Your application to BU Wheelock College of Education & Human Development can be completed online. Before you can submit your application, be sure to fill out all the required information. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. Note that after the 2021-2022 cycle, applicants may no longer apply to multiple programs within BU Wheelock College of Education & Human Development.
 
We recommend not using an institutional or work-related email to create your profile. Emails sent to institutional addresses may be blocked or sent to junk mail.
 
Begin or continue your application.

All graduate programs (except PhD in Educational Studies)
Write a statement describing your qualifications for the program and how it will help you achieve your professional goals. This statement should be about two double-spaced pages.
 
For applicants to the PhD in Educational Studies
Write a statement describing your research background and your field of study, and what motivates you to pursue a PhD. Describe specific research topics or questions you may want to explore during your doctoral study. This statement should also include information on BU Wheelock faculty and projects and how they relate to your own research goals. We understand that doctoral students’ interests may change as they go through the program; however, we are interested in connecting your research interests with those of BU Wheelock faculty members. The statement should be no longer than about three pages, double-spaced.

BU Wheelock College of Education & Human Development is committed to equity, access, inclusion, and social justice. Please include a statement about how your identities, outlook, and experiences will contribute to making a more equitable and just world. This statement should be no more than two double-spaced pages.

We require applicants to BU Wheelock to submit a résumé or curriculum vitae (CV) that should contain a summary of relevant job experiences and education. You may also include relevant activities, awards, and interests. We do not require or recommend any particular format for résumés or CVs.

On the online application, you should upload unofficial transcripts from all the colleges or universities you attended. Acceptable unofficial transcripts include

• An official copy that has been opened and scanned
• A degree progress report
• An electronic transcript screenshot

Add unofficial transcripts directly to the applicant portal using the space provided.

If your transcript includes transfer or study abroad credits, we will require transcripts from those institutions as well if grades do not appear for those credits. All institutions attended should be reported on the application.

International Transcripts
If you’re an international student with a degree from a non-US institution, you must have your transcript evaluated by an approved credential evaluation agency and have an official report sent to BU Wheelock Admissions. We require a course-by-course academic evaluation that includes the language of instruction. Evaluations provide the Admissions Committee with US grading equivalency, which we need to make a decision on your application. Also, the language of instruction allows our Admissions office to determine whether you need proof of English language proficiency.

Please select from one of the following evaluation services:

World Education Service: Select the WES International Credential Advantage Package (ICAP) evaluation, which includes the language of instruction.

Foreign Academic Credential Service: Ask for a course-by-course evaluation. Also ask for the language of instruction to be included in the evaluation.

Education Credential Evaluators: Ask for a course-by-course evaluation. Also ask for the language of instruction to be included in the evaluation.

International Education Evaluators: Ask for a course-by-course evaluation. Also ask for the language of instruction to be included in the evaluation.

We do not accept transcript evaluations via snail mail. Submit your transcript evaluation via the application system or email it to: whegrad@bu.edu.

We require two letters of recommendation to accompany your application to BU Wheelock. You may submit more than two letters, but this is not required.

Letters of recommendation should come from instructors, direct supervisors, or others you believe are in a position to appraise your skills and ability accurately.

For us to consider a letter of recommendation, it should be submitted by the recommender, not the applicant. There is a space on the online application for applicants to submit their recommenders’ email addresses. Recommenders can send their evaluations through an emailed link. If your recommenders have trouble submitting an evaluation through the recommender portal, please have them email whegrad@bu.edu for help. Recommenders must use an institutional email (business or academic institution) so we can verify their legitimacy. Our office may reach out to recommenders or the applicant for further verification if recommenders do not use an institutional email address.

You may need to submit official test scores that show your English proficiency. We require official English proficiency test score reports for applicants:

• Whose first language is not English and,
• Who have not previously received a degree from an institution in which the primary language of instruction was English.

Duolingo English Test

For spring/fall 2023 applicants, Boston University will evaluate scores from the Duolingo English Test, an online English proficiency test that students can take on demand. Select Boston University Graduate & Professional programs as a score recipient, and email www.ets.org/toefl/

International English Language Testing System (IELTS)

It is your responsibility to ensure that the testing agency can send us your official score report.

• Recommended minimum IELTS score for all programs: 7.0 overall.

Submit all IELTS scores to us electronically. To send us your scores, email www.ielts.org

Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)

Our institution code for the TOEFL is 3087; we do not use a departmental code. It’s your responsibility to ensure that ETS can send us an official score report. Note: ETS will report scores up to two years after the test date. BU Wheelock accepts TOEFL MyBest scores. Please submit these scores directly into the application system. BU Wheelock is unlikely to admit applicants with TOEFL scores below the minimum.

• Recommended minimum overall TOEFL score or MyBest score for all programs: 100 on the iBT.

Note: BU Wheelock does not offer conditional admissions under any circumstances.

For applicants to PhD in Counseling Psychology & Applied Human Development (required)
Identify key arguments on a current educational or social issue in your field. Include your analysis and conclusions, and cite references that inform your understanding. This essay may be a new work or a previously written essay. There is no specific length requirement for this essay, but submissions average about 10 pages.
 
For applicants to PhD in Educational Studies (optional)
Identify key arguments on a current educational or social issue in your field. Include your analysis and conclusions and cite references that inform your understanding. This essay may be a new work or a previously written essay. There is no specific length requirement for this essay.

You may submit an additional essay with any information you want to bring to the Admissions Committee’s attention. If you’re reapplying to a BU Wheelock program, we encourage you to use this essay to discuss how your application has changed or improved from the last time you applied.

If you are applying for a degree program, we require a nonrefundable application fee of $95. Non-degree applications require a $25 fee. You’ll receive a prompt to pay by credit card before submitting the application. The application will not be submitted until you enter your credit card information.

All applicants to the PhD in Counseling Psychology & Applied Human Development, the PhD in Educational Studies, and the EdD in Educational Leadership & Policy Studies must have a bachelor’s degree or be on track to complete a bachelor’s degree when they apply. If you matriculate at BU Wheelock, we will ask you to provide official transcripts to prove that you completed your bachelor’s degree in the weeks leading up to your first semester of graduate study.

All applicants to a BU Wheelock master’s program must have a bachelor’s degree or be on track to complete a bachelor’s degree when they apply. All matriculating students will be asked to provide official transcripts to prove that they completed their bachelor’s degree in the weeks leading up to their first semester of graduate study at BU Wheelock.

MAT Applicants
If you apply to any of the BU Wheelock Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree programs, you should have an academic background in the subject area you plan to pursue. If you don’t have a degree in your subject of choice, you will be asked to complete prerequisite coursework before applying to the MAT. For more information about the qualifying undergraduate degrees and coursework that would fulfill this requirement, visit your program’s web page.

MS in Child Life & Family-Centered Care
Applicants to this program must complete at least 100 volunteer or practicum hours under a certified Child Life Specialist in a pediatric healthcare child life program. At least 50 of these hours should be completed by the time you apply. Applicants should submit a verification letter with their graduate application. This letter should include a signature from your supervising practitioner and the number of volunteer hours you’ve completed. We strongly recommend that you successfully complete a child development course.

EdM in Deaf Education
Applicants to the Master of Education in Deaf Education are required to take the following coursework either before admission to BU or while enrolled in the degree program. Contact the program office by emailing deafstdy@bu.eduto discuss summer course scheduling for the following prerequisites:

SED LS 565 Introduction to Language and Linguistics
SED LS 566 Language Acquisition
SED DE 581 American Sign Language I
SED DE 582 American Sign Language II

Students applying for admission to the dual degree Master of Education/Master of Social Work program must send separate applications to the School of Social Work and BU Wheelock. You will also need to be admitted to each school separately. Admission to one school or program does not guarantee admission to the other school or program. You may use the same application materials when applying to both schools.
 
You’re not required to apply to the School of Social Work and BU Wheelock simultaneously. You can be admitted to one of the two schools first—generally the School of Social Work—and complete that school’s basic coursework. Before the end of the first year, students typically apply to the other school.

All applicants to a CAGS program at BU Wheelock College of Education & Human Development must have a bachelor’s degree or be on track to complete a bachelor’s degree when they apply. If you matriculate at BU Wheelock, we will ask you to provide official transcripts to confirm that you completed your bachelor’s degree in the weeks leading up to your first semester of graduate study.