Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Religious Studies

Yale University aims to nurture a spirit of inquiry in its undergraduates, in the hope they will become global citizens instilled with a life-long passion for learning. Not unlike other US institutions, undergraduate study is characterized initially by diversity of subject matter and approach, and in the later years by concentration in one of the major programs or departments. 

Yale University offers more than 70 possible majors, which students declare at the beginning of their sophomore year and range from the sciences to arts subjects, from physics or applied mathematics to classics, art, or African-American studies.   

Undergraduate admission to Yale University, like to all of the best universities, is not easy. In 2016, Yale accepted 1,972 students to the Class of 2020 out of 31,455 applicants, giving it an acceptance rate of 6.27 percent. Of the university’s current undergraduates, half are women and nearly 40 percent are ethnic minority US citizens. A further 10.5 percent are international students.

Yale operates a residential college system which is organizationally modelled on the collegiate system at Oxford and Cambridge in the UK. However, unlike their UK counterparts, Yale’s colleges have limited autonomy and don’t contain any faculties or departments of study. All undergraduates are assigned to a college before their freshman year.

The process of application is robust yet fairly standard: all applicants complete either the Coalition or Common Application, with Yale specific questions, or the Questbridge National College Match Application. Additional requirements for freshman applicants include two teacher recommendations, a school counselor recommendation, a school report (including transcripts), a mid-year report, standardized test results (SAT Verbal, Math, and Writing, and ACT Composite). An interview is not a required part of the process, though applicants are encouraged to meet and talk with an alumnus if possible. 

Receiving some of the top university teaching available is never going to be cheap, and the estimated cost of attendance for Yale undergraduates is US$72,100 per academic year. This includes tuition and fees, room, board, books, and expenses. 

Fortunately, financial aid is available, and the college pledges to pay 100 percent of demonstrated financial need. Families with a gross annual income of less than US$65,000 are not expected to contribute towards their child’s Yale education, and the college’s need-based financial packages average US$49,575 a year. 

International students follow the same procedure and have the same application requirements as other students. Students whose first language is not English however must take a standardized English test such as the TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE. 

Each year, the Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences admits around 450 of the world’s top scholars to its postgraduate programs. Yale’s was the first graduate school in the US to confer a PhD degree, and 85 percent of its students pursue doctoral studies. The school is divided into four divisions – humanities, social sciences, biological sciences, and physical sciences – and administers 73 degree-granting programs, 56 of which are PhDs, while 19 terminate in master’s degrees.

Yale has an outstanding reputation for the quality of its teaching and wide array of academic resources and services. The admission rate for 2017 was 12.7 percent, so competition for places is fierce. 

Applications are submitted online, with the general requirements being a bachelor's degree (or equivalent), a statement of purpose, university transcripts, standardized test results, three letters of recommendation, and an application fee of $105. 

There may also be special admissions requirements for different programs or required supporting materials. International applicants may also be required to present the result of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), which can be substituted for the IELTS. 

Tuition for most full-time study programs at the Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is currently $41,000. However, no PhD student actually pays any tuition, as it’s either covered by a tuition fellowship from the graduate school, research grants or national and international fellowships. 

One of the reasons why Yale is so popular with graduate students is the support Yale provides to its PhD students, starting with outstanding financial aid. Each doctoral student receives an annual stipend of up to $35,150 to help them meet living expenses. This figure is highly competitive with rival universities, but the considerably lower cost of living in New Haven makes the Yale stipend even more favorable.

Support is a watchword for graduate study at Yale. Not only do graduate students receive generous financial backing, they are also robustly supported in their professional development through the Office of Career Strategy and the Center for Teaching and Learning, the latter of which helps graduate students learn how to be better teachers. However, students at Yale teach significantly less than they might at other institutions. Over the course of six years, no more than 14 percent of a doctoral student’s time is devoted to teaching as part of their training, and for many it is much less.