The Fall 2025 cycle has closed. Applications for Fall 2026 must be received by December 15, 2025 to be guaranteed full consideration. Please check that you are applying to the correct campus (Rutgers University-New Brunswick).
The Spring 2026 cycle for the master's track will open February 1 and must be received by October 30 for full consideration. Please note that we only offer spring admission for master's students.
Application Materials
All applicants are required to submit undergraduate transcripts, a resume or CV, a personal statement, and a minimum of three recommendation letters.
- While GRE scores are not required for the application to our graduate program, we strongly encourage applicants to submit GRE General test scores as it strengthens an application. CCB takes a holistic approach to reviewing applications, and standardized tests are just one aspect of a candidate’s profile. Unofficial scores or scans of results may be submitted; formal, official documents are only required upon admission.
- A TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or IELTS (International English Language Testing System) test score is required if your undergraduate education was completed in a non-English speaking country. Your scores must be current within 2 years of the semester you are applying to.
- An acceptable paper-based TOEFL score is 550. An acceptable computer-based TOEFL score is 213.
- An acceptable IBT-internet based TOEFL is Writing 22, Speaking 23, Reading 21, Listening 17.
- An acceptable IELTS score is bandwidth 7.
- International applicants (with a minimum of three years undergraduate studies) who come from an institution where the mode of instruction is English are exempt from submitting TOEFL or IELTS scores. If you are an international applicant, please ask your institution to provide a medium of instruction certificate.
- An application fee of $70 USD or a fee waiver from the Office of Graduate and Professional Admissions is required before any application is reviewed. Fee waivers are provided to eligible applicants who demonstrate financial need. The department itself cannot offer fee waivers. It is crucial to remember that the application fee is non-refundable and must be paid at the time of application submission.
- Some fee waivers are automatically applied based on the information you provide on your application. For example, the Office of Graduate Admissions grants application fee waivers to the following groups: active U.S. military and military veterans who plan to apply for educational benefits under the GI Bill, current Rutgers students/alumni, and participants in various scholar programs. Students are automatically reviewed for fee waiver eligibility based on the information they provide on their Rutgers graduate school application.
- Prospective domestic students can request a fee waiver for PhD programs in the Big Ten Academic Alliance, such as CCB's doctoral track at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, through FreeApp. FreeApp is a collaborative program for students who have been traditionally underrepresented in graduate education, including racial and ethnic minorities, women in STEM, first-generation college students, and individuals who have faced adversity, such as societal, economic, or academic disadvantages. The priority deadline for requests is November 15. Please apply here: https://btaa.jotform.com/212284441127146
- International students can contact Graduate Admissions (go.rutgers.edu/contactgrad) for questions about the fee waiver policy.
- International applicants applying to the MS, MST, and PhD programs, who have earned a degree overseas, are encouraged to provide a translated transcript that also provides credential evaluation, which enables an accurate comparison of academic and professional degrees earned in one country to the standards of another.
- Official application materials (transcripts, GRE scores, and TOEFL scores) should be sent to the Graduate and Professional Admissions office:
Institution code: 2790
Rutgers University Enrollment Services
Graduate Admissions Processing
Proctor Hall, Suite 308
65 Davidson Road
Piscataway, NJ 08854 U.S.A.
Please do not send any application materials to CCB.
We may be able to accept late applications, but priority is given to applicants who applied prior to the application deadline and who meet the department’s admissions criteria. Late applications are considered on a rolling basis until the program has reached its capacity.
