Community, Environment & Planning
College of Built Environments
Community, Environment and Planning (CEP) is an award-winning, interdisciplinary Bachelor of Arts degree housed in the Department of Urban Design and Planning. Unlike most majors, CEP does not provide a pre-defined educational path. Instead, CEP empowers students to draw on the tools of planning — collaboration, leadership, intentionality, stewardship and vision — to pursue their own educational goals in the company of other self-directed students in cohorts limited to 38 students. The CEP core curriculum focuses on theory and practice applied to real-world settings; electives are satisfied by taking courses anywhere on campus. Students also participate in a governance process that supports the major and teaches students how to be effective leaders and doers in the world. Our students graduate to become urban planners, educators, non-profit managers, entrepreneurs, communication experts and professionals of all sorts, including doctors, lawyers and engineers.
Major category:
Area(s) of interest: Arts, Humanities and Design, Business, Engineering option, Natural and environmental sciences, Social sciences
websiteDegree requirements
Applicant type
First-year students can apply to the UW to begin autumn quarter or winter quarter (U.S. applicants only)
An application for general admission to the UW is required for all transfer students. UW accepts general applications for Autumn and Winter with some select majors allowing applications in Spring. Review your intended major’s website for information about which quarters it is open for admission.
Preparation for the major is a factor in transfer admission.
Use the information below to help you prepare for this major. Read more about applying to the UW as a transfer student.
- Visit MyPlan to run a degree audit.
- Use the UW Equivalency Guide to find out how courses taken at a Washington state community or technical college will transfer to the UW.
- UW college and school graduation requirements
Department admission information
Admissions requirements:
- Minimum 90 credits completed when the student begins the program and at least 80% of general education requirements fulfilled, tracked by CEP’s Academic Advisor.
- Minimum GPA of 2.5 GPA with additional emphasis on a written essay and demonstration of relevant extracurricular activities.
- Admission is once a year, for autumn quarter.
Read more about applying to the UW as a transfer student.
Courses REQUIRED for admission:
- English Composition
- CEP 200 SSc – Introduction to Community and Environmental Planning
Entering transfer information:
Total undergraduates: 74
Total from Washington community colleges: 16
Entering transfer GPA (from WA community colleges):
3.75 – 4.00: <5
3.50 – 3.74: <5
3.25 – 3.49: <5
3.00 – 3.24: <5
2.75 – 2.99: <5
2.50 – 2.74: <5
2.49 and below: <5