Graduate

As a graduate student at Michigan State, you will be part of a vibrant group of astronomers with a diversity of research interests. Our degree program is designed to move graduate students quickly into research projects.

Our weekly seminars and journal club offer students a chance to meet leading researchers across the spectrum of astronomy. In addition, MSU astronomy graduate students learn how to present scientific results to a broad range of audiences, from colleagues to the general public. Whether it is leading a star party at the campus observatory or learning to employ active learning techniques as an instructor, MSU astronomy graduate students learn valuable professional skills. Our group has a strong mentoring program to provide focused advice as you move from being a new graduate to becoming an independent researcher. Check out our alumni profiles to see what some of our graduates are doing; MSU has offered a PhD in astronomy & astrophysics since 1995.

MSU astronomy graduate students have access to world-class facilities, including the 4.1-m SOAR telescope in Cerro Pachón, Chile and the Blue Waters supercomputer. In addition, there are many opportunities for interdisciplinary work: MSU is the lead institution of the NSF frontier center JINA (Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics). and it is possible to pursue a dual PhD between between astrophysics and the Department of Computational Mathematics, Science, and Engineering.

If you are interested in joining our graduate program, please see our page "How to apply".