Admissions Criteria

  • A bachelor’s degree from an accredited US college or university, or equivalent international credential
  • A minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale

How to Apply

Congratulations on reaching this milestone as you work to further your educational journey with Johns Hopkins University. Here are the steps you will need to follow as you apply for your graduate program. Please visit the How to Apply page for additional information.

  • Complete the Application.
  • Gather and upload the required supporting materials.
  • Submit the application along with the $75 application fee.

Start your Application

Required Supporting Materials

Please include any full- or part-time work, internships, and relevant volunteer history. Be sure to detail your educational background and any previous responsibilities related to your intended program.

Johns Hopkins University Advanced Academic Programs accepts official transcripts that are electronically sent directly from the granting institution and emailed to [email protected]. If your institution does not provide electronic transcripts, request that your institution send an official transcript directly to:

Johns Hopkins University

Advanced Academic Programs

851 Trafalgar Court

Suite 420 West

Maitland, FL 32751

In 1-3 typewritten, single- or double-spaced pages, please share with us why you are interested in pursuing the MA in Science Writing degree. Discuss your interest in studying the theory and practice of writing or editing science, medicine or technology content. Your statement will be reviewed for creativity, content, and level of interest in the field and we appreciate originality and professional or personal reflection. The Statement of Purpose should also describe your recent reading (books, periodicals, digital sites, or other works), and a plan of study.

If you want permission to take only a course or two as a non-degree seeking student, the statement should specify the desired course or courses.

Please identify two individuals, such as professors or supervisors, who can verify your professional and/or academic accomplishments. Submit your recommenders’ contact information within your online application. They will be emailed automatically with instructions to access the system and provide their recommendations.

Please submit 10 to 20 typewritten, double-spaced pages, or about 2,500 to 5,000 words. These writing samples should be your best attempt at creative, communication, or journalistic writing in medicine, science, technology, nature, health, or related fields. Any form or combination of forms, including news or feature articles, commentary/blogs, communication feature, memoir, travel, essay, newsletter article, review, profile, humor, news release, speech, book chapters, and creative nonfiction, is permitted. If you lack samples about science, medicine, or technology, you may submit writing about other topics, although some kind of explanatory or analytical writing is useful. Samples do NOT have to be a single, lengthy piece of writing. Instead, a combination of several shorter pieces is recommended if the combined length of all pieces equals 10 to 20 pages. We suggest two to five separate or related works of prose.

Tips for a Successful Writing Sample

Typical academic or college papers, peer-reviewed research reports, extremely technical writing, or formulaic government or corporate documents are NOT acceptable writing samples. Instead, we seek your best attempt at journalism, communication writing, essays, creative writing, blogging, op-eds, speechwriting, newsletter features, journal entries, storytelling, narrative, or other styles, in any traditional or experimental form. In some cases, a corporate document or academic paper may be an acceptable sample, but only if it displays creativity and originality beyond the typical example.

For models to emulate, you should review the content and style of writing found in the health, science, technology, or related sections of major newspapers, magazines, literary journals, scientific organizations, or web publications. The Science Writing program favors writing samples that show some understanding of the traits and techniques of such published writing, although professional-level expertise is not expected.

Our admissions committee advises applicants who don’t regularly produce the requested writing in a personal or professional setting to demonstrate creative initiative: Read and study your best models, find a topic of knowledge or interest, then seize a pen or keyboard to write.

You may submit copies of published writing, although submitted samples do not have to be published. If you have digital writing samples, please submit a copy of the entire sample, not just a link. The majority of samples in the application should be no more than five years old. You may submit uncompleted work if you label it as such.

Additional Considerations

Applicants who received their bachelor’s degree in a country outside of the United States or have international coursework are required to provide a course-by-course credential evaluation. Studying abroad may be exempt.

If English is your second language, you may be required to take the TOEFL or IELTS examination. Please note this program requires a minimum online TOEFL test score of 100.

Contact Us for More Information

Advanced Academic Programs Admissions

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Learn to blend reporting and research with the craft of creative writing, and launch a career in science writing or communication.

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