Applying to MSIDC

The application process includes several steps. All steps must be completed before the deadlines established for the MSIDC program. To be eligible to apply, you must have a bachelor's degree from an accredited school, an appropriate academic record, and acceptable writing ability.

Application Procedure

• Complete an application for graduate admission to SPSU. You can download a printable application and mail it in along with the $20 non-refundable application fee. Or, you can set up an online account and apply over the internet.
  

• Submit GRE®—Graduate Record Examinations® scores OR a professional portfolio. If you choose the GRE option, view the GRE FAQs. Test scores may be waived, if an applicant has 2 or more years of relevant work experience. Applicants may submit, to the ETCMA Graduate Review Committee, a portfolio of work, along with appropriate descriptions and narrative justification of the relevancy of the work experience to the candidate's suitability for graduate degree study, i.e., explanation of audience, purpose of each of the samples, and the applicant's role in creating them.
  
  Note: Since the GRE scores are not the only determining factor as to whether a student is admitted to the MSIDC degree, the Graduate Review Committee does not specify a minimum score requirement. In addition to the GRE test, a student must write both a proctored essay and an off-campus essay. Sometimes the GRE score is not reflective of the actual writing talents a student possesses. For this reason, we do not base the student's acceptance solely on the GRE scores.

• Request one official transcript to be sent from each college or university attended. (These must be in sealed envelopes sent directly from the school to our program assistant Donna McPherson's attention.)

• Complete a Certificate of Immunization. This must be submitted to the school nurse, Julie Scala, jscala@spsu.edu

• Request three signed letters of recommendation written on letterhead
  The references should be from supervisors, clients, professors, or professional colleagues who can write about your work or academic record. Each letter should be in a sealed envelope with the writer's signature placed over the seal. You are to personally mail or deliver the envelope to our office or have the reference mail the letter to Donna McPherson's attention.

• Write Application Essay
  A an essay focusing on why the applicant has chosen an online learning environment for an MS degree in Information Design and Communication, essay should also include a list of elective courses the applicant is most interested in taking and why these courses support the applicant’s professional/academic goals. (essay should be at least 2 pages, double-spaced, and typed)
  

• Compile Professional Resume
  This professional resume should show current and past work experience.

Once these materials have been received and processed, the IDC Program Assistant will contact you to complete the application process. This includes:

• Timed Essay
  For the timed essay (written in a specified length of time in response to an assignment given at the time) contact the Program Assistant, Donna McPherson, tcom@spsu.edu, or 678-915-7202, to schedule a day and time to write the essay. The essay topic and a set of instructions will be sent via email, on the day scheduled. The applicant is responsible for timing the essay and sending an electronic copy back to the MSIDC Department within three hours of beginning the essay.

Once all of this information has been submitted, your file will then be presented to the Graduate Review Committee for review for acceptance into the program. The Graduate Review Committee may, at its discretion, request additional information to help it review your application, including the possibility of an on-campus interview with a member of the committee.

You may also send additional information that you feel would be useful to the committee in evaluating your application, including, for example, your professional portfolio.

International Students

International students who do not possess a baccalaureate degree from a college in the United States must submit (1) an official English-translated transcript of college-level education, (2) the TOEFL scores, and (3) an affidavit indicating financial security.

Transfer Credit

Students may receive up to nine hours of credit for graduate work that is (1) equivalent to Southern Polytechnic information design courses, (2) taken in the last five years, and (3) completed with an "A" or "B" grade. Contact the department for more information.

For more information

For further information on admissions, contact Donna McPherson at 678-915-7202.