Evening MBA Admissions

Create your online application profile via the UW Graduate Admissions website and follow the instructions. Select “Graduate” as your application type, and “Business Administration – Foster School of Business – Seattle Evening MBA” as your graduate program. Indicate Autumn 2023 as your desired entry date.

You may save your information and return as often as you’d like until you submit your completed application. All aspects of your application, including the fulfillment of these requirements, are subject to verification.

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Two essays are required and must be uploaded to your online application.

Essay 1: Post-MBA Plans (750 words maximum) – Tell us your ideas about what lies ahead for you in your career. What are the gaps or deficiencies currently preventing you from pursuing these potential career paths? How do you plan to use your time in the Foster MBA program to fill these gaps and advance your career?

Essay 2: Inspiring Experience Essay (500 words maximum) – Please tell us about an experience that inspired or confirmed your decision to pursue the MBA.

Essay 3: Optional essay (500 words maximum) – Please include this essay if you have additional information that you believe would be helpful to the admissions committee in considering your application.

Essay 4: Optional Diversity, Equity & Inclusion essay (500 words maximum) – At the Foster School of Business, we embrace diversity as one of the foundations of both successful business strategy and a world-class educational experience. We share the University’s dedication to promoting the understanding and appreciation of human differences and the constructive expression of ideas. We welcome you to share some of the ways you have practiced inclusion, promoted equity, or supported the advancement of underrepresented groups.

Outline your work experience, in reverse chronological order. Be sure to include company name, a brief description of the organization (or a web address), your job title and detailed information about your responsibilities. Please feel free to use up to three pages for your resume, and include all significant work experience since graduating from high school. Include educational background as well as your activities and community involvement.

Two recommendation letters are required; however, you are permitted to submit up to three. Preferably, recommendations should be provided by professional contacts versus academic or personal contacts. Designate your recommenders in your online application profile. Recommenders will receive an email directing them to the online recommendation form.

Transcripts are required for all undergraduate and graduate-level institutions attended. For the application review process, the Foster MBA program accepts copies of original transcripts. Transcripts must be uploaded within the online application; do not send official transcripts to our office via mail. Please see detailed instructions regarding the content and format of acceptable unofficial transcripts below. **Please note that official transcripts sent directly from institutions are required only after an offer of admission is accepted by the applicant. Instructions for submission of official transcripts will be provided to admitted students at a later date.

Required format for all transcripts
We require scanned copies of original transcripts submitted via PDF file within the online application. Please make sure to include any transcript keys that describe the institution’s grading scale (typically found on the back side of most domestic transcripts). Self-generated online grade reports or versions that have been cut and pasted into a Word document will not be accepted.

Required content for all transcripts:

• Full name of applicant (former names are acceptable if indicated on application)
• Name of degree-granting institution
• Title(s) of academic degree(s) awarded
• Dates of enrollment, including date of graduation/degree conferral
• Names of individual courses
• Grades, marks, or ratings of individual courses
• International transcripts must include official English translations
• Both marks sheets and degree statements are required, if applicable

GPA Requirements
Applicants should review our Class Profile for GPA averages for admitted students. Although Foster does not have a minimum requirement, a GPA of 3.0 (B) or better is generally the standard we look for in a competitive candidate. We holistically review all aspects of your application when making an admissions decision. Should your GPA fall below a 3.0 average, we closely evaluate your performance on the GMAT or GRE, as well as other aspects of your application, to assess your ability to succeed academically in our program. If you have specific concerns related to your undergraduate GPA, please contact one of our admissions counselors to discuss your questions.

Reporting your Grade Point Average
The Graduate School Application asks applicants to report their Grade Point Average (GPA) on a 0.0 – 4.0 scale for the last 90 quarter or 60 semester graded credits. Specific instructions are provided on the Graduate School Application for converting and calculating your GPA if your university was not on such a system, and for converting from an international grading system to a 4.0 scale. Please read and follow the instructions carefully for converting your GPA to a 4.0 scale to complete this question. If you’d like to assess your GPA ahead of applying, the application refers applicants to the Foreign Credits website, and to use the GPA calculator for this process.

Please note, if you attended a university that does not grade courses or provide a GPA, check the “I do not have a GPA” box.

All MBA applicants are encouraged to take the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Exam (GRE). Applicants with 6 or more years of full-time work experience may take the Executive Assessment (EA).

Applicants also have the option to apply with no test score. Applicants can apply “Test Optional” to the Evening MBA Program without a standardized test score.

Applying with a GMAT, GRE or Executive Assessment (EA) Score

For the GMAT, GRE and EA exams, all sub-scores including the Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) score are evaluated. Scores should indicate a strong aptitude for business studies. You can review score averages on our Class Profile.

GMAT, GRE and EA exams are offered year-round and can be taken multiple times. Tests are available at in-person testing centers as well as online. Scores are valid for five years. There is no departmental preference for the GMAT, GRE or EA exam.

Take the test as early as possible to allow time to re-test if necessary. The GMAT, GRE or EA exam must be completed by the application deadline and official scores should be reported by the deadline. If you have taken a test more than once, the admissions committee will use your highest overall total score to evaluate your application.

Applying Test Optional

All applicants who choose to apply Test Optional agree to complete the “Test Optional Summary of Qualifications” and answer two short-answer questions in the place of submitting a GMAT, GRE or EA score:

• Please detail the specific evidence in your academic experience that supports your analytical and quantitative preparedness for success in the MBA program. (75 words maximum)
• Please detail the specific evidence in your professional experience that supports your analytical and quantitative preparedness for success in the MBA program. (75 words maximum)

Please review the Test Optional FAQ section for a complete overview of the requirements for applying Test Optional and crafting a competitive application.

Proficiency in English is required for admission to a graduate program at the University of Washington. If your native language is not English, you are required to demonstrate English language proficiency in one of the following ways:

• Bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree from a regionally accredited institution in the United States or from an institution in Australia, the Bahamas, Canada, Ireland, Jamaica, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, or the United Kingdom.

OR

• Official documentation from the institution verifying that the applicant’s undergraduate degree is from an institution (in a country other than those listed above) where all instruction is in English. The undergraduate degree must be equivalent to a US bachelor’s degree. Documentation must be presented to the Graduate School.

OR

• Complete an English Language Proficiency Exam. Refer to the below table for accepted exams and score requirements.

NOTE: Most test scores are valid for two years. Applicants with scores below the minimum score requirements are highly encouraged to retake the exam before submitting an application. Official test scores must be sent directly to the University of Washington Graduate School by the application deadline.

A non-refundable application fee of $85 must be paid by credit card through the online application system.

All applicants will be asked to submit a video interview and will receive an email within 3-4 business days after the application deadline to which they applied with instructions on recording the video interview. The video interview allows us to get to know you better and to assess your communication skills and your ability to think on your feet as we review your application and consider your candidacy.

Once applicants receive the video interview invitation via e-mail, they will have approximately 4-6 days to complete this requirement. The email will provide instructions on recording the video interview. Applicants can test their video and sound before recording their video interview, answer practice video interview questions, and ask for technical support if needed within the video interview system. The email instructions will include the deadline to submit the video interview, and applicants must complete this requirement in order for their application to remain under review.

The video interview must be submitted in order for the application to be reviewed. Applicants will be contacted if they are selected for an admissions interview later in the application review process.

Competitive Evening MBA candidates are invited to participate in Evaluation Day, a mandatory step in the admissions process. Evaluation Day involves personal presentations and group exercises designed to evaluate:

• Communication skills
• Decision-making abilities
• Team skills
• Leadership potential

Invitations to participate in Evaluation Day will be sent via email only.

Concurrent degree applicants must apply to each school, college or department of interest.
Additional admissions tests may be required. Application materials should be submitted separately to both programs, as the individual programs independently make admissions decisions. Applicants must be offered admission to both schools to be admitted to the combined program.

If you have applied to the Foster Evening MBA Program previously and you are planning to reapply, we generally recommend that you submit an entirely new application. However, some components (such as recommendation letters and transcripts) may be used again provided that no more than one year has passed since the previous application was submitted. Feel free to reach out to Foster MBA Admissions staff directly with any questions as you prepare your new application.