How to Apply

Matriculated students are candidates for the master's degree. Primary reasons why some students choose to apply as matriculated students are: 

1. They are certain they want to earn the MSHE degree either on a full-time or part-time basis. 
2. They can meet all application requirements, including:  
3. Possessing a minimum of a 3.0 undergraduate GPA. 
   • Submitting GRE test scores that are sufficient for admission or qualifying to petition to waive the GRE. (Please note that we consider average, not minimum, scores. If applicants take the GRE exam multiple times, we will use the highest score from each section.) 
   • Providing two letters of reference, one of which must be an academic reference from an instructor who assigned a grade. 
4. They are a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident and wish to apply for Federal Financial Aid. 

Previous education course work or experience is not required.

• 4 essays 
• All undergraduate and graduate academic transcripts – The transcript GPA(s) is an important indicator of an applicant’s academic capabilities and cannot be lower than a 3.0. 

• Résumé 
• Two letters of recommendation (one must be academic) 
• $100 US application fee (nonrefundable) – Full-time applicants for the MSHE degree may request an application fee waiver after attending an information session. Application fee waiver details will be discussed at the information session. 
• Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores (may petition to waive or substitute – see GRE Requirements section below) 
• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score (see English proficiency section below) 

Non-matriculated students are not yet candidates for the master's degree. Primary reasons why some students choose to apply as non-matriculated students are: 

1. The student does not have anyone who can serve as an academic reference (this often happens with students who have been out of school for a while and have lost contact with their previous instructors). 
2. The student has not yet taken the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), does not qualify for a GRE waiver, or prefers not to take the GRE for acceptance to the degree program. Once the student has completed three MSHE courses, they may petition to waive the GRE in their application to matriculate (see information below within 'GRE Requirements'). 
3. The student does not know whether they want to earn a master's degree or a Higher Education Certificate. 

Non-matriculated students may take up to three courses before they must either apply to matriculate or choose to earn a Higher Education Certificate (HEFC, HESASC or HEOMC). 

Non-Matriculated students may apply to the master’s degree program once they have completed three higher education courses. All coursework successfully completed as a Non-Matriculated/Certificate student will count toward the MSHE degree requirements. Students who choose not to apply for matriculation will earn one of the Higher Education Certificates based on the higher education courses completed. Students who earn a Higher Education Certificate are no longer eligible to earn the master's degree. 

Certificate-seeking students begin as Non-Matriculated students in the program.  After completion of 3 courses, they decide, in consultation with their academic advisor, if they wish to earn a Higher Education Certificate (HEFC, HESASC or HEOMC) or apply to become degree candidates.  

The primary reasons to apply as a Certificate student are: 

1. The applicant aims to enroll in one of the three Certificates offered.  
2. The applicant intends to complete the MSHE degree, but cannot satisfy all required components of a successful application, such as does not have an academic reference, does not have a 3.0 required cumulative GPA, does not have satisfactory Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores, or cannot petition to waive the GRE requirement. 

 Note – applying for a Higher Education Certificate is not available to international applicants (for U.S. visa purposes). 

Certificate-seeking students may take up to two courses each quarter to complete their course of study in a minimum of three quarters (approximately nine months).  

For applicants for non-matriculation or the Higher Education Foundations Certificate, higher education coursework or professional experience is not required.  

For both the Higher Education Student Access and Success Certificate and the Higher Education Organization Management Certificate, higher education coursework is not required, but higher education professional experience is preferred. 

• Statement of purpose 
• All undergraduate and graduate academic transcripts – The transcript GPA(s) is an important indicator of an applicant’s academic capabilities and cannot be lower than a 3.0. 
• Résumé 
• $100 US application fee (nonrefundable) 

Only matriculated applicants seeking the MSHE degree need to meet the GRE requirements or request a waiver. However, non-matriculated applicants should also review this section if they may be interested in pursuing the degree in the future.   

Submit scores to code 8844 (not 1565 NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY) 

If you take the GRE multiple times, we will use the highest score from each section, even if those scores appear on different test dates. 

GRE scores are valid up to five years after the test date. 

To petition to substitute the GRE or waive the GRE, please review the information below and then follow the steps outlined on the application.  If you have questions, please contact our admissions coordinator at mshe-apply@northwestern.edu.  

Applicants may petition to submit Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or Law School Admission Test (LSAT) scores in place of the GRE when applying for matriculated status.

Applying as a Matriculated (degree certain) Student 

Applicants may petition to waive the GRE when applying for matriculated status if they meet one of the following criteria:  

• Applicant is a currently enrolled undergraduate who has achieved senior standing with a GPA of 3.3 or higher; 
• Applicant has earned a bachelor's degree with a GPA of 3.3 or higher; 
• Applicant has earned a doctoral degree (MD, JD, PhD, EdD). 

Any applicant seeking to waive the GRE must first participate in an information session (view schedule and sign-up here). 

These are the only circumstances under which the GRE will be waived for direct admission as a matriculated student.  

Applying as a Non-Matriculated (degree uncertain) Student 

The program does offer a possible path for admission for degree without the GRE; this requires admission first as a non-matriculated student.  

A student who wishes to request a waiver of the GRE and who does not meet one of the above qualifications, may apply for admission as a non-matriculated student. After completing three-to-four courses, admitted non-matriculated students may then petition to waive the GRE as part of the application to transition to matriculated status. 

Applying as an enrolled Non-Matriculated Student Seeking to Matriculate 

Non-matriculated MSHE students who wish to change to matriculated status may petition to waive the GRE requirement if all of the following criteria have been met: 

• Applicant has at least 3 years of full-time work experience (higher education experience is preferred but not required). 
• Applicant successfully completes at least 3 MSHE core courses as outlined below with a GPA of at least 3.5 and no individual course grade lower than a “B”: 
  • Course #1 - MSHE 460 Proseminar in Higher Education 
  • Course #2 - MSHE 462 The College Student OR MSHE 466 Budgeting and Finance in Higher Education 
  • Course #3 - MSHE 462 OR MSHE 466 OR a MSHE Leadership Course (473, 477 or 479) 

• Applicant supplies an academic recommendation from a MSHE faculty member from a completed MSHE core course as one of the required recommendations. 
• Applicant completes all other requirements for applying from non-matriculated status to matriculated status, including the online application. 

Petitions to waive or substitute the GRE are never guaranteed. The decision to grant a waiver or substitution rests with the Higher Education admissions committee and is determined in joint consideration with the rest of a candidate's application materials.  A petition to waive the GRE is not considered conclusive or approved until the admissions committee reviews the application in its entirety. 

An international applicant is any person that requires a student visa to study in the United States. U.S. Citizens and U.S. Legal Permanent Residents are not considered international applicants. International applicants are eligible to apply to the MSHE program, provided that they will have successfully completed the equivalent of a United States bachelor’s degree prior to starting MSHE coursework. International applicants must complete all program-specific application requirements as well as additional requirements outlined below. 

International students may begin their MSHE coursework in either the summer or fall term. To be eligible for a student visa, students must be enrolled full-time in the MSHE program, which is three (3) courses per term. Full-time students are required to complete 400 hours of internship work. International students are eligible to complete one or two internships once they have obtained a U.S. Social Security number and met other requirements. Additional information regarding the internship process will be provided upon admission to the program.

If you attend(ed) academic programs located outside the U.S., the Admissions Committee needs to receive translated transcripts (regardless of language of instruction). You must use a credential evaluation service that converts scores and grade point average into U.S.-based grades, as well as confirms that the academic components of your degree meet our requirements. 

Two organizations that offer transcript translation services are World Education Services and Education Perspectives. Other transcript translation services may be accepted as long as they are certified by NACES (National Association of Credential Evaluation Services). Request the course-by-course or detailed report (not the document-by-document report). The service will request that you have your academic program(s) send your transcript(s) to them, and they will, in turn, generate a report that is sent directly to the MSHE program. You do not need to send your original transcripts to MSHE. 

Direct the translation service to send transcript evaluations to: 

• Via email (this is preferred), with accompanying PDF file, to mshe-apply@northwestern.edu. 
• Via mail, in an envelope sealed by the official sender (not by the applicant) to: Master of Science in Higher Education Administration and Policy; Northwestern University; 1800 Sherman Avenue, Suite 7300; Evanston, Illinois 60208