The University of Texas at Austin
College of Engineering

Applying to the ME/ORIE Graduate Program

Applying to the Mechanical Engineering/Operations Research & Industrial Engineering Graduate Program is a two-step process. You may work on both steps of the application simultaneously. Please begin the Department Supplemental Application and the Apply Texas Application first. Then proceed with the other requirements in any order. What matters most is that everything is in by the deadline. *Please note that the entire application is submitted online with the exception of the transcripts that are sent to GIAC. Paper submissions of any other part of the application are not accepted.

Step 1: Apply to the Mechanical Engineering/Operations Research & Industrial Engineering Program

  • ME/ORIE Graduate Program Supplemental Application. We only accept online submissions. Without this we cannot review your application.
  • Resume, CV or similar document containing a summary or listing of relevant job experience, awards and education. Please email your resume as a PDF attachment to Jessica Miller. Please title your document: LAST NAME, FIRST NAME (EID) RESUME.pdf. Example: Mr John Doe, EID: JD123
     DOE, JOHN (JD123) RESUME.pdf
    Incorrectly titled documents will not be accepted.

Step 2: Apply to the University of Texas at Austin. The following materials are required to be submitted through GIAC, the Graduate & International Admissions Center:

  • Apply Texas Application (Application to the University)

  • Statement of Purpose (A Section of the Apply Texas Application). In reviewing applications, evidence of creativity, initiative, motivation and other characteristics indicative of the applicant's potential as a scholar and contributor to society are considered. Please communicate any additional comments on your activities, accomplishments, goals and research interests that give evidence of these characteristics and that might be helpful in evaluating your application to the Graduate Program in Mechanical Engineering. The statement is generally two pages or less.

  • Three (3) letters of recommendation. There are two ways to submit the letters. Your recommender can submit them via the online system through GIAC (preferred) or they can email them directly to the department as pdf attachments. The letters only have to be submitted one of the two ways and your recommenders can choose either way, as they do not all have to be submitted under one method. Example: Dr. Smith & Dr. Sreenivasan use the GIAC method, but Dr. Brooks uses the Departmental method.

    • GIAC Method of Submission: This is the preferred method of submission because once the letter has been submitted the applicant can see the letter on the GIAC status check page. When you complete the References portion of the Apply Texas online application for admission, you will give the names and email addresses of those you have asked to write recommendations on your behalf. GIAC will send an e-mail message to the address you provide and ask your recommender to visit a web site where they can complete a questionnaire and type a letter or cut and paste one in the space provided. Be sure that the email address is current and accurate. *Please note that the email for these letters is not sent to your recommenders until you officially submit the Apply Texas Application and they have 45 days to complete the letters. Please make sure that your recommenders are aware of our application deadline and do not submit the letters after it has passed. Our committee prefers that at least two (2) of your recommenders be from academia. All letters submitted using this method would appear on the GIAC status check page. Using this method you will be asked to inform us if you are going to waive the right to view your letters after they are submitted. Please indicate this by answering the associated question on the application for admission. Your recommender will be informed if you have not waived your right to view his/her letter of recommendation. If you make a mistake on the email address or if you need to replace one recommender with another please contact Marla Boye in GIAC.

    • Departmental Method of Submission: There is no questionnaire for this method of submission. The Applicant or the recommender can send the letter via email as a PDF attachment to Jessica Miller instead of submitting it online via the GIAC Method. *Please note that if the letters are submitted via email to the department they will not show up on the GIAC status check page. Instead a confirmation email will be sent to the person that sent the letter. If the sender is the recommender then applicant should verify that that person received the confirmation email. If the recommender did not receive a confirmation email they should re-email the letter to the Department. Using this method it is assumed that you are waiving the right to view letters submitted on your behalf. Please title your letter of recommendation: LAST NAME, FIRST NAME (EID) LOR DR RECOMMENDER’S LAST NAME.pdf.

      Example: Mr. John Doe, EID: JD123 RECOMMENDER: DR. BLOOM DOE, JOHN (JD123) LOR DR BLOOM.pdf.

      Incorrectly titled documents will not be accepted. DO NOT SEND PAPER COPIES OF LETTERS TO GIAC OR TO THE DEPARTMENT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.

  • Application fee ($50 for US students; $75 for International students). Forms of payment: Visa/MasterCard online or check/money order by postal mail.

  • GRE & TOEFL scores (Sent by E.T.S.; Photocopies are NOT accepted). Please use the University code 6882. We do not require a department code. Please use your judgment and chose a code if ETS requires it, but the code you pick will not have an affect on your scores getting to UT as long as you have the correct University Code (6882).

  • Official transcripts of previous academic work (Photocopies NOT accepted).

All materials not requiring online submission, such as transcripts and
application fees, can be mailed to:

Graduate and International Admissions
The University of Texas at Austin
P.O. Box 7608
Austin, Texas 78713-7608

Please do NOT send your published papers, certificates, awards or anything other than the above listed items to the Department. We cannot recommend an admission decision until GIAC and the Department have received ALL of your application materials. There are no exceptions to this rule.

The Department can neither forward application materials to GIAC nor waive the application fee under any circumstances.

Communications

We communicate with applicants exclusively through e-mail. Please keep a current and active account at ALL times. Also, please be aware that the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), prohibits us from revealing any information about a student's records to ANYONE other than the student (including family members).

Deadlines

  • SPRING: All application materials must be received by OCTOBER 1st.
  • SUMMER/FALL: All application materials must be received by DECEMBER 15th.

The deadlines above are for priority consideration of financial support. The Mechanical Engineering Program functions on a rolling admissions basis. If all your materials are received within two months of the priority funding deadline, your application will be considered for admission though you may not be eligible for funding. Spring final deadline for all materials to be in to GIAC and the Department is December 1. Summer/Fall final deadline for all materials to be in to GIAC and the Department is February 15.

NOTE: You must start your Apply Texas Application no later than the priority deadline to be considered for a particular semester.

Application Process

You will electronically submit your Resume and Supplemental Application directly to the Department. Once the Graduate and International Admissions Center (GIAC) receives all your application materials (application fee, official transcripts, GRE/TOEFL scores, letters of recommendation, and Apply Texas application), they will forward your file to us. Because you have the choice of where your letters are sent, either GIAC or the department, GIAC will refer your file with or without the letters. The department cannot make a decision until GIAC has everything they require of you and refers the file to the Department.

Our Graduate Admissions Committee will then review your entire application. There are no interviews in our application process and there are no set committee review meetings. Applications are being reviewed on an on-going basis. Once the committee has made a recommendation on admission, it will be passed to the Graduate Adviser for a final decision. GIAC will send you a letter via postal mail to inform you of the admission decision.

Your application is considered only for the semester in which you applied. If you would like to be considered for another semesters, you will need to apply again for those semesters. This will require another application fee.

The whole process can take up to several months. We ask that you understand the long application process allows us to spend the time necessary to review each application file carefully. We strive to give each applicant the careful consideration he or she deserves. There is no firm deadline for admissions notification. However, we do process applications as quickly as possible.

Given the number of applications we receive, we regret that we cannot verify receipt of materials or application status by telephone or e-mail. Such inquiries, given the anxiety-producing nature of admissions, are natural, yet significantly slow down the admissions process while only helping a few people. We ask that you understand that this policy allows us to spend more time reviewing each file, and is not intended to create an impersonal impression. The Graduate Office will run several audits during the application period and will try to notify you if a Departmental requirement is missing or if more information is required.

You can check the online status check page through GIAC, but note anything you sent to the department will not show up there. You can look over these listed items and decide if you sent them in or not. Everything is essentially online and comes immediately so there is no guess work as to whether it was delivered by post.

To GIAC:
Apply Texas Application
Transcripts
GRE/TOEFL scores
Statement of Purpose (this is part of the Apply Texas Application)
Application Fee
Online LOR (unless they were emailed to the Department)

*Note if you have problems with anything listed above or any problems with your EID, name, and/or birth date contact GIAC as only they can help you with these items.) For problems with GRE or TOEFL submission please contact ETS and GIAC, not the Department.


To ME/ORIE:
Resume
Supplemental Application
Emailed LOR (whoever sends these, whether it is the recommender themselves or the applicant, that is who gets the confirmation email, so if your recommenders sent it, you need to contact them to verify that they received the confirmation email.)

Application Fee

The Application Fee is $50 for US students; $75 for International students. This may change without notice. Be sure to consult GIAC for the current application fee structure. The application fee cannot be waived under any circumstances. The Department does not charge any additional fees.

Standardized Test Scores & GPA

GRE scores are good for 5 years. We do not accept the GMAT. Non-native English speakers must score at least 550 (paper-based), 213 (computer-based) or 79 (iBT) on the TOEFL. TOEFL scores are good for 2 years. Unless you graduated from a U.S. high school or a U.S. college/university for your undergraduate degree, you MUST take the TOEFL. Even if you are currently at a US Institution working on your MS you must have unexpired TOEFL scores. There are NO exceptions to this requirement. IELTS can be used instead of the TOEFL, but you must notify the ME Department of this when you begin the application process. The average GRE scores for recently admitted students are 550 (V), 770/780 (Q), and 4.5 (AW). The average GPA of recently admitted students is 3.62/4.0 in upper-division or graduate work.

Application Review Philosophy

The standardized test scores, along with GPA, prior institutions attended, experience (resume), letters of recommendation and statement of purpose are equally considered during the review of your application.

Funding

Every admitted student is considered for financial support through fellowships and/or through RA/TA (Research Assistant/Teaching Assistant) positions. However, admission to our graduate program does not guarantee that you will receive an offer of financial support. You will be contacted if you are selected to receive funding. Sometimes you will receive an offer of admission and later an offer of funding. Please be patient for both and remember you will receive an email immediately and a hard copy letter soon after.

Transferring Credit

Up to 6 hours of transferred graduate course work may be considered towards your program of work once you have been accepted and are attending the program, subject to the approval of the Department and the University.

Deferring

You may NOT defer your application, admission or enrollment. If you are admitted and cannot attend in the semester for which you applied, you must re-apply. Because the applicants and the positions available change each semester, we cannot guarantee your admission for a later semester.