Undergraduate Admissions

To be eligible to apply to a Grady College major, students must meet the following criteria:

• Be accepted and currently enrolled in classes at the University of Georgia.
• Be in-progress to completion or complete 24 hours in the General Education Core Curriculum (Areas I – V).
• Earn a 2.8 minimum overall GPA.
• Be in good academic standing during the semester of application (cumulative UGA GPA of at least 2.0).
• Complete the online application during the posted application dates. The Spring application process opens each year on November 15; the Fall application process opens each year on April 15. The deadline to complete the online application and Statement of Interest is 5 p.m. on Friday of the second full week of classes each Spring and Fall semester.
• Complete a written statement of interest. The statement must be written at the UGA Testing Center.
  • Honors students are not required to complete a statement of interest.

The above criteria are minimum application requirements and do not guarantee admission to Grady College or to a particular major. Admission to Grady’s high-demand majors is highly competitive and acceptance is not guaranteed due to increasing interest in journalism and mass communication, the vibrant reputation of Grady College and the high quality of students who apply to study here.

Selection of applicants will be based on scores in the following areas:

• 75% Grades in the General Education curriculum
• 25% Score on the written Statement of Interest

The number of spaces available for new students varies by semester and is determined by the availability of teaching staff, classroom space, lab facilities and other resources for each major, as well as our commitment to helping students proceed efficiently through our four-semester programs.

A complete application includes both 1) the online application, and 2) the statement of interest.

1) Click here for the Online Application.

2) Sign up to complete your statement of interest through the University Testing Center.

Deadline To Start Spring 2025:

Application Opens: April 15, 2024

Application Deadline: August 30, 2024, at 5 p.m.

Future Deadlines

Applications open at these same times every semester.

Fall Semester: Applications open at 8 a.m. on April 15 and close at 5 p.m. on Friday of the second full week of classes.

Spring Semester: Applications open at 8 a.m. on Nov. 15 and close at 5 p.m. on Friday of the second full week of classes.

Students who are accepted through the fall semester application process begin their Grady majors the following spring; students accepted through the spring semester application process may begin their Grady majors the following fall.

No! However, Communication Studies is a major offered through Franklin College.

We do not offer minors in Grady, but we do offer certificate programs.

Certificate programs are similar to minors, but they usually require more classes and are usually interdisciplinary. We offer certificates in New Media, Sports Media, Public Affairs, Strategic Health & Risk Communication and News Literacy currently.

No, we are a high-demand school. We can only offer admission to one major per student. However, we do encourage double majoring OUTSIDE of Grady- for example, marketing and advertising.

You must have your core curriculum in-progress to completion before you can apply to Grady, so take some time to explore your different options. Take JRLC 1001 Career Explorations in Mass Communication and Journalism sometime during your freshman year to help give you more insight into what major would be best for your skillset.

Once you are close to completing 24 hours of credit in Areas I-V of UGA ‘s General Education Core Curriculum, you will apply during a Fall or Spring application cycle.

The application process consists of a very short online application and a two-page statement of interest written at the UGA Testing Center.

Once your 24 hours in Areas I-V are complete or in-progress to completion, you can apply. Your application timeline will depend on how much credit you are bringing into UGA.

75% of your application is your grades in the 23 hours from Areas I-V of the core.

25% is the written statement of interest about why you are applying for your intended-major that is taken at the UGA Testing Center.

Acceptance is not guaranteed. It is always a good idea to have a back-up plan in mind just in case.

Use your freshman year to explore all of the different programs the University offer; there are tons to choose from.

We have tons of student organizations and professional activities you can join before you are accepted into your major. Each major has a student organization associated with it that is available for you to join the moment you begin at UGA! We highly recommend you get involved early.

You can also take any intro class and JRLC 1001 Career Explorations in Mass Communication and Journalism to explore majors.

Many majors at UGA require an application. This helps solidify your interest in a specific program before you can begin.

Intro classes are usually fairly big—around 100-150 students. However, once you get into your major classes will be around 20 students typically.