Applications for Fall 2025 entry are accepted online October 12, 2024 - February 1, 2025.

Prospective students are encouraged to begin collecting application materials 9-12 months before the application deadline. Feel free to reach out with any questions.

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Domestic Students:

• Accredited Master's Degree
• GRE or GMAT scores (note this program does not offer GRE or GMAT waivers)
• Transcripts of all colleges and universities attended (Unofficial transcripts are acceptable for the application. Admitted students will be required to submit official transcripts to The Graduate School after accepting an offer of admission.)
• Answer the two provided statement of purpose question prompts. Please limit your responses to 500 words maximum for each of the following questions:
  • How will pursuing an interdisciplinary leadership studies Ph.D. program support your research interests and professional goals?
  • What types of experiences have prepared you to excel in a rigorous Ph.D. program?
• 3-5 years full-time work experience
• Current CV/resume
• 2 scholarly or professional writing samples
• 3 professional references (at least one recommender must be from a current or former direct supervisor of the applicant) 

International Students:

• Review complete admission requirements as detailed on the JMU Graduate School International Graduate Student webpage
• Proof of English proficiency. Applicants that have not earned a previous degree (bachelor's or master's) must provide test scores for one of the following:
  • TOEFL (minimum score 100)
  • IELTS (minimum score 7)
  • DuoLingo (minimum score 120)

In addition to satisfying all admission requirements set forth by The Graduate School, the School of Strategic Leadership Studies requires applicants to have earned a master's degree from an accredited institution. Applicants are welcomed from any discipline, but should have previous coursework in statistics and financial accounting. The following courses satisfy the financial accounting prerequisite:

JMU Offerings:

• Undergraduate Accounting: COB 241 - In order to enroll in JMU prerequisites, you will need to apply through Continuing Education.

Virginia Community College (VCCS) Offerings:

• Undergraduate Accounting: ACC 211 - Visit Virginia's Community Colleges course offerings web page for information on locations offering ACC 211.

Newly admitted students without previous course work in statistics will be provided information and support to gain prerequisite knowledge in this area as well.

• You can check the status of your application at any time (including all materials except for references that may be missing from your application) on CollegeNET, the online application system. You will receive an email from us if we find you are missing references as the deadline approaches.
• We will begin reviewing applications on the application deadline, and you can normally expect to hear from us within 2 weeks after the deadline if we would like to invite you for an interview.
• Final decisions are usually announced within 30 days (and no more than 60 days) after the application deadline.
• While the Graduate School manages the admissions process and maintains official deadlines, we would appreciate a confirmation of your intention to accept by April 15th, or within 60 days of the application deadline, to allow time for meeting with your advisor, assessing the need for any prerequisite coursework or pre-testing to be taken over the summer, and setting up your JMU email well in advance of your first semester.

The Ph.D. Degree in Strategic Leadership Studies is 66 credit hours in total. Please visit the University Business Office website for up-to-date tuition rates. 

The following web pages have information on scholarships, financial aid, and other funding opportunities:

• JMU's The Graduate School Assistantships Page
• JMU's Financial Aid  & Scholarship
• SSLS's Funding Resources & Opportunities

Doctoral assistantship positions are available only to full-time students and are typically awarded with admission to the program. For more information, visit The Graduate School's Assistantships page.

The School of Strategic Leadership Studies offers a limited number of assistantships to full-time students and these typically cover 9 credits of tuition and a stipend for both fall and spring semesters. Students must:

• Be conditionally or unconditionally accepted into a graduate program. Students who are provisionally accepted will not be eligible.
• Be enrolled full-time (9 credits per fall and spring semesters) in order to maintain their assistantship. Assistantships generally do not cover summer tuition. 
• Work 20 hours per week in their sponsoring program.
• Maintain at least a 3.0 graduate GPA in order to retain or reapply for the assistantship.

Applicants interested in obtaining an assistantship should make this request at their pre-admissions meeting with the SSLS advisor and on their application for admission to the doctoral program. 

Although the School of Strategic Leadership Studies makes every effort to place students in a doctoral-level assistantship within our area or with a campus partner, there are instances where only master's level assistantships will be available. Students may need to apply for a graduate assistantship here: JMU's PageUp