Prospective Graduates | UCLA Economics

Please submit inquiries regarding the admissions process via email to phdadmit@ucla.edu.

DO NOT contact faculty or other departmental staff members regarding your applications.

Applications are closed. Please check back in Fall 2025 for the Fall 2026 intake.

The Department of Economics offers two degree tracks: a Master of Quantitative Economics (MQE) and a PhD in Economics. This page provides information on the admission process for the doctoral program. Students who are accepted into our doctoral program can earn their Master’s of Arts (MA) in Economics en route to earning their PhD. Note: Based on University policy, students who have already been awarded an academic Master’s in Economics (MA or MS), are unable to be awarded a duplicate degree.

The PhD program does not admit students whose final goal is to earn a Master of Arts in Economics. If you are interested in a Master’s only, please apply to the MQE Program. They offer a terminal Master’s degree curriculum designed to prepare students to enter the field of Economics. If you are interested in applying to the MQE program, contact our MQE Graduate Office at mqe-office@econ.ucla.edu

The program only admits students once a year in the fall; we do not have spring or winter admissions. Applications must be submitted by 11:59pm PST on December 1, (2:59am EST on December 2) of the application year. Recommendation letters are given a 2 week grace period. Unofficial transcripts should be uploaded by December 1, and GRE/TOEFL exams must have been taken by December 1 (scores should arrive within 2-3 weeks).

Our application is entirely online. Students only need to submit unofficial transcripts during the review process. If admitted, all students will be required to submit official transcripts in order to register.

All applicants must apply online via the UCLA Application for Graduate Admission.

Please do not submit application materials by email or by fax.

For questions about our departmental admissions policies and procedures, you may contact phdadmit@econ.ucla.edu. If you have specific questions about the online UCLA Division of Graduate Education Application system, please email the Division of Graduate Education Admissions office at onlineapphelp@grad.ucla.edu. If you experience technical issues with the online application, please use the Technical Support button found at the top of each page of the application.

Application Materials Checklist

Academic Records

All applicants must upload a copy of all your relevant academic records to the online application. The Department requires that all Economics, Math, and Statistics courses be clearly marked on the uploaded academic transcripts by circling the courses.

Requirements for U.S. Applicants:

Applications will be reviewed based on unofficial copies of your transcripts uploaded as a part of your application. You are not required to submit an official transcript during the application process.

Applicants who are officially notified of admission: One official copy of your electronic transcript(s) should be sent directly from the Registrar(s) of the academic institution(s) you have attended (beyond secondary school), or you may request official copies and mail them yourself in the sealed envelope. Please note that submitted records become the property of the University and cannot be returned. Please submit all electronic transcripts to phdadmit@econ.ucla.edu.

If you are a university/college senior, do not risk missing the deadline by waiting for senior-year grades to be posted before submitting your application and transcript.

UCLA undergraduates are exempt from mailing official copies of UCLA transcripts.

Requirements for International Applicants:

Please upload unofficial academic records to the online application.

International applicants should submit the transcripts (listing courses and grades) in both the original language and the authorized, complete, and exact English translation certified by the issuing institution. Unofficial transcripts are accepted for admissions consideration. However, students will need to provide official transcripts upon acceptance to the program. Electronic transcripts should be emailed to phdadmit@econ.ucla.edu from the institutions directly to our office.

Degree and diploma certificates (or other evidence of conferral of all degrees, diplomas, or professional titles) must accompany the transcripts, and must also be submitted in the the original language and in English. This evidence may be in the form of officially certified copies of the actual diploma, or entries on official records or official statements from granting institutions. In all cases, the statement must include (1) the exact, original title of the degree and (2) the date of its formal conferral (month and year).

Please review English proficiency requirements here.

Any questions about the requirements for official academic records can be directed to phdadmit@econ.ucla.edu.

GRE Scores

Required. Official GRE scores must be sent directly by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). Please provide the ETS with the following codes when requesting your scores:

GRE – UCLA: 4837 / Econ: 1801

Please be advised that all applicants, regardless of their degree or major backgrounds, must submit GRE scores. There are no substitutes for the GRE, including the GMAT.

A GRE score is valid if the examination was given no more than five years prior to the date your application is submitted.

Our admitted students have, on average, GRE scores in the 80th percentile in the verbal, 94th percentile in the quantitative, and 5.0 or above in the analytical sections. There is no minimum score requirement for the GRE.

In order for your official scores to be matched to your application, be sure that the personal information you give on the Application for Graduate Admission is exactly the same as the information you gave at the time you took the test. Any variations between your name, date of birth, and gender on the application vs your test score report will result in your scores failing to match to your application.

Please note it can take several weeks for scores to be matched to your record in the system. Test report must show a test date before December 1st of the application year.

TOEFL/IELTS scores

International applicants only. Official TOEFL scores must be sent directly by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). Official IELTS scores must be sent directly by the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Photocopies of these reports are not considered official documents and cannot be used for admission evaluation. Please provide the ETS with the following codes when requesting your scores:

TOEFL – UCLA: 4837 / Econ: 84

If you have previously taken the TOEFL exam, your score is valid for two years; scores should be valid at the time your application is submitted.

A TOEFL score of at least 560 on the paper and pencil test or 220 on the computer based test is the minimum required. For the internet-based TOEFL (TOEFL iBT), applicants must have a minimum total passing score of 87. You do not need to meet the minimum passing scores for each section as long as this minimum overall score of 87 is met.

An IELTS overall band score of at least 7.0 is the minimum required.

Applicants who hold a Bachelor’s or higher degree from a university located in the United States or in another country, in which English is both the spoken language and the medium of instruction, or who have completed at least two years of full-time study at such an institution, are exempt from both the TOEFL/IELTS requirement and the ESLPE. Please be sure to include such information in your application.

Please review English proficiency requirements here.

Statement of Purpose

Personal Statement

Resume/CV

Letters of Recommendation

Application Fee

Required. Submit through application portal online.

$135.00 for U.S. citizens and Permanent Residents.
$155.00 for all other applicants.

The application fee is devoted to the administrative cost of processing all applications received, and is not refundable under any circumstances, regardless of the outcome, the date of filing, time of review, or if, for whatever the reason, the application is withdrawn.

Fee Waiver

Preparation

A Bachelor’s degree in Economics is recommended but not required. However, a strong background in Economics is essential. An applicant should have formal coursework in intermediate Micro- and Macro-Economic Theory and Econometrics.

Mathematical preparation is also essential. This should include a minimum of one year of Probability and Statistics and two years of Calculus. Additional coursework in mathematics and Statistics, especially Linear Algebra, Matrix Algebra, Advanced Probability Theory, Mathematical Statistics and Real Analysis, is highly recommended.

Prior to uploading the academic transcripts to the online application, please circle all Economics, Math, and Statistics courses.

GPA Requirement

The minimum requirement for admission for a U.S. applicant is a Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution, comparable in standard and content to a Bachelor’s degree from the University of California. A scholastic average of B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or better is required or its equivalent if the letter grade system is not used.

An international applicant whose post-secondary education is completed outside of the U.S. is expected to hold a degree representing completion of at least four years of study with above average scholarship from a university or university-level institution.

All prospective applicants are eligible to apply if the above conditions are met.

Entering Class

Funding

All admitted applicants are considered for Departmental funding, and the awards can vary in length and level of support. Some of our students are admitted with funding and others are not. Funding is based on the strength of the entire application for admission and does not require a separate application.

Teaching Assistantships and Readerships are normally offered to all of our students, subject to their satisfactory progress in the program.

For comprehensive information about admission to graduate programs at UCLA, please visit the UCLA Division of Graduate Education website and our FAQ page.

Please submit inquiries regarding the admissions process via email to phdadmit@ucla.edu.

DO NOT contact faculty or other departmental staff members regarding your applications.

Applications are closed. Please check back in Fall 2025 for the Fall 2026 intake.

Application Materials Checklist

Contact

Campus Resources

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