University of Washington Seattle

Office of Admissions

• Freshman
• Transfer
• International
  • 1. Take Standardized Tests
  • 2. Explore Majors
  • 3. Gather Required Documents
  • 4. Keep Deadlines in Mind
  • 5. Apply For Admission
  • 6. Apply for Honors
  • 7. Send Transcripts
  • 8. The Review Process
  • 9. The Admission Decision
    • Guidelines for Special Admission and Appeal
• Postbacs

Big University = Lots of Choices!

The UW offers over 140 different majors to choose from. The requirements for each major or department can vary, so it is never too early to begin exploring the many opportunities available to you. Although we do have many majors to choose from, not all majors are available. For example, the UW does not offer a major in physical education, health education, athletic training, or nutrition; so if you are interested in pursuing a major in those or related fields, you may want to consider a related area of study or a different institution. If you know you want to graduate from the UW, familiarize yourself with our majors and departments to see if there are other areas that interest you.

Freshmen

Most incoming freshmen enter the UW as a pre-major, which means they are being admitted to the University but have not met departmental requirements. Prerequisite courses cannot be satisfied with high-school course work, so freshmen will need to complete prerequisites at the UW before they can be considered for admission to a competitive major. Freshmen meet with academic advisers to schedule courses that prepare them for departmental requirements.

• A handful of majors – Bioengineering, Business, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, and Industrial Engineering – admit a very small number of high-achieving freshmen directly into the program, with the vast majority being admitted later as sophomores or juniors. If you are a freshman and wish to be considered for one of these majors, use #3 on the application to indicate your choice.

Transfers and Postbaccalaureates

It is very important that transfer and postbaccalaureate students begin to explore majors and contact the departments that they wish to be admitted to. Since departmental admission requirements vary greatly, we strongly encourage applicants to contact departments directly . In addition, some departments admit students only once a year. For transfer applicants who have completed or will complete two years of college before entering the UW, it is even more important to learn about departmental admission requirements; depending on the number of college credits completed, there may not be much time to explore majors. We recommend that you also review the Academic Planning Worksheet for the area you are interested in studying.