Admissions FAQs

General Application Questions

There is a $100 application fee when you submit your application. If you are admitted, there is also a $100 confirmation fee. Both fees are non-refundable.

Go to https://www.applyweb.com/cgi-bin/ustat?school=wwugrad and click on the "View Checklist" link. On the checklist you will see status information for references, transcripts (unofficial and official) and test scores.

It is possible to apply to more than one program under one ApplyWeb account, but you can only have one app in progress at a time. You will need to complete and submit the first, and then when you go back to your account, you will see the option to begin another application.

Detailed information about establishing and maintaining Washington State residency can be found at the Registrar's Office.

Note to International Students: According to Washington State law, a person who is not a citizen of the United States may be classified as a resident for tuition and fee purposes. Resident status (for tuition and fee purposes) may be obtained if evidence is provided that the applicant holds Permanent Resident, Refugee Parolee, or Conditional Entrant status with the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Find the current year's tuition and fee schedule on the Student Business Office site.

Transcripts

  • Transcripts do not show institution name and/or student name
  • Transcripts unreadable (due to formatting problems or low resolution scans)
  • Missing pages (must save multipage transcripts as a single document to upload- please scan as PDF rather than JPG).
  • Missing institutions (did not list all institutions attended—transfer, study abroad, etc.)

The unofficial transcript upload will accept PDF, JPG, GIF, PNG and TIF files up to 5 MB. If your file is of a different type, or exceeds the 5 MB limit, it will not successfully upload. The system also cannot accept secure PDFs. Please see our uploading unofficial transcripts page for more information.

If you want to pull unofficial transcript information off of your university’s student portal, it is generally better to “print to PDF” rather than copy and paste the content into a MS Word document. Printing to PDF preserves page formatting and usually also captures the header that provides institution identifying information.

If your transcript is more than one page long, please save it as one PDF document. Each transcript upload field can only hold one document. If you save a multiple page transcript as a series of JPEGs and upload to the same field multiple times, it will only save the last document. (Also, please do not shrink multiple screenshots and cut/paste to one letter-sized page. This generally results in the transcript content being unreadable.)

If you have trouble manipulating your documents into a format that works, please contact us at gradschool@wwu.edu for help BEFORE submitting your application.

If you have multiple attendance periods at one institution, list the institution once and indicate attendance dates inclusive of all attendance periods, unless the coursework you completed appears on two separate transcripts (for example, an undergraduate transcript and a graduate level transcript). Do not provide more than one copy of each transcript.

If you earned multiple degrees at one institution, please list only the most recent.

Please see our Submitting Official Transcripts page.

Other Application Materials

We usually complete the initial processing of applications within 1 or 2 business days after they are submitted. At that time, any official test scores that have already been received by WWU will be uploaded to your file, and you will see this status update reflected on your application checklist at https://www.applyweb.com/cgi-bin/ustat?school=wwugrad.

Our application features an integrated Letter of Reference request function. You are prompted in the application to provide names and contact information for people who will submit references in support of your application. You also indicate if you wish to waive your right to review the reference. Then click “Submit Recommendation Request”, and the ApplyWeb system contacts the person at the email address you provided.

The reference request goes out as soon as you submit the request. You do not need to have submitted the application to initiate the reference request.

Your recommenders will be prompted to log in to the ApplyWeb reference letter system and complete our reference form and/or upload a letter. Once they have submitted the reference, it is automatically attached to your application and identified by the system as received. For a more visual explanation of the process, please see our Letter of Reference System Overview.

Generally, Confidential References (where you have waived your right to view) are considered to carry more weight because the person providing the reference is expected to be more candid in his/her assessment of you.

Some people may not feel comfortable accepting a reference request if the applicant has not waived the right to view the form and/or letter. In this case, they may decline the reference request, which will be reflected on your application status page. If a reference request is declined, you can either identify a new person and resend the request, or change your waive status and resend the request.

If you do not waive your right to view your references, please keep in mind that the material will not be available for you to view online. We can only provide access to these materials in person for your perusal at our office.