Domestic Frequently Asked Questions

Application fee waivers are reserved for U.S. Military Veterans and McNair Scholars. A review process may be available for domestic applicants with financial burdens. Please email gradstudies@sfsu.edu to request an application fee waiver. International/F-1 applicants are not eligible for an application fee waiver.

Once you have submitted an application on Cal State Apply, an SF State ID# will be generated for you within a few business days, and you will be notified via email. You can also go to the following webpage to look up your SF State ID# using your social security number and birthdate. SF State ID# Look Up page.

Unfortunately, prospective students can only apply to one graduate program per semester. If you already have an active application on CSU site and you would like to switch your area of study, please contact the Division of Graduate Studies for more information on this procedure. 

This may be possible if the application deadline to the program has not already passed. Please contact the Division of Graduate Studies for more details. Graduate Program Deadlines.

Each department has its own time line for reviewing applications and notifying students of their decisions. Some departments will review each file as soon as they receive it and notify the applicant of their decision right away. Other departments hold their decisions and notify all applicants at the same time. It is not uncommon for several months to pass before official admission letters from the Graduate Studies are sent. Check your Admission application status online.

Students must apply through Graduate Admissions online through CSU site.  Admission to Second Baccalaureate degree programs is typically done by exception. No units taken as a Second Bachelor's Student can be utilized as part of a Master's Program. Please visit: https://grad.sfsu.edu/content/second-bachelor-programs

Yes, transcripts are required from all the universities and colleges attended, including schools attended abroad. However, transcripts are not required for coursework completed at SF State.

A student may be denied graduate admission because they do not meet the minimum university requirements for admission or because they were not selected for admission by the academic department. Minimum university requirements include a Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution, and a minimum 3.0 GPA determined by your overall baccalaureate GPA or your last 60 semester unit/90 quarter unit GPA.

Admission deferment may be possible. Please contact the Graduate Coordinator for your program to see if they will consider a request to defer your offer of admission.

In order to take classes at the graduate level for personal growth or to complete prerequisites without being admitted to a graduate program, students can enroll through the Open University program, which is administered through the College of Extended Learning. Enrolling through Open University is on a space available basis and does not qualify a student for financial aid. For more information visit the College of Extended Learning website.

GRE scores can be submitted electronically through ETS. Please note, on the ETS website SF State may appear as CSU San Francisco. SF State’s school code (as assigned by ETS) is 4684.

You may call to check your status anytime at (415) 338-2234 or check on-line by going to: www.sfsu.edu/admit. You will need to provide your SF State student ID number and a SF State Password. Your SFSU ID number will have been provided to you by email after you submitted an on-line application. The website gives first time users specific instructions for setting up a SF State Password.

Yes, green card holders can use the domestic application form. Students who have a green card should submit a copy of their Alien Registration Card (or endorsed Form I-94) with their application.

Until further notice, applicants who have applied to SF State before MUST submit official transcripts of all institutions attended, excluding SF State. A new application form and processing fee will be required to re-apply.

Class schedules are no longer available on paper. All class schedules for every semester are now online. SF State has computer labs on campus for access, including the 24 Hour Lab in the Library for your convenience. You can check the online class schedule at: http://www.sfsu.edu/online/clssch.htm

If you would like to transfer from another university or institution to a graduate program at San Francisco State University, you will still follow the same application process that all other prospective students do. Graduate courses taken at another university are not automatically transferable to a SF State program. At the discretion of the department faculty, with support of the Dean of Graduate Studies, a maximum of 6 semester units may be used in meeting the requirements of a 30 unit program, or proportionally more for a program requiring 45 or more units. Students requesting transfer of units or confer with the department chair or graduate coordinator and the Division of Graduate Studies after notification of admission.

University Park North has a dedicated floor for graduate students and offers one- and two-bedroom apartments which will be shared by up to 4 graduate students in a combination of single and double occupancy bedrooms.  These furnished apartments include all utilities, internet, and basic cable.  The floor plan for these units can be viewed at the UPN Floorplan page. Prices for the academic year are available on the SF State Housing Fee Schedule page.

On-campus applications are available online at the SF State Housing website.

You should establish residency to take advantage of the lower registration fees that are charged to residents of California. In many cases you will reduce your education costs substantially. 

Applicants 19 years of age or older are eligible for resident status only if they have established and maintained permanent residence in California at least one year prior to the following Residency Determination deadlines: 

• Spring Semester - January 25
• Summer Semester - June 1
• Fall Semester - September 20

You can learn more about California Residency information here.

To be eligible for resident status you must maintain a physical presence in California, show intent to make California your permanent home and/or maintain proper immigration status for one year prior to the Residency Determination deadline. 

You can learn more about California Residency information here.

If you wish to have your resident status reclassified, please submit the Residence Reclassification Request form and any appropriate supporting documents to the Division of Graduate Studies.

You can learn more about California Residency information here.

Reclassification requests must be submitted at least 60 days prior to the first day of instruction. Requests submitted any later may be considered at the discretion of the Residency Coordinator.

Please note: Non-resident students will be responsible for non-resident tuition until the Division of Graduate Studies approves reclassification. Please see the Bulletin to learn more about the determination of resident status.

You can learn more about California Residency information here.