Graduate Admissions

See Also: Microbiology Graduate Program Checklist

Admission Requirements

Criteria for selection into the program are as follows:

1. Completed undergraduate program with a 3.0 or better GPA (on 4.0 system).  Included should be:
   • One full year of general biological science
   • One year of calculus
   • Two years of chemistry, including one year organic
   • One year of physics
   • Introductory microbiology course
2. Satisfactory combined score of 1000 or higher on both Verbal and Quantitative parts of the General Portion of Graduate Record Examination (GRE)
3. Three letters of recommendation
4. For international students, appropriate visa status and satisfactory TOEFL scores.  Please refer to the information on this page for more details.

Application Procedure

Priority consideration will be given to applications received by January 15.

Two applications are required to complete the process: one for the UT Graduate School and another for departmental use.  You will not gain admittance to the microbiology program without completing both applications by the specified deadlines. 

1. Official Graduate School Application.  You must apply online via the Graduate School's website.  If you need a paper copy of the application, please contact UT Graduate Admissions.  Once you have completed the application, you must also submit:
   
   • Two copies of official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended
   • GRE scores
   • Non-refundable $35 application fee.
      
2. Department of Microbiology Application.  Our departmental application can also be downloaded from this website or can be mailed to you.  Send this application directly to our office along with:
   
   • Three letters of recommendation

Downloadable Forms

The department's required forms for graduate admission are available online in PDF format.  You will need the free Adobe® Acrobat Reader® in order to view and print the PDF files and Microsoft Word to utilize the .doc files.  In addition to our departmental application, we also require three letters of reference, which you may also print and have completed.  

Additionally, you must submit a separate application for admission to UT's Graduate School as well as the other items detailed in the Graduate Catalog (these items are also listed on Page 1 of our departmental application).  See the Resources Links to find these forms online.  BOTH of these applications are required for admission; NO EXCEPTIONS.

However, it is not required that you complete both the online form and a printed form for the Department. You may complete whichever you prefer, but you do not need to do both. Alternatively, you may request an application be mailed to you by using the site's information request page.

Application Information

Nancy Loftis
Department of Microbiology
M409 Walters Life Sciences Bldg.
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN  37996-0845 
Telephone: (865) 974-3441
Fax: (865) 974-4007
Email: nloftis@utk.edu

Program Information

Dr. Thandi Onami
Department of Microbiology
M409 Walters Life Sciences Bldg.
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-0845
Telephone: (865) 974-6229
Fax: (865) 974-4007
Email: tonami@utk.edu

Dr. Erik Zinser
Department of Microbiology
M409 Walters Life Sciences Bldg.
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-0845
Telephone: (865) 974-9283
Fax: (865) 974-4007
Email: ezinser@utk.edu