Apply to the Penn State Smeal Master of Finance

Thank you for your interest in the Penn State Smeal Master of Finance. To be considered for admission, all components of the application must be received by the respective deadline. As part of the online application process, a fee will be required. Once you have submitted your application to the Graduate School, the most accurate way to check the status of your application and confirm receipt of your materials is by contacting us at mfin@smeal.psu.edu.

Part 1: Online Application

Use the Penn State Graduate School Application portal to access the online application. Make sure to provide a valid email address that you can access throughout the application process.You can return to this portal anytime during the process.

You will be asked to select the desired program within the online application. Your selections for the full-time residential Penn State Smeal MFIN program should be: 

• Campus: University Park
• Major: Finance
• Degree: Master of Finance (MFIN)
• Semester: Fall 2025

Materials Required for the Online Application

• Resume: Submit a current version of your resume including any work experience and secondary education until the date of application.
• Copies of official educational transcripts (and degree certificate if applicable): The Penn State Graduate School application will ask you to upload copies of official educational transcripts/records and degree certificates, if applicable, from all institutions attended. All transcripts and academic records uploaded to the application are considered "unofficial." Official/original transcripts are required for any degree or diploma earned. If you are recommended for admission to a graduate degree program, you will be notified with detailed instructions on how to submit the official/original documents. If you attended Penn State for your undergraduate education, you will not need to submit transcripts as the Graduate School can obtain these from your student record.
• Program-Specific Questions: Ensure that you respond to all questions requesting information, especially when it is marked as required. 
• Reference contacts (3): Provide the names, titles, relationships, and contact information for three professional or academic references. A letter of recommendation will not be requested or required. In the event we need more information, we will reach out to your references.
• Official English language proficiency exam scores (for international candidates)
• Application fee
  

Part 2: Virtual Interview and Essay via Kira Talent

Within 24 hours of initiating your online application, you will receive a link to complete your virtual interview and essay via Kira Talent. Please check your spam folder or inbox filters for the invitation. Ensure completion of both your virtual interview and essay within seven business days of submitting your Graduate School Online Application.

• Virtual interview: This is a one-way interview that will be recorded and sent to Smeal's admissions team upon submission. You will be asked to respond to three behavioral questions on video. For each question, you will have limited time to consider your response and a set amount of time to respond as the system records.
• Essay: After completing the virtual interview in Kira, you will be asked to respond to an admissions essay question in written form during a timed session.

Note that your application will not be considered complete or evaluated by the committee until you have completed this part of the process, which is separate from the Penn State Graduate School online application.