BSU Admission Requirements

Eligibility

Members of the U.S. Armed Forces, American employees of the U.S. government, and their family members may enroll in courses through University of Maryland University College Europe. In accordance with the terms of the Department of Defense contract, the university may only enroll "those academically qualified individuals who have a valid Identification Privilege Card issued by the military services" and who are located in one of the specified contract countries in Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

Admission Information

All students must complete an online application for admission prior to enrolling in any BSU graduate course. Admission to the Graduate School of Bowie State University is granted to applicants who have completed a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, and whose academic and personal qualifications give promise of success in graduate study. To be successful, BSU graduate students must be capable of graduate-level writing. They must also be computer literate and familiar with computer applications.

Admission categories

All Bowie State graduate programs have the same general admission requirements. Based on these requirements, qualified applicants are admitted in one of the following admission categories.

Full Admission

Students in this category are seeking to complete the master's degree. They must have earned a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution (or the international equivalent) with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale. Students will not be fully admitted until all application materials are received. (See Application Procedures for specific requirements.) Students are permitted to take 9 credits with Bowie State University before full admission is granted.

Conditional Admission

Applicants may be admitted to this category if they have submitted all application materials and:

  • Have a baccalaureate cumulative GPA between 2.0 and 2.49
    and/or
  • Have outstanding undergraduate program prerequisites

Students may take a maximum of 9 graduate credits in conditional admission status. Conditional admission will be changed to full admission status after the completion of 9 graduate credits, with the attainment of a GPA of 3.0 or better and the completion of all undergraduate prerequisites.

Non-Degree Admission

Students who do not wish to earn a BSU degree but wish to enroll in courses, to transfer credit to another institution, or for the purposes of professional development or recertification must complete an online application, pay the $40 application fee, and submit official transcripts. If taking courses for transfer, students must present a letter from the graduate dean of the home institution indicating the student is in good standing and that the BSU credit is acceptable towards the student's degree.

Application Procedures

Prior to enrolling in any graduate course with Bowie State University, the student must complete an online application for admission through MyUMUC. All application materials must be complete and admission status granted within the first 9 credits of coursework. The student must:

  1. Complete the online application for admission indicating the chosen degree plan:
    1. MA in Counseling Psychology
    2. MEd in School Counseling
    3. Master of Public Administration
    4. MS in Management Information Systems

  2. Pay the application fee ($40).

  3. Request transcripts from the bachelor's degree granting institution. All undergraduate classes accepted as prerequisites must be documented on the transcript (either taken at the bachelor's degree granting school, or transferred in to that school).

    Note: UMUC/BSU Europe Graduate Programs reserves the right to request additional transcripts.

    Transcripts are required to be sent directly from the academic institution the student attended to the UMUC Europe Office of Graduate Programs:

    University of Maryland University College Europe
    Office of Graduate Programs
    Unit 29216
    APO AE 09004-9216

    Transcripts may take more than six weeks to arrive, so students are strongly urged to request them as soon as possible to avoid delays in admission processing. Addresses for most U.S. institutions of higher education may be obtained through reference materials generally available at education centers, libraries, or on the Web through sites such as dir.yahoo.com/education/index.html.

  4. Counseling Program Applicants must submit the following additional documentation. Forms can be found at www.ed.umuc.edu/graduate/admission.html:
    1. Three letters of recommendation using the recommendation form provided. At least two letters should be from academic instructors and/or employers/supervisors.
    2. A personal statement. The personal statement must be a typewritten statement not to exceed three single-spaced pages. Further details are included on the form provided.

GoArmyEd

GoArmy students must submit a Common Application in the GoArmyEd portal in place of the UMUC online application.

International Applicants

  • Students with non-U.S. degrees should allow more time for the application process. Non-U.S. credentials are evaluated for regionally accredited equivalency according to the Foreign Educational Credentials for Consideration of Admission to Universities and Colleges in the United States.
  • Proof of English Proficiency
    Applicants who have not received a bachelor's degree from an English-speaking country must demonstrate English language proficiency to be eligible for admission before enrolling in a graduate course. These applicants must submit:
    • minimum TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of at least 550 on the written version, 213 on the computer-based version, 79 on the Internet version; and a minimum Test of Written English (TWE) score of 4.0 (unless the Internet version is submitted - then no TWE is required).

Applicants must arrange to have official score reports sent directly from the testing agency to the Office of Graduate Programs, UMUC Europe, in Heidelberg. The TOEFL school code for UMUC Europe is 0715. Information about the exam may be found at www.toefl.com.

Students who have completed two full academic years of study at an accredited U.S. higher education institution with a minimum of 18 credits completed with a grade of B or higher may have the TOEFL requirement waived.

Readmission

Should there be a lapse of two academic years during which graduate courses are not taken, the student must submit a new online graduate application.

Restrictions

Students may be admitted to only one institution in the University System of Maryland at any one time. Students may be admitted as either graduates or undergraduates, but may not hold both classifications simultaneously.

Students may be admitted to only one graduate program at any time. Application for admission to a second graduate program is not permitted until notification of resignation has been presented to the first program. Students admitted to any other graduate program in the University System of Maryland must notify UMUC Europe. Students retain active status for two years even without being registered in the program. However, after two years without a completed graduate course, students must submit a new online graduate application.

Note: Graduate students may take both graduate and undergraduate courses concurrently, e.g., to fulfill prerequisites.

Graduate Work by UMUC Europe Seniors

Undergraduate students enrolled with UMUC Europe who have reached senior-level status (90 credits or more) may be able to register for BSU graduate-level courses if the following requirements/conditions are met:

  • The graduate courses exceed the number of credits required for the bachelor’s degree.
  • English proficiency has been successfully established.
  • The student’s GPA is 3.0 or better.
  • Permission has been secured from the graduate enrollment manager.

Seniors will be permitted to take up to 6 credits of BSU graduate coursework. Permission to take courses while a senior does not constitute regular admission to the Graduate School. Graduate coursework may not be taken to fulfill undergraduate degree requirements.

UMUC seniors interested in taking BSU courses should contact the Office of Graduate Programs.

Academic Advisement

Upon application, each student’s academic background is evaluated to determine eligibility for enrollment in a graduate program, whether program prerequisites are required, and whether previously taken graduate courses are applicable as transfer credit. Graduate Programs staff will assist students with identifying the best program of study and charting their course for academic success.

Degree Progress Report

Upon official admission, degree-seeking students will be able to view their degree progress report through MyUMUC which lists all course requirements for graduation including:

  1. Unfulfilled program prerequisites.
  2. BSU courses required for degree completion.
  3. Approved transfer courses, if applicable.

Students must successfully complete all coursework stipulated on the degree progress report to be eligible for graduation.


UMUC Europe Graduate Catalog


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Last updated: 25 July 2011