PhD in Astronomy & Astrophysics

Curriculum Vitae (including publications, talks, and/or posters)

Unofficial copy of your most up-to-date transcripts, including fall semester grades if you have them.

Please address the following topics in the personal statement: Give an example of a time you hit a serious professional or educational obstacle or failure, and how you dealt with it. You can also describe here if you dealt with financial hardship or other adversity in pursuing your career goals. This is not a request to relate personal trauma, unless you think this is essential to understand the context of your application. Describe extracurricular activities in which you've been involved, including volunteer, outreach, and community engagement efforts. If possible, give examples of activities you've led or new initiatives you have started. What professional or educational accomplishment are you most proud of, and why? Give an appraisal of your strengths and weaknesses as related to graduate study. There are a huge range of challenges and opportunities in our society right now. In this context, what are the main appeals to you of getting a Ph.D. in astrophysics, and why do you feel this specific choice is a good one for you?

Please ensure that you address the following topics in the academic statement: Describe research you have done to date. Describe your research interests: what areas or techniques are you interested in studying at Michigan State, and which faculty members are you most interested in working with? It is OK to be interested in more than one topic or faculty member. Describe your long-term career goals, and explain how a graduate degree in astrophysics fits into those plans. Describe your experience with computation.

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