Special Instructions for applying to the MIT Microbiology Graduate Program.
Application System Opens: October 1st
Application Deadline: December 1st
All completed applications will be reviewed and invitations to interview will be sent mid-January. Interviews are required to be considered for admission to the program:
2026 Open House Interview Day Dates:
Micro Open House I: Tuesday, February 10, 2026
Micro Open House II: Tuesday, February 24, 2026
MIT Microbiology Graduate Admissions Statement
March 26, 2020
In response to the challenges of teaching, learning, and assessing academic performance during the global COVID-19 pandemic, MIT has adopted the following principle: MIT’s admissions committees and offices for graduate and professional schools will take the significant disruptions of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020 into account when reviewing students’ transcripts and other admissions materials as part of their regular practice of performing individualized, holistic reviews of each applicant. In particular, as we review applications now and in the future, we will respect decisions regarding the adoption of Pass/No Record (or Credit/No Credit or Pass/Fail) and other grading options during the unprecedented period of COVID-19 disruptions, whether those decisions were made by institutions or by individual students. We also expect that the individual experiences of applicants will richly inform applications and, as such, they will be considered with the entirety of a student’s record. Ultimately, even in these challenging times, our goal remains to form graduate student cohorts that are collectively excellent and composed of outstanding individuals who will challenge and support one another. Questions or concerns about this statement should be directed microbiology@mit.edu.
Admissions Instructions
Please note: The GRE is no longer required.
Email will be the primary method of contacting you, please do not change your email address once you have submitted your application as this will result in a record mismatch.
If you encounter technical issues with this application system, please email gradadmissions@mit.edu
Application Deadline: December 1st. For fullest consideration, it is in your best interest to complete all parts of the application including applicable data entry fields, and attaching the required transcript(s), language test score documents, all evaluation letters, and the application fee, by or before the deadline of December 1st. Incomplete applications may not be reviewed.
The scanned and attached copies of your transcript(s), (and IELTS, if applicable), are considered unofficial, but are sufficient for review purposes. Official documents will be required before a positive admissions decision can be made. If you are invited to interview, mail one copy of your transcript from each school you list in your application to the address below.
Three letters of recommendation (if you are presently in school, at least two must be academic recommendations). We require that all recommendations be submitted electronically, using this system. Use Evaluations and then Letter Status to ask for electronic recommendations and to check whether recommendations have arrived. If letters are missing, you must e-mail your recommenders the instructions shown in Letter Status.
- Please note: You will be provided instructions and a link to email to each of your recommenders that they use to upload their letter. Each recommender will have a link unique to that individual — do not copy the same link to all your recommenders.
You can check the status of your application (complete or missing materials) online by logging into your application.
When a drop-down menu is provided for input fields, please use them as much as possible. Because your information needs to be transmitted to multiple databases, if an item is manually input instead of selected from the drop-down menu, and it causes a mismatch, that can prevent the application from being transmitted. For example: When indicating your major, if you do not see your major included in the drop down menu, choose the closest major from the list provided. You can always provide information specific to your major in your personal statement.
Academic Transcript: Please attach a PDF of your transcript(s) to your online application. Invitations to interview will be sent sometime mid-January. If you are invited to interview, please have one (1) official copy of your transcript from each school you list in your application mailed as soon as possible to the Microbiology Office and IELTS (if applicable) electronically sent to MIT Admissions. Transcripts must either be received in envelopes sealed by the institution or sent by the Registrar’s Office of your school to microbiology@mit.edu to be considered official. If your school does not grade on the 4.0 scale, please include the maximum/minimum numeric grade scale in your application.
MIT Microbiology Graduate Program
Building 68-120C
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139 USA
The Subjects Taken Page is optional only if you have attached a PDF of your transcript. Attaching your transcript is strongly preferred for the completion of your application. If no transcript has been attached, this page must be filled in to complete your application, and you must follow up with an official transcript sent to the address indicated on the Overview/Help page. Please complete the subjects taken in the following order: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Math, Engineering/Other Sciences.
Statement of Objectives
All applicants will be asked to provide a statement of objectives. Applicants will be asked the following:
Please give your reasons for wishing to do graduate work in the field you have chosen. Prepare your statement of objectives and goals in whatever form clearly presents your views. Include, as far as you can, your particular interests, be they experimental, theoretical, or issue oriented, and show how your academic or professional background and MIT’s Microbiology PhD program supports these interests. The statement could be much like a proposal for graduate studies, in the more specific context of your professional objectives. You should set forth the issues and problems you wish to address. Explain your long-term professional goals and MIT Microbiology faculty that you would like to work with. The Admissions Committee will welcome any factors you wish to bring to its attention concerning your academic and work experience to date. (There is no page or word limit for the statement of objectives.)
Additional Requirements for International Students Only
English language proficiency test scores are required of all applicants whose primary language is not English. Test scores must be from within the past two years. Registration information is available at ielts.org or ets.org
- IELTS or IELTS Indicator: Minimum score required: 7
- TOEFL and TOEFL at Home: Minimum iBT score 100
Please have your TOEFL or IELTS scores to:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Office of Graduate Admissions Room 3-103
77 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02139
Please arrange to take the IELTS/TOEFL exam with sufficient time to include your exam score by the application deadline.
Information about Language Proficiency Waivers:
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology requires all international applicants to demonstrate a minimum English language proficiency needed to succeed in graduate school. Nearly all international applicants will be required to submit English Proficiency Test scores to complete their MIT graduate application(s).
The central Office of Graduate Education is pleased to automatically exempt the English Language Proficiency (ELP) test requirement for international applicants who meet one or both of the following criteria:
1. Your primary language is English
- Primary language is defined as your first language learned and spoken in your family home.
2. Within the last 5 years, you attended an English-speaking university for 3-4 years and attained an undergraduate (or equivalent) degree from that university in one of the following countries:
- Australia
- Canada
- Ireland
- New Zealand
- United Kingdom (includes England, Northern Ireland, Scotland & Wales)
- United States
If you meet one or both of the above criteria, you will be automatically exempted from providing English proficiency test scores.
Invitations to interview are emailed approximately mid-January. In-person interviews are required of all prospective students to be admitted to the program. Official documents are required before a positive admissions decision will be made. If you are invited to interview, please have one (1) official copy of your transcript from each school you list in your application mailed as soon as possible to the Microbiology Office and have your official language scores if applicable), electronically sent to MIT Admissions. Transcripts must be received in envelopes sealed by the institution to be considered official.
Please address questions about MIT Microbiology Graduate Program and the application process to microbiology@mit.edu.
You can find more information about MIT graduate admissions in general here.
Application Fee Waiver
Applicants should review the following website and apply first for a fee waiver through the Graduate Admissions Office before requesting a fee waiver through the Microbiology Education Office.
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