Admissions

The Notre Dame Graduate School provides opportunities to applicants to waive your application fee based on financial need, academic excellence, and previous experience. If you would like to apply for a fee waiver, please visit the graduate school website. If you are denied a graduate school waiver, or if you are requesting a waiver for any other reason not currently listed (such as a recommendation that you apply from a student or faculty of the Keough School), please contact us at keough-admissions@nd.edu.

The Graduate School will waive the TOEFL/IELTS/Duolingo requirement for non-native English speakers who spent a minimum of two academic years at an academic institution whose primary language of instruction was English. A letter from the Registrar’s Office (or the office responsible for academic records) confirming English as the language of instruction may be required. To expedite the review, please upload a transcript from the academic institution or the letter documenting instruction in English to the “Test Scores” section of the application (in place of the TOEFL or IELTS score). After completing the upload, please confirm with Graduate Admissions by email at gradapp@nd.edu that you have done so.

All students admitted to the Master of Global Affairs program are automatically considered for generous financial support, including both academic funding and support for experiential learning. Academic support includes a variety of merit-based scholarships ranging from partial tuition funding to full-tuition scholarships and stipends for living expenses. Students' practicum and internships are fully funded.

Graduate students can choose from several on- and off-campus housing options. On campus, the Fischer Graduate Residences offer two-bedroom apartments, and The Landings at Notre Dame provides family-friendly housing for married or parenting students. The Overlook at Notre Dame features studio and one-bedroom apartments for graduate and research students. Off campus, students can explore listings through offcampus.nd.edu, which includes property details, maps, and a roommate search tool. Limited summer housing and assistant rector roles are additional options for graduate students. 

Learn more about each option through the Office of Residential Life’s graduate housing page.

Master of Global Affairs (MGA) graduates build impactful careers around the world in the nonprofit, public, and private sectors. Among more than 200 alumni from over 70 countries, 97% are employed or pursuing further education within six months of graduation. Most graduates work in nonprofits and NGOs, while others serve in the public sector or private sector —with many based in Washington, D.C., and across 24 countries. Employers include organizations such as Amnesty International, Oxfam, NASA, the World Bank, USAID, Deloitte, and UNICEF.

Learn more about alumni achievements and career outcomes on the Master of Global Affairs outcomes page.