The UW School of Social Work seeks to enroll well-qualified students of varying backgrounds and a commitment to working with diverse populations. The BASW program is capacity constrained, admitting about 50 students each Fall, and is based on academic performance and potential, clarity and appropriateness of career objectives, understanding of social issues, and knowledge of diverse populations. Our commitment to diversity is elaborated in our Essential Skills, Values and Standards of Professional Conduct page. All applicants should carefully review these essential abilities before completing the BASW application.
*Please note: this is not the correct application if you’re applying for the UW Tacoma BASW program.
Eligibility
The Admissions Committee strives to give all applications the most prompt and thoughtful consideration possible. Please carefully review these guidelines to ensure you are eligible for admission.
Eligibility:
- Must be a current UW student or gain admission to UW as a transfer student prior to the start of the program (see Transfer info below).
- Prerequisites: Ensure you will satisfy all BASW prerequisites before beginning the program in Fall. BASW prerequisites include:
- Completion of one introductory course in Psychology and one introductory course in Sociology. Any 100 or 200-level course can satisfy this requirement, and a 2.0 minimum grade ("C" grade) must be earned in each course to satisfy this requirement. Note that transfer courses listed as 1XX or 2XX do not necessarily satisfy the BASW prerequisites, though they are accepted as general transfer credit. If you have questions about how credits will transfer from a four-year or out-of-state college or university, contact admissions.
-
A 2.0 cumulative minimum GPA or higher.
-
A minimum of 65 college level credits by start of program. Note that the University of Washington does not accept any kind of Human Service credits (SHS, HS, etc.) as transferable credits. Any credits earned in these courses will not count towards the minimum 65 transferable credits required to transfer into the program.
The following are also helpful for planning your pathway:
- Statistics: Though not a requirement for BASW admission, an approved introductory Statistics class is a required prerequisite of senior year BASW courses and is recommended prior to admission. Approved UW courses include STAT 220/221, STAT 311, and EDPSY 490. If you are considering taking any other statistics courses, please contact admissions.
-
Foreign Language Requirement: Though not a requirement for BASW admission, BASW students must fulfill the Foreign Language Graduation Requirement (third year of high school foreign language or third college quarter of a foreign language, or equivalent) in order to graduate. This graduation requirement is different from the UW foreign language admission requirement. It is helpful but not required to complete your language requirement before starting the BASW program.
BASW Application & Instructions:
The application for Fall 2024 admission has been extended! We will continue to accept applications on a space-available basis through early May. We encourage you to connect with us via email or by booking a virtual advising appointment You can apply using the portal below:
Accessing the Application:
- The application may be completed in multiple sittings and will save previously entered data so long as you use the same Google account each time to log into and complete your application. We strongly recommend preparing all required materials ahead of time and having a strong and reliable internet connection before starting the application. Once the application is submitted, you cannot make changes to the application.
- The forms can be completed, signed (for more detailed information on adding electronic signatures to PDF forms, please visit this site), and saved using Adobe Reader version 8 or later. The latest version of Adobe Reader may be downloaded here for free. If you experience problems, check to make sure you have downloaded the forms and opened the downloaded file in Adobe Reader (not your internet browser). Please name forms using the format "Last Name_First Name_document.pdf." Before proceeding to the next step, make sure to check that all documents uploaded correctly and that forms are not blank, blurry, or incomplete.
- The BASW application is hosted on a Google platform which means that a Google account is necessary to complete the application. If you do not already have a Google account, please create one for the purpose of submitting the application.
*Please note: applicants are expected to create and submit accurate and original application materials by the deadlines without the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) content generators, such as ChatGPT. Issues of dishonesty may result in denial of admission, rescinding an offer of admission, and/or revoking funding/scholarship.