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If you're thinking about applying for graduate admissions to the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, feel free to get in touch with the Graduate Education Office. We'll be happy to answer all of your questions and give you the information you need to make your decision.

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Application Instructions

Standard Reference Form

Download Paper Application (PDF)

For more information contact:

Graduate Education Office
501 E Saint Joseph St
Paleontology Building, Room 113
Rapid City, SD 57701

Phone: (605) 355-3468
FAX: (605) 394-1767

E-mail: Graduate.Admissions@sdsmt.edu

Admission to the Graduate School

Applications will be accepted after the dates listed, but cannot be guaranteed timely admittance. The review process will begin when all the required documentation is received.

Financial Assistance: You will automatically be considered for assistantship support based on the information provided in your application materials. No further application is required. Applicants wishing to be considered for financial assistance should submit their completed application by March 15.

Recommended application date	Fall	Spring
International applicants located outside the U.S. and all applicants applying for assistantships	March 15	August 15
Applicants currently in the U.S. who are not applying for assistantships	June 1	October 1
All applicants for Nanoscience and Nanoengineering	February 15	August 15

Required application materials for all applicants:

Completed application form, submitted online at http://graded.sdsmt.edu/. Paper applications are also accepted.
$35.00 application fee, payable online by credit card at the time of application or by check or money order via postal mail.
Official transcripts from all U.S. institutions attended, including evidence of your bachelor's degree if applicable. Transcripts must be mailed directly to SDSM&T by the issuing institution. Email copies are not accepted. A GPA of 3.0 is recommended; students with exceptional ability may apply with less than 3.0 GPA.

Additional required materials for some programs:

One page statement of purpose/personal statement of goals and research interests: required for all programs except Engineering Management and Mining Engineering.
GRE score report: required for all programs except Computational Sciences & Robotics, Construction Management, and Engineering Management. Electrical Engineering and Mining Engineering require the GRE for graduates from non-ABET accredited institutions For more information regarding the GRE test, visit www.ets.org/gre. The SDSM&T school code is 6652. Scores of 50% or higher are recommended; strong quantitative scores are expected.
Three letters of recommendation: required for all programs except Civil Engineering, Construction Management, Engineering Management, and Mining Engineering. The email addresses of three references shall be submitted at the time of the online application. Recommendations can also be submitted via email or post mail.

Additional required materials for all international applicants:

Third party foreign transcript evaluation for all foreign institutions attended, including evidence of your bachelor's degree if applicable. Effective August 15, 2012, SDSM&T requires a course-by-course evaluation report send directly to us from the evaluating institution. For more information, visit www.wes.org or www.ece.org.
Evidence of English proficiency, with the exception of applicants from countries where English is the native language. Applicants who have a prior degree from a university in the U.S. may be considered for exemption. Note that Engineering Management will only consider applications meeting the upper level score criteria.

Test	Minimum score*	Upper level score**
TOEFL - iBT (internet based test)	68	83
TOEFL - CBT (computer based test)	190	220
TOEFL - PBT (paper based test)	520	560
IELTS	5.5	6.5

*Minimum scores require English proficiency testing upon arrival at the university.

**Upper level scores indicate that no additional proficiency test is required by the university. However, additional testing may be required based on the student's performance on other placement exams, in the classroom or by the department.

Required application materials for School of Mines Graduates:

Requirements for graduates of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology are different to simplify the application process. These requirements are applicable only to applicants with an undergraduate or graduate degree from the School of Mines.

Completed application form, submitted online at http://graded.sdsmt.edu/. Paper applications are also accepted.
$35.00 application fee, payable online by credit card at the time of application or by check or money order via postal mail.
One page statement of purpose/personal statement of goals and research interests: required for all programs except Engineering Management and Mining Engineering.
Three letters of recommendation: the email addresses of three references shall be submitted at the time of the online application. If using recommenders on campus, only the names of the recommenders are required. Recommendations from outside campus can also be submitted via email or post mail. Recommendations are not required for Civil Engineering, Construction Management, Engineering Management, and Mining Engineering.
GRE score report: required for Geology and Geological Engineering.
Official transcripts for courses taken outside the SD Regental System. Applicants do not have to supply SDSM&T transcripts.

When an application for admission to the Graduate School is received, the chair of the department or the coordinator of the multi-disciplinary program in which the applicant expects to major will evaluate the applicant's academic qualifications. The chair/coordinator will recommend whether or not the applicant should be accepted into the graduate program, and whether the admission should be as an unconditional, provisional, probationary, or special student. The Dean of Graduate Education will review this recommendation and provide a letter of decision to the applicant.

Admission to the Graduate School for study toward a master's degree does not imply that the student will be allowed to work toward a doctorate. A separate application and evaluation of the student's qualifications are necessary before acceptance into a doctoral program. It should be noted further that admission to the Graduate School for study toward a Ph.D. degree does not constitute admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. Refer to the School of Mines Catalog for information on admission to candidacy.