Admissions

Online Applicant Profile

To get started, click the apply now button below. From here, create your online application profile by selecting the “First-time Users” option or log into your account under “Returning Users”.

Please note that our Summer 2025 application is on a new application system. If you’ve started an application or applied prior, you will need to create a new user account and a new application in the new system.

Once in the application system, applicants should follow the prompts to start a new application. After creating an application, ensure that you follow these steps to select the correct program:

• Under “Program Selection” select “Graduate”
• Select search “By Campus”
• Select “Seattle” under filter by campus
• Select “Business Administration – Foster School of Business – MS in Business Analytics”
• 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.

Essays

There is one required Statement of Purpose and an optional Personal Statement.

Statement of Purpose – Required
What are your professional goals, and how will a Business Analytics degree help you achieve them? (maximum 300 words)

Personal Statement – Optional
Write a Personal Statement (maximum 300 words). The optional Personal Statement is an opportunity for you to share more about yourself, your past personal and educational experiences and any other information you think is important for the admissions committee to know. The Personal Statement is a supplement to the Statement of Purpose and should not be used to repeat information.

The essay should be clear and provide specific examples, if relevant. If appropriate, please address the following questions in your essay:

1. What else should the admissions committee know about your unique background, experiences and perspective?
2. Why will your background, experiences and perspective make you a good MSBA student and future business leader?
3. What is your motivation for applying to the Foster School of Business?
4. Have you previously applied to the MSBA program? If so, how has your application improved?

Resume

Post-undergraduate professional experience is not required. Your resume must be uploaded to your online application. It should be a complete summary of your education and professional work history in reverse chronological format. For each position, include:

• Company name and division/group/department
• Position title
• Dates of employment or internship
• Responsibility summary – a 2 to 4 sentence section describing your primary responsibilities for each position
• Accomplishment bullets – 2 to 4 bullets for each position

Letters of Recommendation

Two recommendation letters are required. 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.

Applying test optional

The Master of Science in Business Analytics program strongly encourages applicants to submit official GRE or GMAT test scores. Applicants are most competitive when demonstrating strong quantitative skills with a high Q score. There is no preference for GMAT or GRE.

For experienced and qualifying candidates, applications can be submitted as ‘test optional’.
To be considered competitive without a test score, applicants must demonstrate quantitative aptitude through alternative means:

• Two or more years of professional experience with progressively responsibilities that clearly demonstrate deep qualitative or analytical aptitude
• Undergraduate or Graduate STEM degree with at least a 3.3 GPA

Applicants who choose to apply “Test Optional”, are required to answer the following prompt:

“Please detail the specific evidence in your academic and/or professional experience that supports your analytical and quantitative preparedness for success in the program.”

These criteria will be considered in holistic review along with other elements of the application including transcripts, resume, essays, recommendations and admissions interview, in the context of the competitiveness of the overall applicant pool.

Meeting the above criteria does not ensure admittance to the Foster MSBA Program. If you believe your academic readiness is best demonstrated by an exam, we encourage you to provide an exam score.

APPLYING WITH A GMAT OR GRE TEST

The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) these exams are offered year-round and can be taken multiple times. Scores are valid for five years and you must take the exam at least two weeks before the admissions deadline to allow for the scores to be matched with your application.

If you have taken the exam more than once, the admissions committee will use your highest total score to evaluate your application.

Request that your official scores be sent to the University of Washington MSBA Program. Include your score breakdown in the Self-Reported Test Score sections in the online application.

GMAT Score Reporting: University of Washington, Seattle – Michael G. Foster School of Business-Master of Science in Business Analytics (school code: 459-75-19)

GRE Score Reporting: University of Washington (school code: 4854), (dept code if required: 99)

Transcripts & GPA Calculation

You must have completed the equivalent of a four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university to be considered for admission. The minimum GPA is 3.0 for the last 90-quarter or 60-semester credits. Studies conducted outside of the U.S. need to be converted to a four-point scale (see below) and translated to English. Transcripts are required for all undergraduate and graduate-level institutions attended.

We review each applicant’s undergraduate history, taking note of the difficulty of the curriculum, the scholastic quality of the school, and the existence of any social or economic disadvantage that may have affected past academic performance. Your prior scholastic performance should indicate an ability to complete graduate level work.

Required format for all transcripts
Do not send official transcripts to our office via mail. Scan copies of your original transcripts in PDF file format and upload them to the online application. Make sure to include any transcript keys that describe the institution’s grading scale. These are typically found on the back side of most domestic transcripts.

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. If your university was not on such a system, please refer to the instructions provided on the Graduate School “Understanding the Application Process” for converting from an international grading system to a 4.0 scale. If you would like to calculate your GPA prior to applying, the application refers applicants to the Foreign Credits website, and to use the GPA calculator for this process.

If you attended a university that does not grade courses or provide a GPA, check the “I do not have a GPA” box. Self-generated online grade reports or versions that have been cut and pasted into a Word document will not be accepted.

The following information must be on 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

English Language Proficiency

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:

1. 1. • A 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.
      • Official documentation from the applicant’s undergraduate degree-granting institution (if the institution is in a country other than those listed above) verifying that all instruction is in English. A minimum of three years of enrollment at the undergraduate institution is required and the degree must be equivalent to a US bachelor’s degree.
      • Complete the TOEFL iBT or TOEFL iBT Home Edition exam. Minimum score requirement is 92 iBT / 580 PBT, though we recommend a score of at least 100. Request that your official scores be sent directly to the University of Washington from ETS (school code 4854). Include your score breakdown in the Self-Reported Test Score section in the online application. Applicants with scores below the minimum score requirements are highly encouraged to retake the exam before submitting an application.
      • Complete the IELTS exam. Minimum score requirement is 7.0, though we recommend a score of at least 7.5. Request that your official scores be sent directly to the University of Washington via the “E-Delivery service” option. Printed hard copy Test Report Forms will not be accepted. It could take up to 21 days for the University of Washington to process your results so please take the exam well in advance of the application deadline. Include your score breakdown in the Self-Reported Test Score section in the online application. Applicants with scores below the minimum score requirements are highly encouraged to retake the exam before submitting an application.
      • Our recommended score is 125 but a score of 120 is admissible with additional coursework. Request that your official scores be sent directly to the University of Washington from Duolingo by selecting, “University of Washington Graduate Admissions (Bothell, Seattle, Tacoma).”

Self-Review of Qualifications

You are required to complete the Self-Review of Qualifications section on the application to more easily explain your technical skillset. Answer Yes or No in the drop-down.

If yes, please write approximately two sentences to describe your experience, related coursework and/or knowledge into the corresponding text box for each of the following areas:

1. 1. • Math, Probability and Statistics
      • Information Technology/Systems
      • Programming Languages (e.g. R, Python, SQL)
      • MS Excel
      • Data and Database Management

Video Interview

You are required to complete a short video interview while your application is under review. The interview allows us to get to know you better, assess your communication skills and your ability to think quickly and creatively. Interview invitations and instructions will be sent via email.

Non-Refundable Application Fee

The fee can be paid only online via the UW Graduate School application portal, using a MasterCard or Visa credit/debit cards.

Proof of English Language Proficiency

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:

• • A 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, Trinidad and Tobago, or the United Kingdom.
  • Official documentation from the applicant’s undergraduate degree-granting institution (if the institution is in a country other than those listed above) verifying that all instruction is in English. A minimum of three years of enrollment at the undergraduate institution is required and the degree must be equivalent to a US bachelor’s degree.
  • Complete the TOEFL iBT or TOEFL iBT Home Edition exam. Minimum score requirement is 92 iBT / 580 PBT, though we recommend a score of at least 100. Request that your official scores be sent directly to the University of Washington from ETS (school code 4854). Include your score breakdown in the Self-Reported Test Score section in the online application.
  • Complete the IELTS exam. Minimum score requirement is 7.0, though we recommend a score of at least 7.5. Request that your official scores be sent directly to the University of Washington via the “E-Delivery service” option. Printed hard copy Test Report Forms will not be accepted. It could take up to 21 days for the University of Washington to process your results so please take the exam well in advance of the application deadline. Include your score breakdown in the Self-Reported Test Score section in the online application.
  • Complete the Duolingo English Test. Minimum score requirement is 120, though we recommend a score of at least 125. Request that your official scores be sent directly to the University of Washington from Duolingo by selecting, “University of Washington Graduate Admissions (Bothell, Seattle, Tacoma).”

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. Unfortunately, the Foster MSBA program cannot admit applicants with scores below the minimum score requirement.

Transcripts & GPA Calculation

You must have completed the equivalent of a four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university to be considered for admission. Transcripts are required for all undergraduate and graduate-level institutions attended.

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. If your university was not on such a system, please refer to the instructions provided on the Graduate School International Applicants site for converting from an international grading system to a 4.0 scale. If you would like to calculate your GPA prior to applying, the application refers applicants to the Foreign Credits website, and to use the GPA calculator for this process.

Program Cost & Financing

The total program fee for the 12-month MSBA Program is $45,200 for residents and $57,000 for non-residents*. Other expenses will be extra. For a full estimate of costs, please see our expense chart.

International students are encouraged to pursue private educational loans available from their home country. UW’s International Student Services (ISS) Office provides information on Financial Assistance for International Students. Additional resources are available at eduPASS and IEFA. Non-U.S. Citizens/Permanent Residents are not eligible to apply for U.S. federal financial aid.

For future planning, admitted applicants who will be arriving under the F-1 or J-1 visa to study must request the UW Graduate School to issue the immigration document required for your visa interview. You must submit statements of financial ability along with the request to receive the immigration document.

*Fee amount shown is based on the 2023-24 year and is subject to change.

Working as a Student

International students may work on-campus for up to 20 hours per week. Off-campus employment requires authorization from the ISS Office and many students do not qualify for authorization until they have completed three quarters of study in the MSBA program, have completed a degree program in the U.S. immediately prior to enrolling in MSBA, or have worked in the U.S. under OPT immediately prior to enrolling in MSBA. Upon completion of the MSBA program, eligible students may apply for post-graduation work authorization. For eligible F-1 students in the MSBA program, they may qualify for the STEM OPT extension. See the ISS webpage on employment for more information.

International Student Orientation

In addition to the MSBA program orientation, UW Circle sponsors orientation and on-going events throughout the year for international students. New students will have the opportunity to meet other new students, prepare for cultural transition to the UW, and learn about maintaining your visa status.

Resources

EducationUSA is a network of advising centers all over the world that provides information and opportunities to study in the U.S.

FIUTS creates programming for creating community on-campus among international and American students. FIUTS stands for, The Foundation for International Understanding Through Students.

UW Graduate School is the first step in starting an application. Visit their site to get a better understanding of the minimum admission requirements and application process.

International Student Services (ISS) works with enrolled F-1 and J-1 students and their dependents. As applicants planning ahead, you may find useful information on their website on employment and visas.