I’m hoping to attend UW Fall '19. I’m currently in Pennsylvania and have taken four online community college classes over the summer - taking three currently. I get my ACT score back in three days. If it’s the 29/30 I’ve been averaging on practice, I’d really like to apply as soon as possible.
The only issue is a poorly chosen math class - when I mistakenly thought I could work hard and major in astronomy - bringing my GPA down to a 3.38. I’m now aiming to major in English with a minor in Spanish. Two of the four classes on my current transcript are A’s in English; one is an A in Spanish. It’s just that C in Algebra.
If it would make any difference at all, my high school GPA is 4.3 (took a couple years off to work and volunteer so it’s not immediately recent).
What are my chances? Should I wait until December to apply, when I have a further possibility for A’s in my three current classes and an overall 3.6-3.8? Or if I wrote a statement that somehow incorporated an ‘explanation’ of the math grade (into a transition of realizing my passion for English and Spanish), would it somehow negate my one poor grade/overall GPA? I could wait, but moving cross country would be so much easier to plan if I had a solid decision sooner. Especially if I get rejected and attend Bellevue next year instead… I’d really love to start planning whenever I can.
Thank you all so much! I hope you’re having an amazing weekend!
There is no minimum GPA to apply, but 3.4 is borderline even for an English major. The median is above a 3.5 (this information is available on the academic planning worksheets at the link below).
Bellevue is a fine place to start - the astronomy classes are general education (less technical for non-majors) and there’s a planetarium. It’s a great place to get your general education done. Housing is hard to find and expensive everywhere in the puget sound area, but it’s not as bad by Bellevue as it is by UW.
Completing a transfer degree and establishing WA residency after a year at Bellevue will make getting into and affording UW easier.
@AroundHere Thank you so much, oh my god. This was incredibly helpful.
One question about your comment - can I establish residency if I attend Bellevue? I thought the only possible way to establish WA residency was to move without the intent for education… if I move there specifically from PA to study - live on dorm and everything - wouldn’t that be considered an intent for education?
Might be better to move to Washington state, work for at least one year, register your car, get a Washington driver’s license, register to vote, & file a tax return with your Washington address & then apply to UW as in-state resident tuition is drastically less than that for non-residents (approximately $11,000 versus $36,000 per academic year).
You can go to school and still claim you moved here for the career opportunities, but if your parents aren’t Washington residents you’ll have to prove you are financially independent of them, which means having a job and probably cheaper housing than the dorms would offer. There are residency information pages on both the BC and UW websites.
I’m on the parents facebook group for UW and several kids have done it. It is a hard road given the local cost of living and a parent loan such as PLUS is automatically disqualifying even if the parent says the child will pay them back for it.
Too many pitfalls. For example, what if one applies to UW while still a Pennsylvania resident ? Shouldn’t the OP wait until living in Washington to apply to UW if seeking in-state tuition ? Otherwise it is too obvious as to why one relocated (unless already employed & transferred to Washington by employer).
The requirement is living financially independent and in state for 12 months. You can change while already enrolled, but it takes a ton of financial planning because you have to show how you paid your OOS tuition. I’m honestly not sure how they do it? Maybe the parents transferred assets to the child before they moved to WA?