Admissions FAQ

The Mechanical Engineering Department's final decisions are typically made between mid-March and mid-April for Summer and Fall admission and the end of October for Spring admission. All materials for the review process should be submitted electronically, with applicants able to check their application status using the online status check. International applicants must also consider any Office of International Services deadlines that relate to I-20 issuance.

All application materials must be submitted by February 15 - for student enrollment in Summer & Fall semesters and September 29 – for student enrollment in the Spring semester.

All supporting material will be submitted electronically. Students admitted to Clemson and who decide to attend can submit official transcripts to Graduate Admissions upon arrival on campus.

1. Personal Statement
2. Letters of Recommendation (2 M.S., 3 Ph.D.)
3. Transcripts from each college or university attended
4. *TOEFL/IELTS/PTE Academic scores (international applicants whose native language is not English)
5. Resume/CV (optional, but encouraged)
6. Application fee: None

NOTE: the minimum score requirements for admissions

• TOEFL – 80
• IELTS – 6.5
• PTE Academic – 54

Application Review Process

While the Department of Mechanical Engineering is looking for applicants with competitive GRE scores (optional), the program is also seeking to admit a diverse cohort of students and is utilizing the holistic approach for the application review process. Average GRE scores provided by the university should serve as a gauge only; many other factors are considered during the review, including industry and research experience, previous academic success, strong recommendations and personal statement. Please review the Preparing to Apply- Supporting Materials page for helpful tips on writing your Personal Statement, CV and resume samples, recommendation requests and more.

Clemson University offers a wide variety of financial aid and references to external funding resources for graduate-level students. The Department of Mechanical Engineering offers several types of graduate assistantships and fellowships.

Graduate Assistantship: A graduate assistantship is a part-time employment opportunity that provides partial tuition and may include a stipend. The allocation of assistantship funding is driven primarily by students’ faculty research advisors. Thesis master’s and Ph.D. students are encouraged to reach out to ME faculty members whose research interests align with their own to identify a research advisor. Students should consult the ME Faculty Directory and ME Research page for information on active research and faculty contact information.

Fellowships: Fellowships are monetary awards that require no service or work from the student. Typically, fellowships are awarded on merit. The Graduate School maintains a list of available fellowships on its website that includes information on many external fellowships.

Endowed Teaching Fellows

The Endowed Teaching Fellows program is established within the Department of Mechanical Engineering to promote Ph.D. students with the potential and desire to pursue an academic career. Through the program, the Department will help such students acquire in-class teaching experience to make them more competitive when applying for a faculty position.

To apply for the Endowed Teaching Fellowship, the student must submit a letter of interest and statement of career plans, resume, academic record, and a nomination statement written by the student’s academic advisor and signed by each member of the student’s advisory committee. Full details can be found in the ME Graduate Handbook.

Degree Program Coordinators

The Graduate Student Services Coordinator is the initial contact for graduate students arriving on campus. The Graduate Student Services Coordinator and the Program Coordinator are the authorities on regulations and procedures pertinent to the graduate programs and should be contacted whenever questions or problems occur.