Advisor
Applicants must have an advisor prior to be admitted into the ESGP. The advisor must be an ESGP faculty member. The faculty member must contact the ESGP office and confirm that they have accepted the applicant as an advisee. Applicants will want to inquire if the faculty member has funding for a Graduate Research Associate (GRA) position.
Non-ESGP Advisor or Committee Member
A student can have non-ESGP faculty members on an MS or PhD Committee but cannot have a non-ESGP faculty as an advisor.
Application Deadlines
Applications will not be reviewed until they are complete. Please make sure all application materials are submitted by our program deadlines.
University Fellowships
The minimum requirements for University Fellowships are set by the Graduate School. Any applicant who meets those minimum requirements will be considered for a fellowship nomination. All graduate programs receive a nomination cap for University Fellowships and our Graduate Studies Committee will rank order the fellowship eligible applications. Our program will nominate the most competitive applicants. Students who are awarded a University Fellowship will receive notification from the Graduate School as well as notice from our program. Students cannot nominate themselves for this fellowship.
Financial Support
All ESGP students will have a funding plan, which will map out the funding for completion of your degree. This funding is to be provided by your advisor with a 1 year (2 semester) match from ESGP. Should a student win a fellowship, that will be included in the funding plan. This funding is guaranteed as long as you are making satisfactory progress towards your degree and budget availability.
English Proficiency
Please visit the following link for information related to English Proficiency for international applicants.
Test of Spoken English
Before an international student can be offered a TA position, they must pass the Test of Spoken English. This test is offered both at OSU and internationally by ETS. Information about this test can be found at the Ohio State University ESL website.
For more information, you can contact the staff at the Spoken English Program at OSU at (614) 292-5005.
GRE Scores
The GRE General Test is optional. All materials in your application will be evaluated by the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC), and a decision will be made based on a holistic review of your application.
Do you accept students each term?
We only accept students for Autumn Semester.
Housing Options
You may apply for university housing by checking the appropriate box on the front of your application form. Ohio State has a Housing Office that handles applications for housing, and the information you need to apply will be sent to you by their office if you check the box. For students who would like to live off campus, we have an Off-Campus Student Office. There are all types and prices of apartments available in Columbus, and generally the cost of an apartment is less than in other cities of the same size. Many of our students are able to afford an apartment without having a room mate to share expenses.
Cost of Living
The cost of living in the Columbus area is lower than many comparably sized cities. You can compare cost of living at money.com's web site.
Difference between Environmental Science & Environmental Engineering
The Environmental Engineering program is within the Department of Civil. Environmental and Geodetic Engineering. Students in that program are expected to have a background in engineering and be strong in math. They take primarily engineering courses for their graduate program. Environmental Science is an interdisciplinary graduate program. Students in that program are expected to have taken at least one course in calculus, physics, biology, and chemistry. In their graduate program, they take core courses from each of the following 3 areas: (1) engineering and physical science, (2) biological sciences, (3) social science and policy. Then, the student and his or her advisor design a program that supports the student's research interests; the graduate courses may be taken from any of about 25 different departments at Ohio State.
Faculty from 25 different departments belongs to the Environmental Science Graduate faculty also. Most members of the Environmental Engineering faculty are also on the Environmental Science Graduate faculty.
How long does it take to complete my degree?
MS degrees usually take 2-3 years, whereas PhDs typically take 3-4 years. See the timeline below for the major requirements of an MS and PhD program.
