Contact the NAU Office of Graduate & Professional Studies
18%
Higher annual yearly earnings for individuals holding a master's degree vs. only a bachelor's degree43%
Higher annual yearly earnings for individuals holding a doctoral degree vs. only a bachelor's degreeNAU graduate admissions
When you’re ready to elevate your future, we’re ready to help you climb. Get information about graduate school application deadlines, eligibility for study, and admissions policies.
For application questions not answered on this page, please contact the department/school offering your program of interest.
NAU Information Sessions
Looking to learn more about Northern Arizona University’s graduate program offerings? Join us for an in-person (NAU students only) or virtual information session to learn more about program offerings, deadlines, application requirements, and more. The upcoming presentation dates are available for registration here:
In-Person Sessions (Flagstaff Mountain Campus)
- Wednesday, September 18th, 2024- 5:15PM – 6:00PM (MST) – Current NAU Students
- Wednesday, October 16th, 2024- 5:15PM-6:00PM (MST) – Current NAU Students
- Wednesday, November 13th, 2024- 5:15PM-6:00PM (MST) – Current NAU Students
Virtual Sessions (All Prospective US Domestic Students)
- Friday, September 13th, 2024- 11:00AM-12:00PM (MST) – US Domestic Students
- Friday, October 11th, 2024- 11:00AM-12:00PM (MST) – US Domestic Students
- Friday, November 15th, 2024- 11:00AM-12:00PM (MST) – US Domestic Students
- Friday, December 6th, 2024- 11:00AM-12:00PM (MST) – US Domestic Students
Am I eligible for graduate study?
If you have earned a bachelor’s degree from a college or university accredited by an appropriate regional accrediting association, you are eligible to apply for admission to Northern Arizona University as a graduate student.
Admissions requirements
Office of Graduate & Professional Studies requirements Accordion Closed
Applicants must have earned a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 out of a 4.0 scale for their bachelor’s degree to be considered for regular admission. Admitted students are expected to have undergraduate educational experiences, including general education studies, that are similar to those required for a baccalaureate at Northern Arizona University. Students holding a cumulative GPA below 3.0 may be considered for conditional admission with a recommendation and rationale from the admitting academic program.
Undergraduate transcripts from all undergraduate and/or graduate work completed in the U.S. must be uploaded to evaluate your application. Ensure all pages of your transcript are included and can be easily read. Your official transcripts, sent from the issuing institution directly to Northern Arizona University, will be required upon admittance to your graduate program for GPA and degree conferral verification. NAU students do not need to submit official transcripts for NAU coursework.
NAU students may access unofficial transcripts via LOUIE. NAU alumni must have an NAU Google account to access their LOUIE files. You may create a Google account by following the instructions under Alumni at. You may then request transcripts on thepage.
For a transcript to be considered official for admission purposes, it must be sent directly from the former institution to NAU. Transcripts may be sent electronically to gradadmissions@nau.eduor via ground to:
Northern Arizona University
Graduate Admissions
PO Box 4184
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
Academic program requirements Accordion Closed
Academic programs, departments, or colleges may have admission requirements in addition to those of the Office of Graduate & Professional Studies. These may include, but are not limited to: the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), a portfolio, scholarly papers, letters of recommendation, or a personal statement. For these specific requirements, contact the specific academic program and/or refer to the .
Almost ready to apply? Find information about application deadlines, admission decisions, and admission classifications below.
Application review and deadlines
Applications are processed by the Office of Graduate & Professional Studies as they are received. Please be aware that many academic units have specific deadlines and the program’s review of applications varies by unit. Please contact the academic unit for questions about their application review timeline.
If your program does not have a deadline, you are encouraged to apply as early as possible and a minimum of six weeks before the term in which you wish to enroll.
McNair Scholars, please send your eligibility letter to Graduate@nau.edu for an application fee waiver review.
Admission decisions
Only the Office of Graduate & Professional Studies can make formal offers of admission. Academic programs make admission recommendations to the Office of Graduate & Professional Studies based on their review of all required application materials. While departments and programs may notify applicants that they have recommended their admission, the Office of Graduate & Professional Studies notifies all applicants in writing of any official admission decision.
Admission to many academic programs is on a competitive basis, and those programs frequently set higher standards and evaluation criteria than the Office of Graduate & Professional Studies. Therefore, meeting the minimum Office of Graduate & Professional Studies requirements does not ensure admission to a graduate program.
Admission classifications & residency
Regular admission Accordion Closed
If an applicant meets all admission criteria, has been evaluated and recommended for admission by the academic program, and has been evaluated and approved by the Office of Graduate & Professional Studies, the applicant may be granted regular admission, barring any extenuating circumstances.
Conditional admission Accordion Closed
If an applicant is not qualified for regular admission status, they may be granted conditional admission. Reasons for conditional admission vary and may include, but are not limited to:
- The Bachelor’s degree is expected to be completed before the commencement of graduate work, but has not yet been posted to an official transcript;
- Minimum admission standards were not met, but the applicant demonstrates a potential to meet the requirements of the degree;
- Programmatic or discipline-specific requirements are deficient or the applicant lacks certain prerequisites;
- Begins a graduate program as a “Preplan” student*.
To change from conditional status to regular status, the student must complete all admission requirements and remove all deficiencies noted in the admission letter. Students who fail to meet conditional admission requirements may be denied regular admission upon department and Office of Graduate & Professional Studies review and will not be allowed to progress in the degree. For more information, please see NAU Policy 100319: .
* Only certain graduate degrees are considered “Preplan” programs. Students who apply for a “Preplan” degree program are given the opportunity to take courses soon after the submission of their application. Students who fail to meet Office of Graduate & Professional Studies or programmatic admission requirements may be denied regular admission and will not be allowed to progress in the degree, despite any courses that may have been completed.
Non-degree admission Accordion Closed
Individuals interested in personal enrichment or not ready to apply to a degree program may apply for admission as a non-degree student. The application process is streamlined and does not require the submission of transcripts or test scores.
Graduate non-degree-seeking students are allowed to apply up to a maximum of 12 units of appropriate and approved coursework toward a graduate degree upon admission to a graduate program.
Residency classification Accordion Closed
Residency Classification for tuition purposes is based on policies set by the . Students arriving in Arizona from another state, enrolled in an institution of higher education in Arizona, and maintaining continuous enrollment are presumed to be presiding in Arizona primarily as a studentand arenot present to establish domicile. Therefore, theyare not eligible for the Arizona resident tuition rate.
Typically, for a student to be independently classified as a resident for tuition purposes, they must be physically present in Arizona 12 consecutive months prior to enrollment, employed and paying AZ taxes, and able to document up to 24 months of financial independence.This presence must be coupled with clear and convincing evidence of intent to establish a domicile in Arizona beyond the circumstances of being a student. The mere presence of a person in this state does not, by itself, constitute domicile. There is a presumption that no adult student or emancipated minor has established a domicile in this state while attending any educational institution in this state.
Students may qualify for an Arizona Board of Regents-approved exception to the 12-month residency rule. Enrolled students may submit Exception and Change of Residency Status petitions for which they qualify within established deadlines for each term.
Admission and program changes
Change of enrollment term
If a student is offered admission to a graduate program at Northern Arizona University and decides not to attend in the term in which they are admitted, they must contact the admitting academic department to request a change to the term of enrollment. If approved, the department will notify the Admissions office, and your admission term may be updated. Students may request a deferral of admission only once after an initial admission. If they wish to defer admission again, they may be required to reapply to their program.
Change of graduate program/plan
If you wish to switch to a different graduate program, please contact the Admissions office to determine what steps are needed to facilitate this change. Students who switch graduate programs usually have to reapply to the new program.