Field Studied: Dust

York University

Last modified: April 2, 2025
Department: Earth and Space Science and Engineering; Physics and Astronomy
Display Category: USA-Canada Medium
Field Studied: Asteroids, Astrobiology, Atmospheres, Auroras, Climate, Dust, Exoplanets, Instrumentation, Mars, Moon, Planetary Dynamics, Planetary Science, Remote Sensing
URL: https://lassonde.yorku.ca/esse/
State/Province: Ontario
Country: Canada
Degrees Offered: MS, PhD
Minimum GPA: 3
General GRE Required: No
Subject GRE Required: No
Recommendations:
Faculty: 21
Planetary Researchers: 3
Students: ~100
Admission Percentage:
Nearby Research Institutions: Centre for Research in Earth and Space Science (CRESS)
Contact Email: [email protected]
Funding: All accepted students are funded through TA and RA with the balance between the two depending on the supervisor.
Fall Application Deadline: 13 Jan
Spring Application Deadline: None
Admissions URL: https://lassonde.yorku.ca/esse/academics/graduate/how-to-apply/
Notes: Contact admissions for spring application; see also https://www.physics.yorku.ca/overview-of-graduate-program/ for more information

University of Göttingen

Last modified: April 2, 2025
Department: Solar System School
Display Category: International
Field Studied: Asteroids, Atmospheres, Comets, Cosmochemistry, Dust, Exoplanets, Geophysics, Instrumentation, Ionospheres, Meteorites, Planetary Evolution, Planetary Science, Small Bodies, Space Plasma Physics
URL: http://www.mps.mpg.de/solar-system-school
State/Province:
Country: Germany
Degrees Offered: PhD
Minimum GPA: None noted
General GRE Required: Recommended
Subject GRE Required: Physics (Recommended for physics line)
Recommendations: 2 or more
Faculty: 13
Planetary Researchers: 5
Students: 40
Admission Percentage: 3%
Nearby Research Institutions: Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research
Contact Email: [email protected]
Funding: Fully funded PhD positions for three and a half years
Fall Application Deadline: 1 Oct
Spring Application Deadline: N/A
Admissions URL: http://www.mps.mpg.de/phd/application
Notes:

University of Maryland, College Park

Last modified: April 2, 2025
Department: Astronomy
Display Category: USA-Canada Large
Field Studied: Asteroids, Comets, Dust, Exoplanets, Infrared Astronomy, Instrumentation, Meteorites, Moon, Optical Astronomy, Planet Formation, Planetary Dynamics, Planetary Evolution, Pluto/KBOs, Radio Astronomy, Remote Sensing, Rings, Small Bodies, Space Plasma Physics, Surfaces, X-Ray Astronomy
URL: http://www.astro.umd.edu/
State/Province: MD
Country: USA
Degrees Offered: PhD
Minimum GPA: 3
General GRE Required: Optional
Subject GRE Required: Physics (optional)
Recommendations: 3
Faculty: 19
Planetary Researchers: 3
Students: 37
Admission Percentage: ~5%
Nearby Research Institutions: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Johns Hopkins University, Carnegie Institution, US Naval Observatory, Space Telescope Science Institute
Contact Email: [email protected]
Funding: The department provides full funding (with tuition waivers) for up to six years while students maintain adequate progress toward degree completion.
Fall Application Deadline: 15 Dec
Spring Application Deadline: N/A
Admissions URL: https://www.astro.umd.edu/graduate/admissions.html
Notes:

University of Colorado

Last modified: April 2, 2025
Department: Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences; Physics; Geological Sciences; Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences; Aerospace Engineering; Chemistry
Display Category: USA-Canada Large
Field Studied: Astrobiology, Atmospheres, Dust, Exoplanets, Instrumentation, Interiors, Ionospheres, Magnetospheres, Mars, Planetary Dynamics, Rings, Surfaces
URL: https://lasp.colorado.edu/our-expertise/science/planetary-lunar/
State/Province: CO
Country: USA
Degrees Offered: PhD
Minimum GPA:
General GRE Required: Yes
Subject GRE Required: Physics required for some departments
Recommendations: 3
Faculty: 20  (7 APS, 3 Phys, 3 Geo, 1 AaOS, 5 AE, 1 Chem) 
Planetary Researchers: 20
Students: ~50 across all departments
Admission Percentage: ~20%
Nearby Research Institutions: SWRI, SSI, UCAR
Contact Email: [email protected]
Funding: Yes, varies with department
Fall Application Deadline: 15 Jan
Spring Application Deadline: N/A
Admissions URL: http://lasp.colorado.edu/planetary/departments.html
Notes: 21 Jan deadline for international admission; for further information, see also http://www.colorado.edu/aps/ and http://www.colorado.edu/aps/prospective-students

University of Central Florida

Last modified: April 3, 2025
Department: Planetary Sciences Group
Display Category: USA-Canada Large
Field Studied: Asteroids, Astrobiology, Atmospheres, Brown Dwarfs, Comets, Dust, Exoplanets, In-Situ Resource Utilization, Infrared Astronomy, Kuiper Belt Objects, Mars, Meteorites, Moon, Optical Astronomy, Planet Formation, Planetary Evolution, Planetary Science, Remote Sensing, Rings, Small Bodies, Space Plasma Physics, Space Science, Spacecraft Development, Surfaces
URL: http://planets.ucf.edu/
State/Province: FL
Country: USA
Degrees Offered: MS, PhD
Minimum GPA: 3.0
General GRE Required: No
Subject GRE Required: None
Recommendations: 3
Faculty: 13
Planetary Researchers: 13
Students: 33
Admission Percentage:
Nearby Research Institutions: UCF Florida Space Institute, UCF CREOL, NASA Kennedy Space Center
Contact Email: [email protected]
Funding: Graduate students may receive financial assistance through fellowships, assistantships, tuition support, or loan
Fall Application Deadline: 01 Dec (domestic priority and all international), 01 Jul (domestic)
Spring Application Deadline: 01 Jul (international), 01 Dec (domestic)
Admissions URL: https://graduate.ucf.edu/admissions/
Notes:

Clemson University

Last modified: April 3, 2025
Department: Physics and Astronomy
Display Category: USA-Canada Medium
Field Studied: Dust, Meteorites
URL: https://www.clemson.edu/science/academics/departments/physics/
State/Province: SC
Country: USA
Degrees Offered: MS, PhD
Minimum GPA: None noted
General GRE Required: No
Subject GRE Required: None
Recommendations: 3
Faculty: 25
Planetary Researchers: 3
Students: 82
Admission Percentage:
Nearby Research Institutions:
Contact Email: [email protected]
Funding: Applicants considered for TA, which provides a tuition waiver and stipend
Fall Application Deadline: 01 Jan
Spring Application Deadline: N/A
Admissions URL: https://www.clemson.edu/science/academics/departments/physics/academics/graduateapply.html
Notes:

California Institute of Technology

Last modified: April 1, 2025
Department: Geological and Planetary Sciences
Display Category: USA-Canada Large
Field Studied: Asteroids, Astrobiology, Atmospheres, Climate, Comets, Cosmochemistry, Dust, Exoplanets, Geobiology, Geochemistry, Geology, Geophysics, Hydrodynamics, Infrared Astronomy, Instrumentation, Interiors, Ionospheres, Kuiper Belt Objects, Magnetospheres, Mars, Meteorites, Moon, Optical Astronomy, Planet Formation, Planetary Dynamics, Planetary Evolution, Pluto/KBOs, Radio Astronomy, Remote Sensing, Rings, Saturn, Small Bodies, Space Plasma Physics, Surfaces, Venus, Volcanology
URL: https://www.gps.caltech.edu/
State/Province: CA
Country: USA
Degrees Offered: PhD
Minimum GPA: None noted
General GRE Required: Yes
Subject GRE Required: None
Recommendations: 3
Faculty: 41
Planetary Researchers: 11
Students: 135
Admission Percentage: 10%
Nearby Research Institutions: JPL
Contact Email: [email protected]
Funding: Guaranteed funding for first 5 terms
Fall Application Deadline: 15 Dec
Spring Application Deadline: N/A
Admissions URL: https://www.gps.caltech.edu/academics/graduate-program/graduate-admissions-and-entrance-procedures
Notes: Exoplanet research can be pursued in Planetary Sciences or Astronomy