The 2026 graduate application season has officially kicked off, and universities across the US are releasing their deadlines, with many programs seeing adjustments compared to last year.
Unlike undergraduate admissions with unified deadlines, graduate applications for different universities, schools, and even specific programs each have their own requirements and cut-off dates.
Just looking at the US alone, the sheer number of deadlines is dizzying!
To help you better manage your application timeline, CheersYou（清柚教育） has compiled a partial list of "26Fall Application Deadlines for US Top Graduate Programs" for your reference and bookmarking.
*Date information is for reference only; please verify on the official university websites for final details.
Princeton University
November 16, 2025
Neuroscience, Psychology, etc.
December 1, 2025
Art and Archaeology, Biophysics, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Chemistry, East Asian Studies, Economics, English, History, History of Science, Molecular Biology, Population Studies, Quantitative and Computational Biology, etc.
December 15, 2025
Anthropology, Applied and Computational Mathematics, Astrophysics, Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, French and Italian, Mathematics, Near Eastern Studies, Finance, Philosophy, Physics, Politics, Public and International Affairs, Sociology, etc.
December 30, 2025
Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, German, Musicology, Operations Research and Financial Engineering, Religion, Spanish and Portuguese, etc.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
November 8, 2025
Global Operations Leadership, etc.
December 1, 2025
Materials Science and Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Aeronautics and Astronautics, Transportation, etc.
December 15, 2025
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Media Arts and Sciences, Nuclear Science and Engineering, Operations Research, Political Science, Urban Studies and Planning, etc.
January 3, 2026
Business Analytics, Finance, etc.
January 15, 2026
Real Estate, Science Writing, Data, Economics, and Public Policy, etc.
Harvard University
Graduate School of Design
January 5, 2026 (January 8 for MDes and MDE)
Graduate School of Education
November 1, 2025 (TTL); December 1, 2025 (Ph.D.); January 5, 2026 (Ed.M.)
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Kennedy School
December 1, 2025
Law School
December 1, 2025 (LLM); April 1, 2026 (S.J.D); April 1, 2026 (VS/VR)
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
December 1, 2025; December 15, 2025; January 5, 2026
Business School
September 3, 2025; January 5, 2026
Stanford University
School of Engineering
December 1, 2025: Management Science and Engineering, Bioengineering, Mechanical Engineering, etc.
December 2, 2025: Computer Science, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Aeronautics and Astronautics, Electrical Engineering, etc.
January 15, 2026: Materials Science and Engineering, etc.
January 31, 2026: Computational and Mathematical Engineering, etc.
April 1, 2026: Chemical Engineering, etc.
Graduate School of Education
January 8, 2026
School of Humanities and Sciences
December 2, 2025: Mathematics, Journalism, etc.
December 3, 2025: Economics, Statistics, etc.
December 15, 2025: Applied Physics, etc.
January 8, 2026: International Policy, etc.
January 21, 2026: Communication, etc.
January 22, 2026: Public Policy, etc.
Doerr School of Sustainability
December 2, 2025: Energy Science and Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Earth System Science, etc.
Yale University
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
December 1, 2025: Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Chemistry, Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, English Language and Literature, Psychology, Statistics, Statistics and Data Science, Economics, Public Health, etc.
December 15, 2025: Anthropology, Applied Physics, Astronomy, Biomedical Engineering, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Management, Mathematics, Sociology, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, etc.
January 2, 2026: Applied and Computational Mathematics, Archaeological Studies, Computer Science, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Environmental Studies, East Asian Studies, French, International Development and Economics, Nursing, Philosophy, etc.
School of Management
MBA: September 10, 2025; January 6, 2026; April 14, 2026
Global Business and Society: December 1, 2025; January 12, 2026; February 23, 2026; March 30, 2026
Asset Management: January 8, 2026
School of Engineering and Applied Science
December 15, 2025
School of the Environment
December 1, 2025
Duke University
January 5, 2026: Statistical Science, etc.
January 6, 2026: Civil and Environmental Engineering, etc.
January 15, 2026: Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Economics, etc.
January 16, 2026: Electrical and Computer Engineering, etc.
January 29, 2026: Economics and Computation, Digital Art History/Computational Media, etc.
February 2, 2026: Computer Science, etc.
February 4, 2026: Biomedical Engineering, etc.
February 27, 2026: Global Health, etc.
March 12, 2026: Humanities, Materials Science and Engineering, etc.
March 16, 2026: Applied Ethics and Policy, etc.
California Institute of Technology
December 1, 2025
Biology, Bioengineering, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Computation and Neural Systems, Neurobiology, etc.
December 10, 2025
Mathematics, etc.
December 15, 2025
Applied and Computational Mathematics, Aeronautics, Applied Mechanics, Civil Engineering, Computer Science, Computing and Mathematical Sciences, Control and Dynamical Systems, Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, Medical Engineering, Physics, Social Science, etc.
Northwestern University
McCormick School of Engineering
Applied Physics: December 20, 2025
Artificial Intelligence: December 15, 2025
Machine Learning and Data Science: December 1, 2025; January 15, 2026
Energy and Sustainability: December 7, 2025; February 15, 2026; May 1, 2026
Engineering Management: December 15, 2025; January 15, 2026
Information Technology: March 1, 2026; June 15, 2026
School of Professional Studies
December 1, 2025 (Accelerated Master's)
Kellogg School of Management
MBA: September 10, 2025; January 7, 2026; April 1, 2026
Management: October 29, 2025; January 14, 2026; April 15, 2026; May 27, 2026
School of Communication
Communication: January 15, 2026; March 15, 2026; May 15, 2026
Leadership for Creative Enterprises: January 15, 2026; March 15, 2026; May 15, 2026
Medill School of Journalism
Integrated Marketing Communications: October 6, 2025; December 1, 2025; March 16, 2026
Journalism: November 10, 2025; January 16, 2026; March 30, 2026
Johns Hopkins University
Carey Business School
MS Programs
Round 1: October 8, 2025
Round 2: January 14, 2025
Round 3: March 11, 2025
MBA Program
Priority Round: September 10, 2025
Round 1: October 22, 2025
Round 2: January 7, 2026
Round 3: March 18, 2026
Design Leadership (MA/MBA)
Round 1: January 21, 2026
Round 2: February 18, 2026
Round 3: March 18, 2026
School of Advanced International Studies
Priority Round: November 1, 2025; Regular Round: February 1, 2026
Bloomberg School of Public Health
December 1, 2025: Biostatistics, MPH, Human Nutrition, etc.
January 15, 2026: Health Policy and Management, Epidemiology, etc.
March 1, 2026: Health, Behavior and Society, Mental Health, Biochemistry and Molecular Microbiology, etc.
May 1, 2026: Environmental Health, Global Health Economics, Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, etc.
University of Pennsylvania
Graduate School of Education
January 15, 2026: SMART, etc.
February 1, 2026: Education Policy, Education, Culture, and Society, Learning Sciences and Technologies, International Educational Development, Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Development, TESOL, etc.
February 15, 2026: Higher Education, Literacy Studies, Urban Education, etc.
School of Social Policy & Practice
Priority Round: December 1, 2025
Final Round: February 1, 2026
School of Engineering and Applied Science
Priority Round: November 1, 2025
Regular Round: February 1, 2026
School of Arts and Sciences
Human Sciences: June 1, 2026 (International Students); July 1, 2026
Applied Criminology and Police Leadership: July 15, 2026
Applied Economics and Data Science: January 15, 2026
Applied Positive Psychology: March 1, 2026
Behavioral and Decision Sciences: December 1, 2025 (Priority Round); February 1, 2026
Chemical Sciences, Environmental Science: December 15, 2025 (Priority Round); April 30, 2026
University of Chicago
Harris School of Public Policy
October 2, 2025 (Priority Round)
December 5, 2025 (Round 1)
January 15, 2026 (Round 2 & MSCEP Final Round)
June 16, 2026 (Round 3, may close early)
Booth School of Business
Management: October 9, 2025; January 8, 2026; March 5, 2026; April 30, 2026
Finance: January 8, 2026
MBA: September 16, 2025; January 6, 2026; April 2, 2026
Division of the Social Sciences
November 6, 2025 (Priority Round); January 7, 2026 (Round 1); June 1, 2026 (Round 2)
Columbia University
Columbia Business School
MBA Program
September 3, 2025 (Round 1); January 6, 2026 (Round 2); March 26, 2025 (Round 3)
MS Programs
January 15, 2026
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Biotechnology: February 5, 2026
Economics: January 15, 2026
Mathematics of Finance: January 15, 2026 (Priority Round); May 1, 2026 (Regular Round)
Statistics: January 31, 2026 (Priority Round); May 1, 2026 (Regular Round)
Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science
Financial Engineering: January 15, 2026
Civil Engineering: February 1, 2026 (Priority Round); February 15, 2026 (Regular Round)
Business Analytics, Chemical Engineering, Computer Science, Data Science, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Management Science and Engineering, Operations Research: January 15, 2026 (Priority Round); February 15, 2026 (Regular Round)
Other MS Programs: February 15, 2026
School of Professional Studies
Enterprise Risk Management, Sports Management, Sustainability Management, Wealth Management, etc.: January 15, 2026 (Priority Round); May 1, 2026 (Final Round)
Actuarial Science, Applied Analytics, Human Capital Management, Project Management, Technology Management, etc.: February 15, 2026 (Priority Round); June 1, 2026 (Final Round)
School of Social Work
December 1, 2025 (Priority Round); February 15, 2026 (Round 2); April 1, 2026 (Final Round)
The horn has sounded for the 26Fall application season. If you don't prepare and equip yourself in advance, you'll truly have no choice but to surrender.
For those students wanting to catch the early application bus, don't hesitate any longer—start preparing now. CheersYou（清柚教育） wishes all students success in securing offers from their dream schools!
