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APPLICATION PROCESS

Prospective applicants should be advised that there will be a modest surcharge added to the basic SFSU tuition rates for HMSX MA students to help meet the the cost of the new facility Downtown. This is a University fee and although we do not know how much the surcharge will be or when it will begin, we have been assured by University officials that it will be kept to a minimum.  


There are seven elements to the application process:

1. A statement of purpose

The statement of purpose is the first document that the admissions committee will read. It is critical that you write a strong and exciting statement, so you should prepare yourself to write many different drafts. It will be helpful if others can read your statement and be brutally honest in their comments. In the statement you must first of all let us know what you want to accomplish by studying human sexuality in our program. We are interested to read what life experience, including educational experience, compelled you to seek a graduate degree in the field. What do you expect to achieve during your graduate education and what future goals does your education and degree support? Write a story that tells us how these two years you will spend in our program fit in your life. What history lead you to the Department of Human Sexuality Studies, what will you do here, and where do you plan to go after completing the program. We want to make sure that your goals can be met by the strengths of our program. It will help you if your statement generates excitement about you among the members of the admissions committee. Please write no more than two pages single spaced, using normal margins and font sizes.

2. Two letters of recommendation

When you ask for letters of recommendation, it behooves you to send letters that will be highly favorable. You can ask your referees, politely, if they will write you a strong letter. A weak letter will hurt your changes like few other things. We will read the letters of recommendation after we have read your statement and will make sure that your referees support the impression you have given about yourself. Most importantly, we will try to ascertain that you have the academic potential to be successful in a demanding graduate program and that you will finish what you have started.
We don't have a form for your referees to fill out. We do expect that they either send us their letter directly to the address mentioned above, or that they provide you with a sealed envelope with a signature across the flap. To ensure you have sent in a complete package, we recommend your referees send you their letters directly and you will then send us a complete admission package. We will not share their letters with you at any point.

3. Transcripts of all of your college course work, indicating a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Please note for the admissions process you will need to submit two sets of transcripts. You need to send your official transcripts to the university and you need to send an unofficial set with your program application.

4. Graduate Record Exam(GRE Requirement)
Our Graduate Record Exam, Writing Assignment. You need at least a score of 4.0 for the "writing assignment" portion of the GRE. Please send the official copy.
SCHOOL CODE: 4653
DEPT CODE: 5199

These are new numbers so it may not be listed on the institution codes but they are valid numbers. Our mailing address is:
Department of Human Sexuality Studies
Master of Arts Admissions
835 Market St Suite 517
San Francisco, CA 94103

5. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Applicants, regardless of citizenship, whose native language is not English and who preparatory education was principally in a language other than English are required to take TOEFL. The minimum score is 550 for the written test or 213 for the computer test.

6. Department of Human Sexuality Studies, Application Form.
You can download the form here (application word document)

7. San Francisco State University Application
Please keep in mind that you also and separately have to apply to the graduate school of San Francisco State University. You can find specific information about this part of the process at the Graduate Studies Site. Even though you will send this part of the application to the graduate school, it would be very helpful if you include a copy with your application to the program.

The application deadline is February 15.(if February 15 falls on a weekend or a holiday, applications are due the following regular business day) The graduate school's deadline is May 1, however, to expedite the process of application, you should complete the entire process by February 15. We start accepting applications on November 15.
*Please send your complete application in one package. Do not send your materials separately.*

Send the complete application to:

Department in Human Sexuality Studies
MA Admissions Committee
835 Market Street, Suite 517
San Francisco, CA 94103
United States of America

Department of Human Sexuality Studies
San Francisco State University
1600 Holloway Ave
San Francisco, CA 94132

Phone (415) 405-3570
Fax (415) 405 0411
E-mail: hmsxdept@sfsu.edu