All UC Davis graduate admissions applicants are required to submit two essay responses in their application: a Statement of Purpose and a Personal Statement. The essay prompts are included below, so prospective applicants may prepare their essays before starting the application.
Each essay is limited to 4,000 characters (including spaces).
Statement of Purpose
Please highlight your academic preparation and motivation; interests, specializations and career goals; and fit for pursuing graduate study at UC Davis.
- preparation and motivation may include your academic and research experiences that prepare you for this graduate program (for example: coursework, employment, exhibitions, fieldwork, foreign language proficiency, independent study, internships, laboratory activities, presentations, publications, studio projects, teaching, and travel or study abroad) and motivation or passion for graduate study.
- interests, specializations, and career goals may include your research interests, disciplinary subfields, area/s of specialization, and professional objectives.
- fit may include how your preparation, experiences, and interests match the specific resources and characteristics of your graduate program at UC Davis. Please identify specific faculty within your desired graduate program with whom you would like to work and how their interests match your own.
Personal Statement
2026-27 prompt information coming soon.
This essay should complement but not duplicate the content in the Statement of Purpose.