office. The Office of Graduate Admissions highly recommends electronic delivery methods. Students who do not submit final and official transcripts will have a hold placed on their account. This may result in not being allowed to enroll in future terms. Questions about the enrolling student transcript requirement should be sent to [email protected].

Most programs will require three letters of recommendation. Current Tufts students, Tufts certificate students applying for a degree program, applicants to the engineering management program, and Studio Art Post-Baccalaureate applicants are required to submit two letters. One letter of recommendation is required for certificate programs. Letters of recommendation should be submitted through the online system. If that is not possible, you may have your recommenders submit their letters to [email protected]. We are able to accept recommendation letters for up to two weeks after the application deadline has passed. However, we encourage students to have notified recommenders well before the deadline. 

Applicants must upload a personal statement describing your reasons for wanting to pursue graduate study at Tufts in the program to which you are applying. Please limit your personal statement to a maximum of five pages (2,500 words). Refer to our program page to confirm if your program of application has a specific personal statement prompt. If no personal statement prompt is listed, please use the below prompt to guide you:

• What previous experiences and commitments have brought you to consider applying for graduate training?
• What are your chief objectives in applying now?
• How do you think this Tufts program will help you in the pursuit of your objectives and vocation?
• Please also share any additional information that you think will help the admissions committee understand you and why you are applying to the program. If you are applying to a Cognitive Science program, please describe why you are interested in that interdisciplinary program.

Your current résumé or CV including dates of your educational history, employment, academic honors, scholarships, publications, and other activities should be uploaded as part of your completed application.

Graduate Record Examination (GRE)

Many of our graduate programs are currently waiving the GRE requirement. Please review the application instructions carefully. If required, you can register online at  www.gre.org , and the Tufts University code number is 3901. Student copies or photocopies of GRE scores are not accepted, so please remember to designate Tufts as one of your score recipients. To ensure timely score reporting, we suggest that you take the GRE at least one month prior to the application deadline for your program. GRE scores are only reviewed if required by the program to which you are applying. Please check the requirements and deadlines document carefully to see whether you are required to submit GRE scores.

Scores can take five to ten business days to arrive to us after you have sent them. We are able to accept official scores for up to two weeks after the application deadline has passed.

English Proficiency

Applicants who are not native speakers of English are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language ( TOEFL ), the International English Language Testing System ( IELTS ), or the  Duolingo English Test .  Please note: student copies or photocopies of TOEFL/IELTS/Duolingo scores are not accepted at any point in the admissions process.

We strongly prefer that official scores are sent to us by the test provider electronically. Please see the below instructions to send scores electronically:

• Duolingo English Test: Select the option Tufts University – Graduate Programs in Arts, Sciences and Engineering
• IELTS: Select “Account Name”: Tufts University – Arts, Sciences and Engineering
• TOEFL: Select institution code 3901. There is no department code required. All scores sent to institution code 3901 are sent to our office.

If an applicant satisfies one or more of the following conditions, they are not required to provide a TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo score, unless stated otherwise by the department:

• Citizenship of Australia, Canada (except Quebec), Great Britain, Ireland, New Zealand, Guyana, an Anglophone country of Africa, or an English-speaking country of the Caribbean
• A college or university degree earned in the United States, in one of the countries listed above, or from an institution with English as the medium of instruction prior to submission of this application
• Current enrollment as a full-time student in a degree-granting program in the United States or at an English-speaking school.  The student must have successfully completed two consecutive full-time academic years of college or university work prior to the date of anticipated enrollment at Tufts University

Additional Requirements & Information

Some degree programs require additional documents such as a writing sample, supplemental essay, or portfolio. Please be sure to refer to the instructions in the online application to ensure you are submitting all requirements for the program to which you are applying.

Writing Sample

If your program requires a writing sample, please upload the document in the appropriate section of the online application. Refer to the Requirements and Deadlines document to determine if the program to which you are applying has specific prompts.

Digital Portfolio

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences applicants should refer to their program requirements to review whether a digital portfolio is required to apply to their program.

All applicants to the MFA and Post-Baccalaureate programs are required to submit a visual art portfolio consisting 10-20 images of recent work and/or up to 10 minutes of time-based work. See additional MFA and Post-Bacc portfolio guidelines here . 

School of Engineering degree applicants may upload a video presentation (2 minutes maximum) of your own design, product or research conducted, to demonstrate to the admissions committee your interest and skill sets. This video essay is optional but recommended. Non-native English speakers are encouraged to submit a digital portfolio to demonstrate English language skills.

Late Applications

Since graduate admissions and financial aid are both limited and competitive, it is to your advantage to apply early and to ensure that all required materials are received prior to the deadline. Late applications will be reviewed only if space is available for students. 

Fraudulent Materials

It is important that all material submitted in support of your application be accurate. Any information that is determined to be erroneous or fraudulent may cause a student's association with Tufts to be immediately terminated.

Short Answer Questions

When you visit the Common Application or the Coalition Application by Scoir platform to fill out and submit your application to Tufts, you'll notice that the application includes Tufts-specific questions. There are two required short-answer questions, which vary depending on the program to which you are applying (read carefully below). We’ve created this page to allow you to peruse the questions without having to leave this site. Visit the Common Application site or the Coalition Application by Scoir site when you’re ready to apply online.

Short Responses for the Class of 2029

Think outside the box as you answer the following questions. Take a risk and go somewhere unexpected. Be serious if the moment calls for it, but feel comfortable being playful if that suits you, too. 

Applicants to the School of Arts & Sciences or the School of Engineering:

Please respond to one of the following three prompts in 200-250 words:

• It’s cool to love learning. What excites your intellectual curiosity and why?
• How have the environments or experiences of your upbringing – your family, home, neighborhood, or community – shaped the person you are today?
• Using a specific example or two, tell us about a way that you contributed to building a collaborative and/or inclusive community.

Applicants to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts (SMFA) at Tufts:

Please respond to the following prompt in 200-250 words:

• Art has the power to disrupt our preconceptions, shape public discourse, and imagine new ways of being in the world. What are the ideas you’d like to explore in your work?   

In addition, we will ask all applicants to complete this sentence in 100 words or less:

“I am applying to Tufts because…” 

As you begin to plan for the upcoming application cycle, know that we are here to help! We encourage you to learn more about the Tufts admissions process by exploring the admissions website, reading Jumbo Magazine or our student blogs , and following us on Instagram .