Aeronautics & Astronautics

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record.

Optional Supplemental Topics (may be approx. 1 additional page):
(1) Describe how you could bring a broader perspective to the engineering classroom based on your awareness of cultural differences.
(2) Describe any personal hardship or barriers you have faced and explain how they have affected your education.

Bioengineering

Your personal statement should explain your interest in Bioengineering, your motivation to join our program, and your goals for the future. Please include a paragraph explaining how the research in the department matches your interests. (You can go to http://depts.washington.edu/bioe/people/core to look at faculty research in detail.) If you have work or volunteer experience relating to the field (for example research or internship experience), please tell us about it. If you have applied previously to the department, please discuss what has changed or improved since your last application.

You may use a portion of the statement to address any academic difficulties, such as a poor performance one quarter or a low grade in a pre-requisite course. However, if your cumulative GPA falls below the 2.5 needed to apply to Bioengineering, or if you have academic problems to explain that are larger than a single course or quarter, please address these topics through a formal petition rather than the personal statement. To inquire about the petition process, contact the Lead Academic Counselor, Kelli Jayn Nichols, at knichols@u.washington.edu or 206-685-2022.

If you have overcome any significant obstacles (medical, financial, cultural, personal) to reach the point you are at now, it might be appropriate to discuss them in the statement. You may also explain how you could contribute to diversity of our student body. Factors that contribute to diversity include, but are not limited to: cultural awareness, activities, or accomplishments; educational background and goals; living experiences, such as growing up in a disadvantaged or unusual environment; and special interests or talents.

While we do not limit you to one page, it is important that your essay be well written. Be clear about what you want to say so that you do not digress or repeat yourself. Say what is important to say, but try to do it concisely.

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Write a personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record.

Optional Supplemental Topics (may be approx. 1 additional page):
(1) Describe how you could bring a broader perspective to the engineering classroom based on your awareness of cultural differences.
(2) Describe any personal hardship or barriers you have faced and explain how they have affected your education.
(3) If you are applying for conditional admission, please also state this in your supplemental personal statement and outline how you intend to complete the outstanding courses, including where and when you intend to complete the courses. (For optimal consideration, outstanding courses should be completed by the end of the summer quarter.)

Chemical Engineering

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record.

Optional Supplemental Topics (may be approx. 1 additional page):
(1) Describe how you could bring a broader perspective to the engineering classroom based on your awareness of cultural differences.
(2) Describe any personal hardship or barriers you have faced and explain how they have affected your education.

Computer Science and Computer Engineering

Please write one full page (approximately, we are not counting words) on the topics found below. It is best to write your essay in plain text within a word document and then copy and paste it when you are ready.

  • While strong grades are important, equally important to us is maintaining a rich, diverse student population. If you have unique experiences, current activities or interests that you feel would enrich our community or enhance diversity, please discuss them in your statement.
  • We are very interested in hearing about your future goals. Please discuss where your aspirations in computer science will enable you to go and how getting a CS or CE degree fits into your long term plans.
  • If you have had to overcome any significant obstacles, difficulties, or challenges to reach where you are now, including medical, financial, cultural, and personal challenges, please discuss them and the ways in which they affected you.
  • If you wish to transfer from another four-year institution before graduating, then please let us know why you want to transfer to our department. If you are a post-baccalaureate student, please address why you are returning for a second degree.
  • If you have applied previously to our department, then please point out what has improved in your application since the last time you applied.

Things we look for in a personal statement:

  • We expect applicants to address the topics above in his/her personal statement
  • We look for well-written essays and for applicants who express themselves creatively and effectively.
  • We look for breadth or depth in terms of an applicant’s interests and activities.

Electrical Engineering

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record.

Optional Supplemental Topics (may be approx. 1 additional page):
(1) Describe how you could bring a broader perspective to the engineering classroom based on your awareness of cultural differences.
(2) Describe any personal hardship or barriers you have faced and explain how they have affected your education.

Industrial Engineering

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record.

Optional Supplemental Topics (may be approx. 1 additional page):
(1) Describe how you could bring a broader perspective to the engineering classroom based on your awareness of cultural differences.
(2) Describe any personal hardship or barriers you have faced and explain how they have affected your education.

Mechanical Engineering

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that may contribute to a better understanding of your record.

Optional Supplemental Topics (may be approx. 1 additional page):
(1) Describe how you could bring a broader perspective to the engineering classroom based on your awareness of cultural differences.
(2) Describe any personal hardship or barriers you have faced and explain how they have affected your education.

Materials Science & Engineering

Write a brief personal statement (approx. 1 page) that will give the departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your interest in this program. You may wish to describe your experiences (e.g. work, research, leadership, or extracurricular) that have been important to you. Also, you may wish to discuss any unusual circumstances that can contribute to a better understanding of your record.

Optional Supplemental Topics (may be approx. 1 additional page):
(1) Describe how you could bring a broader perspective to the engineering classroom based on your awareness of cultural differences.
(2) Describe any personal hardship or barriers you have faced and explain how they have affected your education.

Paper Science & Engineering

Personal Statement Write a brief, 1 page personal statement that will give the Paper Science and Engineering departmental admissions committee a better understanding of your background. Your statement must include your reasons for choosing Paper Science and Engineering, and your career objectives. You may also include other factors such as personal, family, economic and educational circumstances. Honors and Activities Please include a list of school, work or community honors and activities if applicable. Please indicate your most significant contribution, the organization name (if appropriate), and dates of service/award.

Technical Communication

Describe your proposed degree plan. What are your educational goals? In what technical or scientific area will you choose your electives? How will your combination of technical and communication courses help you meet your goals? The TC Admissions Committee considers both the content and presentation of this statement to be an important component of each applicant's case for admission to the department.