Our graduate students form a supportive and intellectually vibrant community.  Each year we seek to add about 10 new members to that community.  We use the admissions process to select a group of students who will succeed here, and who will find this a hospitable place to pursue their goals.

Admissions Criteria

We assess several aspects of each applicant’s background to inform our admissions decisions.  We look for evidence that each applicant can:  

• Exercise independent and creative thought;
• Conceive and execute an original research project;
• Communicate clearly, both orally and in writing;
• Manage the demands of a rigorous academic environment;
• Work well with others; and
• Contribute constructively to our intellectual community.

Success in the department requires that each student work closely with faculty mentors.  To ensure that each student will be effectively supervised, admission to the program requires the support of at least two faculty members. For this reason, interested students are strongly encouraged to e-mail appropriate faculty members prior to applying to start a conversation about how well your research directions are a good "fit" with those of our faculty and graduate students. 

We seek to admit and recruit graduate program applicants from all backgrounds and nations. We coordinate closely with the Graduate School's recruitment and retention programs. These include:

GOMAP (Graduate Opportunities & Minority Achievement Program)
International Admissions Office
International Student Services Office.

Students who seek admission into the post-Master’s program should have either completed an M.A. in geography or done analogous post-baccalaureate work.  Students who lack a geography M.A. and wish to enter the post-Master’s program should indicate this on their application materials.

Graduate Application

The Geography Department’s on-line application opens annually on August 1 and closes on December 15 for both U.S. and international applicants. [Please ignore the November 1 deadline stated elsewhere by the Graduate School.]

All application materials must be received by December 15, 2009, to be considered for admission in Autumn 2010.

It is important to read all directions carefully before proceeding. You may wish to print out these instructions and keep them for reference.
If you have questions after reading the instructions, contact the Graduate Advisor by e-mail at rroth@u.washington.edu, or by phone at 206-543-3246.

For an overview of UW Graduate Admissions policies and procedures, please see:

http://www.grad.washington.edu/admissions/index.htm

Students should ensure that the following items are submitted by December 15. Application materials are submitted on line. Here is the list of materials you will be required to provide: :

1. Graduate School Application:

. https://www.grad.washington.edu/applForAdmiss/

2. Personal Statement of Academic Direction and Research Interests. Please submit online an essay (three pages maximum) describing your intended academic direction and research interests. Also, please explain how you envision pursuing those interests in the Geography Department, with reference to at least two faculty members you'd like to work with. 

3. Curriculum Vitae or resume. (optional, but highly recommended) A c.v. is similar to a resume but emphasizes your academic accomplishments--degrees, publications, professional experience, honors and awards, work experience.

4. Personal History (optional). (Note: This is an optional item. We routinely nominate meritorious applicants for various diversity fellowships and scholarships, but cannot do so unless this statement is submitted online).
 
We actively seek diversity of backgrounds, perspectives, and cultural experiences in our graduate program. To help us achieve this diversity, it would help us if, on this form as well as in your personal statement, you could identify any factors in your life which you feel will help broaden our graduate program. These may include: economic and educational disadvantages, cultural awareness, overcoming personal adversity, and leadership awards and potential
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5. Three letters of recommendation, preferably from academic referees. You will be asked to enter the names and contact information (affiliation, email, phone) on the online Graduate School recommendation form, and thus activate a request for a letter of recommendation, to be posted online by your referees. These letters should assess your probable success in our graduate program, based as much as possible on your prior academic achievement, and discuss your ability to contribute to an intellectual community. 

6.Graduate Record Examination scores. Direct ETS to send the scores to institutution code 4854, and Geography Dept. code 70. You may also post unofficial score reports, but if you are admitted to our graduate program you will need to have ETS send the Graduate School an official score report before you can register. For students without MA degrees, we accept scores for GREs taken within the past five years. Post-Master's applicants who have earned an MA within the past three years may submit the GRE scores used for admission to the graduate program which granted them their MA, provided the GRE was taken within the past ten years.

7. Transcripts from all institutions from which degrees were earned. You may have official transcripts sent to the UW Graduate School, or else post unofficial transcripts online (as .pdfs). In the latter case, if you are admitted into our program you will need to submit official transcripts to the UW Graduate School before you can enroll.

8. Post-masters applicants (that is, applicants who either already have an MA or will have one before they join our doctoral program) must submit scholarly work, such as a paper from a graduate seminar. Please post this work online.

9. English Language Proficiency. Prospective graduate students from foreign countries are expected to meet the same academic and residence requirements as the U.S. students, including regular attendance in required courses and seminars. All students are expected to have an adequate command of written and spoken English. If your English language competency is not sufficient, you will not be able to participate fully in class meetings and discussions, take notes, or read with sufficient proficiency. Therefore, every applicant whose native language is not English must demonstrate English language proficiency. Proficiency can be demonstrated in one of the following five ways:

1. A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution in the United States or from an institution in Australia, the Bahamas, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, Trinidad and Tobago, or the United Kingdom.


2. Documentation verifying that the applicant’s undergraduate degree is from an institution (in a country other than those listed in #1 above) where all instruction is in English.
   
   
3. A minimum English language proficiency test score of:
   
   • 7.0 on the IELTS
   • 92 on the TOEFLiBT
   • 237 on the TOEFLC
   • 580 on the TOEFL
   • 90 on the MLT
     


4. If an applicant is admitted with an English proficiency test score lower than the minimum scores (listed in #3 above) and in the range of scores listed below, the student will be required upon matriculation to take designated Academic English Program (AEP) courses through UW English Language Programs.
   
   • 6.0-6.9 IELTS
   • 61-91 TOEFLiBT
   • 173-236 TOEFLC
   • 500-579 TOEFL
   • 80-89 MLT
   
   Students must complete any required English courses as soon as possible in their graduate programs.
   
   
5. Successful completion of the UW Intensive English Program.
   

10. Application fee. There will be a $65 application fee required to process your application by the University of Washington Graduate School Admissions Office. You must pay on-line to be able to declare your application complete.

11. Funding. All applicants will be automatically considered for departmental funding; no additional funding applicaton forms are required.

12. Admissions process to the Ph.D. program for current M.A. students

Students completing their M.A. degree in the Department of Geography at the University of Washington who wish to enroll in the Ph.D. program must ensure the delivery of the following materials to the Graduate Program Assistant for consideration by the Graduate Admissions Committee:

1. A letter from the student requesting admission to the Ph.D. program that includes a statement of purpose (no more than 3 pages);
2. A letter of support from a UW Geography faculty member willing to serve as doctoral advisor; and
3. One additional letter of reference from a UW Geography faculty member.

Students must ensure delivery of these materials no later than during the quarter before they wish to gain admission to the Ph.D. program. Because of the timing of funding awards, students are strongly advised to submit these materials by January 15.  No applications will be accepted during Summer Quarter.

Students may submit these materials before completing the M.A. program.  In no case will formal admission to the Ph.D. program occur before completion of the M.A. 

Students who fail to complete the M.A. degree by the end of the quarter of their expected entrance to the Ph.D. program will be asked to reapply.

Alternatives to Regular Admissions
There are three alternative routes to graduate study for students who have been denied admission to the regular UW Geography Graduate Program, are coming from other disciplines, are looking to start taking Geography classes right away, or have been out of school for a long time:

1. Graduate Non-Matriculated status (GNM). The department is not accepting GNM applications at this time.
   
   
   
2. Postbaccalaureate status. Also known as the fifth-year program, this is limited to a small number of applicants annually who are working toward a second BA degree in Geography. Admission is highly competitive for this program. Please see the UW Catalog under "Post-Baccalaureate Admission", for more information.
   
   
3. Non-matriculated status (NM). This program is administered through UW Extension (206-543-3000) and is the most direct and least complicated way to take Geography courses. To take a course on an NM basis you must 1) obtain a course permission form from UW Extension and get signatures from a Geography advisor and the course instructor; 2) find a course that has openings--no NM student can take the place of a matriculated student; and 3) pay the UW Extension per-credit fees. Please see UW Extension for more information.