UC Davis Engineering Graduate Admission 2027 for International Students: Ranking, GRE, Funding and Deadlines

UC Davis engineering graduate admission for international students runs through the UC Davis Graduate Studies application. You pay a $155 international fee, upload a statement of purpose and a personal history statement, add three letters of recommendation and transcripts from every college you attended, and send TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo scores unless your university teaches only in English. The GRE is not required in most engineering programmes, including Electrical and Computer Engineering, Materials Science, and Civil and Environmental Engineering, which does not accept it at all. Deadlines for fall 2027 run from 1 December 2026 (Biomedical Engineering) to 15 January 2027 for most programmes.

The UC Davis College of Engineering is No. 35 in the U.S. News 2026 Best Engineering Schools ranking and 19th among public universities. Its strongest specialty is biological and agricultural engineering, ranked 3rd in the country. PhD students can generally expect four years of full funding (tuition, fees and a living stipend), while master’s students usually pay their own way at about $31,360 a year in tuition and fees for non-residents in 2026-27, before health insurance and living costs.

UC Davis Engineering at a glance

1. School: College of Engineering, University of California, Davis.
2. Ranking: No. 35, U.S. News 2026 Best Engineering Schools (released April 2026).
3. Degrees: MS and PhD in all 11 graduate programmes, plus a one-year Master of Engineering (MEng) in five areas.
4. Application fee: $155 for international applicants ($135 domestic).
5. English minimums: TOEFL iBT 80, IELTS 7.0, Duolingo 130 (higher in Chemical Engineering and Materials Science).
6. Minimum GPA: 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, set by University of California policy.
7. Non-resident tuition and fees: $31,359.90 for 2026-27 (three quarters).
8. PhD funding: generally four years of tuition and fee remission plus a stipend, through fellowships, teaching assistantships and research positions.

UC Davis engineering ranking

The Davis Enterprise reported on 7 April 2026 that the College of Engineering placed 35th of 194 schools in the U.S. News 2026 Best Engineering Schools list, and 19th among public universities. Three specialties ranked higher: biological and agricultural engineering at 3rd, civil engineering tied for 11th, and environmental engineering tied for 17th. If you work on water, agriculture, transport or the environment, those specialty ranks matter more to your choice than the overall number.

Graduate programmes in UC Davis engineering

The college says it runs 11 graduate programmes offering MS and PhD degrees. The ten below are the ones on its admissions deadline list. The MS usually ends in a thesis or capstone, and the thesis route takes about two years.

The MEng is a professional degree with little or no research and a capstone project, offered in the four programmes marked above and in Medical Device Development. The Chemical Engineering MEng, for example, takes 9 to 12 months full time and asks for a year each of physics, chemistry and engineering-level maths. Check each MEng’s own tuition page: UC Davis self-supporting degrees charge a programme fee instead of the standard tuition shown later in this guide, and I could not confirm which fee model each MEng uses.

UC Davis engineering admission requirements for international students

1. Online application and fee: $155 for international applicants, paid per application. Materials sent outside the online system are not accepted.
2. Statement of purpose: your research aims, goals and fit. Materials Science caps it at 4,000 characters including spaces.
3. Personal history statement: a second essay that should add to the statement of purpose, not repeat it. Materials Science also caps this at 4,000 characters.
4. Three letters of recommendation: at least two academic, mostly from faculty. Referees submit online; letters by post, email or services like Interfolio are refused.
5. Transcripts: scanned copies from every college-level institution you attended, including transfer, summer and study-abroad coursework. Materials Science asks for both sides of each page, even blank ones.
6. CV or resume: required by Computer Science and useful everywhere else.
7. English test scores: unless you qualify for the exemption below.
8. GRE: only for the few programmes that still ask for it.

UC Davis does not ask for a WES evaluation. Programme staff convert foreign grades to the 4.0 scale themselves, as Materials Science states, so you report your grades as your university issued them.

English test minimums and waivers

The waiver works by institution, not by country. You are exempt only if your degree comes from a university that lists English as its sole language of instruction in the IAU World Higher Education Database (WHED). Graduate Studies says it will not review any other proof, so a letter from your registrar will not count. Look up your university on WHED before you pay for a test. Scores older than two years are not accepted.

Some programmes add later English checks. Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering asks teaching assistants for a TOEFL speaking score of 26 or a proficiency exam on arrival, and students below TOEFL 104 or IELTS 7.0 there take an English course before the qualifying exam unless their writing and speaking subscores are high enough.

GRE policy by programme

UC Davis engineering deadlines for fall 2027

The college list and most programme pages give only a day and month, so the years shown are for fall 2027 entry. The Civil and Environmental Engineering page still shows its fall 2025 dates, carried forward here (based on this year’s date; confirm on the official page when the call opens). Materials Science wants transcripts and letters in by 1 February to guarantee review. ECE and CEE also have a 1 June “space available” round, but it comes without financial support. The Mechanical and Aerospace FAQ mentions 5 January for automatic departmental fellowship consideration, so if you apply there, aim for the earlier 15 December date.

PhD funding in UC Davis engineering

The college says PhD students can generally expect four years of full funding, meaning tuition and fee remission plus a living stipend. That money comes from fellowships, teaching assistantships (TA), graduate student researcher (GSR) posts paid from faculty grants, and reader positions. Students are generally expected to have a faculty adviser paying them by their second year. You are reviewed for funding automatically when your application is read, so there is no separate form for department money.

Chemical Engineering publishes the clearest figures. Its PhD students receive a stipend of about $30,000 a year, including summers, for the first four years, and the department covers full fees, including nonresident supplemental tuition. The college does not publish a single stipend for every programme, so ask each department for its current figure once admitted.

International PhD students get one cost break written into UC policy. Nonresident supplemental tuition is waived for three years (nine quarters) after you advance to candidacy, and Chemical Engineering says a Graduate Studies fellowship can cover it for two more years after that.

Named fellowships

• Campus fellowships: complete the fellowship section of the application by 15 January (ECE’s date) to be considered for university awards such as the Dean’s Distinguished Graduate Fellowship.
• TOPS (Towards Outstanding Postgraduate Success) and PEGS 21: College of Engineering programmes that some admitted students are invited to apply for.
• Department fellowships: automatic consideration in ECE and other programmes.

None of these pages says whether international students are eligible for each named award, so ask the graduate coordinator before you count on one.

Master’s funding: what to expect

The college says funding for MS students is not guaranteed, and the options are self-funding, loans and possibly a TA post. Chemical Engineering says a TA or reader post of at least 25% time (10 hours a week) brings a salary and fee remission covering most in-state fees and all health insurance. That still leaves nonresident supplemental tuition, about $15,100 a year, for you to pay. Civil and Environmental Engineering considers MS applicants who apply by its general deadline for its Master’s of the Future Initiative. Budget as if you will pay the full cost, and treat any TA post as a bonus.

UC Davis engineering tuition and costs for 2026-27

New students also pay a one-time $150 records fee. Adding the health plan and the international fee to tuition gives about $40,600 for one year (my arithmetic), before rent and food. A two-year thesis MS therefore costs over $81,000 in charges alone. The university notes that its 2026-27 figures may not be final. You can waive the health plan only if you have comparable cover.

STEM OPT after a UC Davis engineering degree

Engineering and computer science degrees fall under CIP codes on the Department of Homeland Security STEM Designated Degree Program List. On an F-1 visa you can usually work for 12 months on OPT after graduating, then apply for the 24-month STEM OPT extension with an employer enrolled in E-Verify. Confirm your programme’s CIP code with UC Davis Services for International Students and Scholars before you accept an offer, especially for the newer MEng programmes.

Admission statistics

The college does not publish acceptance rates. Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering is the only programme checked that shares figures, and they are old: for fall 2021 it received 375 applications (125 PhD, 250 MS) and offered admission to about half of PhD and 60% of MS applicants. Admitted students averaged about a 3.5 GPA and TOEFL 90. Materials Science says most successful applicants have a GPA of 3.25 or higher. Mechanical and Aerospace sets a 3.5 minimum GPA for PhD applicants, above the 3.0 campus floor.

How to contact potential PhD advisers at UC Davis

Because PhD students are expected to have faculty support by the second year, an adviser who wants you makes a real difference. Mechanical and Aerospace advises being specific about the lab you are interested in and warns that faculty with no open positions may not reply.

1. Shortlist two to four professors: read their last two or three papers and the lab page.
2. Write in October or November: before the December deadlines.
3. Keep it to one short email: who you are, one result from your own work, and how it links to theirs. Attach your CV.
4. Ask one clear question: whether they expect to take a new GSR for fall 2027.

A sample opening, for illustration: “Dear Professor [Name], I am a final-year [degree] student at [University] applying to the UC Davis [programme] PhD for fall 2027. My final-year project on [topic] reduced [measure] by [amount], and I would like to extend that work in the direction of your group’s paper on [topic]. Are you planning to take on a new graduate student researcher next fall?”

How to write the UC Davis statement of purpose

UC Davis asks for two essays, and some programmes cap each at 4,000 characters, which is roughly 600 to 700 words, so keep each paragraph to one job.

• Open with your research question or the problem you want to work on.
• Show the evidence: projects, internships or papers, and your exact part in each.
• Name UC Davis faculty, labs or centres that match your interest, and say why.
• Choose your research areas carefully; Computer Science asks you to pick up to four in the form, and the essay should match them.
• Save background, obstacles and community work for the personal history statement so the two essays do different jobs.
• Close with what you plan to do after the degree.

Common mistakes international applicants make

• Assuming an English waiver because your country is English-speaking: UC Davis checks your university’s WHED entry, not your passport. Many universities in Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya teach in English, but check the listing yourself.
• Converting your CGPA yourself: report it on your own scale; programme staff convert it.
• Missing a transcript: every institution counts, including a short exchange or summer school.
• Applying in the June round and expecting funding: that round has none.
• Applying with a three-year degree without asking: Graduate Studies requires a bachelor’s comparable to a UC degree and does not spell out three-year rules, so email the programme coordinator first.
• Repeating the statement of purpose in the personal history essay: programmes say plainly the second essay should complement the first.

Costs not covered by funding

• Nonresident supplemental tuition for MS students on a TA post ($15,102 a year).
• The international student administrative fee and one-time records fee.
• Visa and SEVIS fees, flights, and the first rent and deposit (most Davis leases run 1 September to 31 August).
• Health cover for a spouse or children.
• A car or bike; nearby towns such as Woodland and Sacramento are 10 to 15 miles away.

Who should apply to UC Davis engineering

I would put UC Davis near the top of a PhD list if you work in agricultural, biological, civil, environmental, transport or energy engineering, where its specialty ranks are well above its overall rank and four years of funding is the norm. It also suits applicants who do not want to sit the GRE. For a self-funded MS, the University of California tuition is lower than at private schools nearby in the ranking, but over $40,000 a year with insurance is still a lot, so compare it carefully with the one-year MEng options.

UC Davis engineering compared with similar schools

For undergraduate entry, read our guide to UC Davis admission requirements for international students.

FAQ on UC Davis engineering graduate admission

Does UC Davis accept Duolingo for engineering graduate programmes?

Yes. The minimum is 130, but if Duolingo is your only test you must also take the UC Davis Test of Oral English Proficiency after admission.

Is the GRE required for UC Davis engineering?

Not for ECE, Materials Science or Civil and Environmental Engineering, which does not accept it. Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering’s FAQ still lists it, so check that programme’s page.

What is the UC Davis engineering application fee for international students?

$155 per application. Fee waivers are limited to recognised graduate preparation programmes and the College of Engineering Pathways Program.

Do international MS students at UC Davis get funding?

Not usually. The college says MS funding is not guaranteed, so plan to pay about $31,360 in tuition and fees plus $8,820 for health insurance in 2026-27.

Sources and updates

I checked this guide on 29 October 2026 against UC Davis pages: Graduate Studies’ admissions requirements and English language examinations pages; the College of Engineering graduate admissions page and application FAQ; Finance and Business’s 2026-27 graduate tuition and fees; and the admissions or funding pages of Electrical and Computer, Materials Science, Chemical, Civil and Environmental, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Computer Science. The rank and specialty ranks come from the Davis Enterprise report of 7 April 2026. STEM OPT rules are the Department of Homeland Security’s. We update this page when UC Davis posts new deadlines, fees or stipends.

Jude Chinecherem

I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.