Minimum Admission Requirements
The following minimum criteria must be met in order for an applicant to be admissible to a University of Washington graduate program. For more information, reference the UW Graduate School's minimum admission requirements.
Degree
- Applicants must hold the minimum equivalent of a four-year baccalaureate degree from a regionally-accredited college or university in the United States, or its equivalent from an accredited foreign institution. Holders of a Bologna bachelor’s degree must have a minimum of 180 European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits.
- Alternatively, applicants may hold a master’s (MA, MSc, etc.), doctoral (PhD, DPhil, etc.), or professional degree (MD, JD, etc.) from a regionally-accredited college or university in the United States or its equivalent from an accredited foreign institution.
Grade Point Average (GPA)
- Applicants must have earned at least a 3.0 GPA (on a 4 point scale) for those credits earned at the institution awarding their bachelor’s degree or at least a 3.0 GPA (on a 4 point scale) for their last 90 graded quarter credits or 60 graded semester credits. If you earned additional credits from an accredited institution after your degree, you may include these credits in calculating your GPA.
- For applicants who hold a master’s, doctoral, or professional degree, the total cumulative average from that degree course may be used.
The average undergraduate GPA of applicants admitted to the PMP is 3.5. That said, the PMP does not set a minimum GPA to be considered for admission and the PMP admissions committee reviews eligible applicants' complete academic histories rather than considering only their cumulative or "major" GPAs.
PMP Eligibility Requirements
Professional Experience
Applicants must have significant personal and professional experience with advanced computing technology and hands-on programming, as evidenced through a combination of academic preparation and professional experience. The vast majority of students in the program hold prior degrees in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or closely-related fields, and their professional experience ranges from two to over 20 years in the field, with an average of over five years.
To be considered for admission, all applicants must hold a minimum of two years full-time, post-degree professional experience as software developers, software engineers, or similar roles. Undergraduate internships, even full-time, do not count toward the two-year experience benchmark.
Academic Background
Academically, applicants should hold a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or Computer Engineering or a related field, ideally having completed at least the following undergraduate courses: data structures, algorithms, computer systems, and programming languages.
In absence of a prior CS or CE degree, applicants should demonstrate breadth and depth of knowledge and skills equivalent to bachelor’s-level preparation, as evidenced through their professional experience and any academic CS education such as undergraduate electives or post-college coursework or training.
Seattle-Area Residency
Applicants should reside in the Seattle area at the time of their application. As the PMP is an in-person degree program, its students must furthermore reside in the Seattle area for the duration of their studies.
No GRE Score Requirement
The PMP does not require the GRE or other graduate study entrance exam and applicants do not need to self-report scores nor send official score reports. There is no benefit to providing GRE scores during the application process as any scores that are received will not be referenced during the application review process.
International Applicants
The PMP does not support F-1 or J-1 student visas. International students are welcome in the PMP, but must hold another visa or immigration status that allows them to reside and study part-time in the United States.
English Language Proficiency
All applicants who are non-native speakers of English must enclose proof of their English proficiency in their application. For official UW Graduate School policy information, please refer to Graduate Policy 3.2: English Language Proficiency Requirements.
The PMP accepts the following methods by which non-native English speakers may meet this requirement:
- Having earned a degree in the United States or another country specified in Policy 3.2 in which English was the language of instruction
- Enclosing documentation from the undergraduate degree-granting institution, if outside the US or one of the countries specified in Policy 3.2, that English was the language of instruction
- Providing official, valid scores from one of the English language proficiency exams listed below. Scores must be submitted to UW electronically and matched to the application in order for this requirement to be met.
- Official, valid TOEFL scores showing a total or MyBest score of 92 or higher
- Official, valid academic IELTS scores showing a total score of 7.0 or higher
- Official, valid Duolingo English Test scores showing a score of 120 or higher (for applications through autumn 2024) or 125 (for applications for winter 2025 or later)
Further information about enclosing this documentation in the application may be found on the PMP's How to Apply page.
GRE Scores
The PMP requires the GRE General Test for admission, except from applicants who already hold a Ph.D. from a US institution. There is no minimum score requirement, however average scores for admitted students may be reviewed below:
- Verbal: 60%. Native speakers of English should target over 50% and applicants who are non-native speakers of English should target over 25%).
- Quantitative: 83%. Strong applicants who score above 65% can still be considered and occasionally those who score below 65% in the Quantitative section are accepted.
- Analytical Writing: 4.5. This is a distant second in importance to the Quantitative test and lower scores can still be considered.