The Master of Environmental Studies program (MES) is designed for individuals with a wide variety of backgrounds and levels of experience. Successful students in the program have come from many different undergraduate educational backgrounds such as economics, political science and English.
Your application to the Master of Environmental Studies program will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
- Undergraduate academic record at an accredited college or university
- Work experience
- Career objectives and reasons for choosing the Master of Environmental Studies program at Penn
- Letters of recommendation
- Graduate Record Exam (GRE) and Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores, if applicable
See our Application Overview for specific requirements.
COVID-19 and admissions reviews
Recognizing the challenges of teaching, learning, and assessing academic performance during the global COVID-19 pandemic, Penn’s admissions committees for graduate and professional programs will take the significant disruptions of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020 into account when reviewing students’ transcripts and other admissions materials as part of their regular practice of performing individualized, holistic reviews of each applicant. In particular, as we review applications now and in the future, we will respect decisions regarding the adoption of Pass/Fail and other grading options during the period of COVID-19 disruptions. An applicant will not be adversely affected in the admissions process if their academic institution implemented a mandatory pass/fail (or similar) system for the term or if the applicant chose to participate in an optional pass/fail (or similar) system for the term. Penn’s longstanding commitment remains to admit graduate and professional student cohorts composed of outstanding individuals who demonstrate the resilience and aptitude to succeed in their academic pursuits.
Application and deadlines
The first step toward earning your Master of Environmental Studies degree at Penn is completing the online application.
You may apply to begin your studies during the fall or spring terms. Your application portfolio, including all transcripts, must be received by the following deadlines:
| Admission Cycle | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Fall 2021 | April 1, 2021 December 15, 2020 Priority application deadline |
| Spring 2022 | November 1, 2021 International applicants should submit their application by October 1, 2021, to allow time to obtain visas. |
You may experience delays in the processing and review of your application due to the COVID-19 virus. We will work with any applicant who is missing documents due to testing delays and closings. Our team may be reached Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Please contact us if you have questions at (215) 746-6905 or lps-admissions@sas.upenn.edu.
