Applying for the MPP

Please follow the instructions below for the (Policy) Statement of Purpose essay. These instructions supersede the instructions for the general Statement of Purpose on the online application.

MPP Applicants -- Unless you are a concurrent student, you do not need to write two different Statements of Purpose, instead you should respond to the questions below and then upload this response to the Statement of Purpose section of the online application.

MPP/Concurrent Degree Applicants -- concurrent degree applicants must submit a Statement of Purpose for both programs. Detailed Statement of Purpose instructions for concurrent degree applicants are available here.

Instructions: The Goldman School of Public Policy welcomes applicants from a wide variety of backgrounds and with a variety of career aspirations. Some of our students have had prior experience in the realm of public policy; others have not. It is helpful to us to know more about your background, your motivation, and your long-term goals than can be inferred from your records and references. We would appreciate you helping us by supplying a brief statement of 3-5 pages, double-spaced.

Please address some of these areas:

The Present: Why do you want to take an educational program in the analysis and management of public policy?

The Past: What experiences or activities bear on your qualifications for this program, e.g., research papers, study groups, job responsibilities, policy or political projects? How do these experiences relate to your decision to undertake the study of public policy analysis and management? If you have been out of school for a year or more, please indicate the positions you have held and your major activities.

The Future: What kinds of work and activity would you like to engage in following graduation, and what are your long-range career objectives?

Please supply whatever information you think may help us to understand your candidacy more fully.

Personal History Statement

The Personal History Statement is a required part of the UC Berkeley graduate application. Consider this as your personal introduction to the admissions committee.

In your Personal History Statement, please describe how your personal background informs your decision to pursue a graduate degree. In this section, you may also include any relevant information on the following:

How you have overcome barriers to access in higher education, evidence of how you have come to understand the barriers faced by others, evidence of your academic service to advance equitable access to higher education for women, racial minorities, and individuals from other groups that have been historically underrepresented in higher education, evidence of your research focusing on underserved populations or related issues of inequality, or evidence of your leadership among such groups.

Please note that the Personal History Statement should not duplicate the Statement of Purpose.

There is no page length requirement for the Personal History Statement. However, this essay is generally 1-2 pages, double-spaced.

Transcripts

Please upload unofficial transcripts from all universities or colleges attended. Your degree conferral date should be listed on the transcript. If you studied abroad, either as part of an exchange program administered by your school or on your own, please upload those transcripts as well. 

In addition to transcripts, international applicants should also upload degree certificates/diplomas with evidence of degree conferral.

Unofficial transcripts for any in-progress coursework should be forwarded to mppadm@berkeley.edu immediately after the course concludes.

Official transcripts of all college-level work will be required only if admitted.

Letters of Recommendation

Three (3) letters are required. You may submit a combination of academic and professional letters or all professional. Applications without three letters will be considered incomplete. Please follow the instructions on the application for the online letter of recommendation submission process. Note: Letters of Recommendation are due the same day the application is due. We cannot guarantee that Letters of Recommendation received after the application deadline will be reviewed with your application.

GRE Scores

For Fall 2021 Admission Only: GRE scores are requested but not required. GRE scores are normally required of all applicants, as we have found them to be useful indicators of academic preparation.  However, in light of disruptions caused by COVID-19 to the administration of these tests and the inability of many applicants to prepare for them, GSPP will accept applications for admission in Fall 2021 without GRE scores.

Please note: GRE scores dated before August 2015 are no longer valid. It may take a few weeks for your scores to be received and matched to your application electronically. To ensure you meet the application deadline, you should take the GRE by no later than early November. Note: GRE scores are due the same day the application is due. Our institution code is 4833 (Graduate Programs). Reservations for the GRE exam should be made in advance through: The Education Testing Service (ETS) Phone: (609) 771-7670 or 1-800-GRE-CALL or http://www.ets.org/gre.

TOEFL Scores

All applicants from countries in which the official language is not English are required to submit official evidence of English language proficiency. We will only accept TOEFL tests administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and sent to us directly by the TOEFL office. UC Berkeley's Graduate Division is currently not accepting the TOEFL ITP Plus for Mainland China. Please check https://grad.berkeley.edu/admissions/requirements/ in September for any updates. For Fall 2021, tests taken before June 1, 2019 will not be accepted even if your score was reported to Berkeley. Use institution code 4833 (Graduate Programs). You may sign up for the TOEFL http://www.ets.org/toefl. More information about evidence of English language proficiency, including qualifying for an exemption, can be found here.

As an exception, we will also accept the IELTS exam. Beginning for the Fall 2021 application cycle, UC Berkeley's Graduate Division will no longer be accepting paper Test Report Forms. All IELTS scores must be sent electronically from the testing center, no institution code is required.

The address for identification purposes is: University of California, Berkeley, Graduate Division, Sproul Hall Rm 318, MC 5900, Berkeley, CA 94720. Please do not mail any score reports.

For Fall 2021, tests taken before June 1, 2019 will not be accepted. Your most recent overall Band score must be at least 7 on a 9-point scale.

Addendum (Optional)

Please complete this section if you wish to address any specific issues that have adversely impacted your academic performance and/or any aspect of your application. The Addendum is optional.

Application Fee

The application fee must be submitted with the online application and is not refundable. If you are a U.S. Citizen or current Permanent Resident, the application fee is $120; for all others, the fee is $140.

Eligible applicants may apply for an application fee waiver. To do so, you must be a U.S. citizen or current permanent resident. The form to request a fee waiver is included in the payment section of the online application. Please select the fee waiver option before submitting your application to initiate the fee waiver review process.