RISE: Admissions Timeline

1. Application Submission
   • Submit your online application and all required supplemental materials. Supplemental materials include your recommendation request, high school transcript, optional standardized test scores, and financial aid documents (for those applying for financial aid). We will contact you if any additional or corrected materials are needed to complete this portion of the application. You can check the status of your application at any time through your Applicant Portal.
     • Deadline: February 4, 2026 at 11:59 pm EST. 
   • Please note that on the Applicant Portal you can currently do the following:
     • Upload additional materials
     • Update your permanent or mailing address
     • Change your email address
     • Change your password
     • Update or change your recommender

If you need to request a major change, please contact us at rise@bu.edu.

2. Receipt of Recommendation
   • In addition to the online application, at least one recommendation must be received by RISE to complete your application. To give your recommender as much time as possible to submit a recommendation, we strongly encourage you to send the request as soon as you have access to the application and have identified your recommender(s). You will be notified when a recommender submits a form on your behalf, so you can confirm receipt. It is your responsibility to make sure your recommender meets the deadline.
   • Log into your Applicant Portal to check the status of your request, to send a reminder to your recommender, or add a new recommender.
   • Deadline: Recommendations must be received no later than February 11, 2026 at 11:59 pm EST.
     
3. Application Confirmation
   • Once your online application and recommendation(s) have been received, we will send you confirmation. You will receive an email notification when each item (the online application and recommendation) has been received.
4. Initial Round of Review
   • Completed applications will be evaluated by the RISE Admissions Committee in the weeks following the February 11, 2026 deadline. Following the initial review, qualified applicants to the RISE Internship track will be notified of advancement to the matching phase of the admissions process.
5. Matching Phase (Internship Track Only)
   • Your application will be shared with researchers with whom your research interests align. Your application may be sent to the researchers with whom you expressed a specific interest in working, as well as other researchers whose interests match yours.
   • You will only receive an offer of admission if a faculty member agrees to host you as an intern.
     • Not all applicants who advance to the matching phase will receive offers of admission. The chances of receiving an offer of admission vary by field of interest; the most competitive fields are those in which a large number of applicants express an interest, or in which few researchers are available to host interns. We cannot provide applicants with information about what subjects are the most popular and cannot change your subject of interest once your application is submitted.
   • Please do not reach out to any faculty on your own. We will not honor any communication you have with BU faculty outside of our admissions process.
   • Due to the amount of time it takes our office to secure internship placements, we ask matching pool applicants to inform us immediately if you are no longer interested in being considered for the program.
   • Internship track applicants who do not advance to the matching phase will be informed. We are not able to provide individualized feedback about students’ applications.
6. Admissions Decisions
   • Practicum Track: Offers of admission will be made to applicants who applied to the Practicum as their first choice. A small number of applicants who applied to the Practicum as their second choice may also receive offers of admission at this time.
   • Internship Track: Offers are extended individually as our admissions committee secures student placements.
   • Unmatched students will be given the option to remain on a waitlist in case spots become available later.
7. Post-Offer Decision and Deposit
   • If accepted, you’ll be asked to respond to your offer of admission and pay a nonrefundable $1,000 deposit within one week to reserve your place in the program.