Speech & Hearing Sciences
College of Arts & Sciences
The B.S. in Speech and Hearing Sciences is for students interested in the scientific and theoretical frameworks for understanding human communication and its disorders, including the roles of biology, cognition, environment and culture. The major provides an overview of the discipline, including the neurological, behavioral, physical and anatomic-physiological bases of speech, language, hearing and swallowing. It also provides an introduction to evaluation and treatment considerations for individuals with communication disorders. The program prepares students for paraprofessional employment (e.g., SLP assistant, audiology technician, ABA therapist, special education aide) as well as graduate study for a either a research or clinical career. This program is appropriate for students with interests in related fields such as education, early childhood development, linguistics, psychology, public health, biology, neuroscience and other health professions.
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
- Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 for all college course work.
- Competitive applicants should have a GPA of at least 3.0 (B) in the prerequisite coursework with no single course graded less than 2.0 (C).It is highly recommended that all prerequisite coursework grades be a 2.5 or above.
- Applicants must have completed a minimum of 75 credits to apply. If accepted, students must complete at least 90 credits by the quarter they enter the major.
- Transfer students can apply to the department (if they are at or near junior standing) and the UW concurrently.
- See department website for more information on how to apply to Speech & Hearing Sciences.
Read more about applying to the UW as a transfer student.
Courses REQUIRED for admission:
- One introductory statistics course (statistical computation)
- One social science course (psychology, public health, sociology, anthropology)
- One biology course (human- or animal-based)
- One introductory physics or chemistry course
- One introductory linguistics course (phonology, phonetics, morphology, syntax, and semantics.)
Entering transfer information:
Total undergraduates: 68
Total from Washington community colleges: 9
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