Application Overview

Jackson offers a professional degree for students who are pursuing careers in government, public affairs, and private organizations addressing global issues. Applicants should tailor their personal statement, and other application components, around their academic and professional background and showcase how these shape their intended focus area at Jackson as well as their future professional plans in the global arena.

Full-time work, volunteer, or internship experience is strongly preferred. Prior experience in the fields most relevant to global affairs or international study – history, political science, and economics — is a valuable asset in pursuing an M.P.P. in Global Affairs.

It is strongly recommended that entering students have taken introductory courses in microeconomics and macroeconomics prior to matriculating. These courses may be taken at any college or university, as part of an undergraduate degree or separate from it.

View bios of our current graduate students.

Apply Online

Each year, the online application is available from early September through January 2.

Dates and Deadlines

Summer-Fall 2024: Applicants should schedule any necessary standardized tests no later than November, in order to allow time for official scores to reach us before the application deadline.

September 3, 2024: Online application goes live
December 1, 2024: Application deadline to receive an automatic fee waiver.
January 2, 2025: Final application deadline.
Mid-March 2025: Admissions decisions are released.
May 1, 2025: Reply deadline for offers of admission for Fall 2025 enrollment.

Required Application Materials

All applicants to the M.P.P. in Global Affairs must present the following:

• A Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) completed prior to matriculation at Yale.
• A two- to four-page statement of purpose.
• A one- to two-page resume.
• Unofficial transcripts for each prior college or university attended (including non-degree programs not listed on your degree-granting transcripts, e.g. Study Abroad).
• GRE required for the M.P.P. program, optional for the M.A.S. program. (GMAT, LSAT, and GRE subject tests are not required or accepted).
• Applicants whose native language is not English will have to take the TOEFL, IELTS, or Cambridge English examination. See Standardized Testing Requirements for additional details and exceptions.
• Three letters of recommendation (at least one professional and one academic preferred with the third being your choice).
• 500-word joint degree statement (required of joint degree applicants only).
• The completed application form.

Required Examinations

All M.P.P. applicants must take the GRE General Test and have official scores released to institution code 3388. It is recommended that you take the GRE no later than mid-December. Students may not substitute the GMAT or LSAT for the GRE (unless they are a currently enrolled professional graduate student at Yale applying for a joint degree with Jackson).

Students whose native language is not English and who did not earn their undergraduate degree at a university where English is the language of instruction must also take the TOEFL, IELTS, or Cambridge English exam. The minimum score required for the TOEFL is 102 on the internet-based exam (iBT). A score of 7.5 – 8 on the IELTS is roughly the equivalent to the required minimum. Cambridge English C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency scores fulfill the minimum.

See Standardized Testing Requirements and our FAQs for additional information.

Application Fee

To encourage early applications, Jackson will waive the application fee for all M.P.P. applications received by December 1. A form is not required to receive the waiver.

For details about application fees, forms of payment, and fee waivers, please see Application Fees and Fee Waivers.

Visiting Campus

Prospective students are welcome to visit the program or to speak with Jackson staff. We hold information sessions several times in the fall of each year. Please visit our admissions events page for a list of upcoming events.

Webinars

Jackson hosts online chats for prospective students during the fall admissions season and over the summer. The webinars provide an overview of the admissions process and a Q&A session with admissions staff. Visit our admissions events page for a list of upcoming sessions. You can also view past webinars on our archive page.

Spring Visit for Admitted Students

In the spring of each year, applicants who are offered admission to our graduate program are invited to the Admitted Students Program. Guests receive a specific invitation after admission decisions are announced.

Regional Events

Admissions staff and alumni volunteers from Jackson participate in a number of recruitment events for prospective graduate students around the globe. Visit our admissions events page for upcoming events.