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Our next in-person PMP information
session is Mon. Dec. 14 at 5:00 pm!

Our next on-line PMP information
session is Mon. Nov. 30 at 5:00 pm!

Click on the "Advising" link above for
details.

Our next PMP application deadline is
November 1st for Winter 2010.

   

Professional Master's Program Application Details

Employment History
The on-line application will ask for a list previous employers, job title, dates of employment and areas of expertise. Applicants will also be asked to input total number of years of full-time work experience.

Academic Background
The on-line application will ask applicants for all colleges and universities from which they have received a degree, plus any others they have attended. Specific information includes dates of attendance (month and year), degree name, date of degree, major field, major GPA, and overall GPA.

Applicants should input GPA information to the best of their ability. All GPA input will be checked against submitted transcripts. Recall or conversion errors will be corrected prior to review of the application by the Admissions Committee.

The on-line PMP Application will also ask applicants for additional Computer Science & Engineering course detail via the Academic Background Information Form. Applicants should restrict this form to relevant academic experience.

Personal Statement
The Personal Statement (also known as Statement of Purpose) is best used to match the applicant's background, skills, current situation, and ambitions to our profile of PMP students. It should contain both motivation for applying and an overview of academic and professional qualifications. When discussing qualifications, applicants should focus on the specific skills and areas of expertise mentioned on our PMP Web pages--especially those listed on the
FAQ page.

The Personal Statement should provide examples of professional and academic applications of Computer Science knowledge and accurately convey relevant current and prior job duties and accomplishments.

Resume
It is preferred that you submit your resume or cv on-line, although we realize this can scramble your original format. However, the most important thing we are concerned with is the information provided and not the layout. You can opt to send in a hard copy of your resume instead of submitting it on-line.

Letters of Recommendation
Letters of Recommendation are best used to back up accomplishments or expertise detailed in the Personal Statement. If the applicant has been an integral part of a successful CSE related product or team, they should mention this in the Personal Statement and back it up with a Letter of Recommendation. The same is true of notable relevant academic accomplishment or experience. If the applicant has displayed varied strengths or roles on separate projects, it is important to utilize recommenders from each project to emphasize their well rounded skills. As this infers, it is better to request a letter from someone who knows the applicant well and can detail their accomplishments first hand rather than someone with an impressive title, but who can only speak of the applicant's accomplishments or skills in general terms. The ideal letter comes from someone in a position to evaluate what the applicant has contributed to a product or project, such as a project manager or a supervisor.

If a professor is used for a Letter of Recommendation, the applicant needs to be certain they stand out among many students. Having a professor simply confirm a grade received or offer general praise would not be a good use of a letter. An academic letter would only be worthwhile if the professor remembers the applicant well and can talk about a specific project or outstanding academic accomplishment.

At least two letters of recommendation must be received prior to the application deadline. The ideal number of Letters of Recommendation is two or three. Including more than three letters in an application is discouraged.

Transcripts
Transcripts are needed from all colleges and universities from which applicants have received a degree, plus others they have attended. As a policy change starting Winter 2010 it is preferred that tanscripts be scanned and emailed as an attachment to rispoli@cs.washington.edu. No hard-copy transcripts are needed by the deadline if the much-preferred scanned copies are sent. If you are accepted to the PMP, official hard-copy transcripts will be requested. As a second option to scanning and e-mailing, transcripts may be sent to the department in their original sealed envelopes. They can either be sent directly to our department address or sent to the applicant to include in their application packet (while still in their original sealed envelopes). Transcripts sent directly to our department will be placed in the applicant's file upon receipt, or held pending receipt of other materials.

GRE Scores
The University requires the
GRE for admission. The only exception to the GRE requirement is for candidates who already have a Ph.D. from a U.S. institution.

Registration forms, previous score reports, and information on times and locations of local tests may be requested from the Educational Testing Service at www.gre.org. The GRE Web page also has links to practice test information.

GRE test preparation classes are presented by the UW Women's Center that are not for women only.

The Computer Science subject exam is not necessary for applicants with a computer science, computer engineering or electrical engineering degree. A higher subject score may help strengthen an application if the applicant's undergraduate degree is not in computer science, computer engineering or electrical engineering.

GRE scores taken more than five years ago are accepted by the PMP. It is often difficult to obtain older official scores from the Educational Testing Service. In those cases, other printed evidence of the applicant's scores will be accepted.

Scores requested from the Educational Testing Service are electronically batched and sent to the University of Washington. Our department then pulls these scores from the UW database to input to the applicant's file. For these requests the UW Institution Code is 4854 and the CSE Department Code is 0402.

The on-line Graduate School Application also requests GRE score input. If the score is not available at the time of application, it can be filled in later by department.

The GRE is typically the longest lead item in the PMP application. Applicants should schedule a test time at least a month or two in advance of their targeted test date. Applicants should also allow at least three weeks prior to the application deadline for their tests to be evaluated by the Educational Testing Service and sent to the department.

TOEFL
Per Graduate School
memo 8

Proficiency in English is required for graduate study at the University of Washington. Therefore, every applicant whose native language is not English must demonstrate English language proficiency. Proficiency can be demonstrated in one of the following five ways:

1. A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution in the United States or from an institution in Australia, the Bahamas, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, Trinidad and Tobago, or the United Kingdom.

2. Documentation verifying that the applicant’s undergraduate degree is from an institution (in a country other than those listed in #1 above) where all instruction is in English.

3. A minimum English language proficiency test score of:

* 7.0 on the IELTS2

* 92 on the TOEFLiBT3

* 237 on the TOEFLC3

* 580 on the TOEFL3

* 90 on the MLT4

4. If an applicant is admitted with an English proficiency test score lower than the minimum scores (listed in #3 above) and in the range of scores listed below, the student will be required upon matriculation to take designated Academic English Program (AEP) courses through UW English Language Programs5.

* 6.0-6.9 IELTS

* 61-91 TOEFLiBT

* 173-236 TOEFLC

* 500-579 TOEFL

* 80-89 MLT

5. Successful completion of the UW Intensive English Program.

IMPORTANT:

* Students who do not complete their English language proficiency requirement will not be permitted to graduate.

* No waivers of the English language proficiency requirement will be granted.

* Test scores are valid for two years and must be valid on the date the application is submitted.


CSE logo Computer Science & Engineering
University of Washington
Box 352350
Seattle, WA  98195-2350
(206) 543-1695 voice, (206) 543-2969 FAX
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