Admissions

Ph.D. Admissions

The application deadline for Ph.D. admissions is January 15.

All applicants seeking admission into the Belk College Ph.D. program must fulfill the general admissions requirements of the Graduate School of the UNC Charlotte. Additional Ph.D. admissions requirements are listed below.

  • A baccalaureate or master’s degree in business, economics, or a related field such as mathematical finance, mathematics or physics with a minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. In the case where an applicant holds a master’s degree, a minimum GPA of 3.25 on a 4.0 scale on all graduate coursework is required.
  • GMAT or GRE exam
  • For non-native speakers of English who do not hold degrees from a U.S. university, a minimum TOEFL score of 220 (computer-based), 557 (paper-based), or 83 (internet-based) is required. Alternatively, a minimum IELTS band score of 6.5 is required. This is a Graduate School requirement and cannot be waived. Non-native speakers of English may be required, at the discretion of the Graduate School or the Program Director for the Ph.D. in Business Administration, to enroll in ESL courses at the English Language Training Institute.
  • Three positive letters of recommendation, one of which must be from a former professor.
  • A statement of purpose from the applicant explaining their desire to pursue a finance doctorate.

To ensure that students are prepared for doctoral-level coursework, they are required to have had, at the graduate or undergraduate level, the equivalent of the following courses:

  • MATH 1241 Calculus I
  • MATH 1242 Calculus II
  • MATH 2164 Linear Algebra
  • MATH 2241 Calculus III
  • MATH 3122/3123 Probability & Statistics

Students lacking these mathematics courses will generally be allowed to take those courses at either the graduate or undergraduate level. At the Program Director’s discretion, a student may be permitted to take combined courses to meet multiple prerequisites.

Although unlikely, it is possible that a student may enter the program without having taken a specific prerequisite or business core course but has, nevertheless, acquired the same skill and technical abilities that the course would convey. In such cases, the Program Director may waive the course.

Students who lack strong computer programming skills may be advised to take programming courses offered by the College of Computing and Informatics. Specifically, the Program Director may advise a student to take ITCS 1212 (Introduction to Computer Science) or other similar courses after reviewing the student’s background and prior programming experience.

Ph.D. Financial Support

The Belk College anticipates admitting two to three students each academic year, subject to budgetary conditions. The College offers each admitted student a competitive compensation package consisting of a graduate assistantship, full tuition remission, and medical insurance (medical insurance is available for dependents at an additional cost). Students are only admitted on a full-time basis.