Apply to UW Bioengineering’s Master of Applied Bioengineering – GRE Scores Now Optional

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Have questions about applying?

View the MAB Admissions Frequently Asked Questions.

Deadlines

We have 2 application deadlines options: 

Deadline 1: January 31, 11:59pm Pacific Time: Priority application deadline

Applications received prior to January 31st, will be reviewed in mid-late February with committee decisions sent out to applicants by mid-March.

  • Applicants must make their decision to accept or decline offers by April 30th.

Deadline 2: April 30, 11:59pm Pacific Time: Regular application deadline

Applications received between February 1 and April 30th will be reviewed in early May, with committee decisions sent out to applicants by mid-to-late May.

  • Applicants must make their decision to accept or decline offers by June 15th.

We will consider applications received after April 30th on a rolling basis pending available space. If you’re an international candidate we strongly encourage you to apply by April 30th in order to secure your visa.

Applicants are responsible for ensuring their application is complete and received by the deadline in order to be considered for admission. Late and/or incomplete applications will not be reviewed. The Department of Bioengineering will not make any exceptions to this policy.

Before applying

Application informaton

There is one application cycle each year, for Autumn quarter matriculation only.

Domestic and international applicants must complete the Graduate School Application and pay a $85 application fee.  Applicants may incur additional costs associated with exams, such as the TOEFL, IELTS, GRE, etc.

The application is entirely online. Candidates must submit electronic copies of all application materials.

See “Application checklist” below to learn more about the required components of the application.

Late or incomplete applications will not be reviewed, no exceptions.

If you are waiting to hear about the status of your application, please check the email account you submitted with your online application and also log back into your application profile.

You are a domestic applicant if you are a U.S. citizen or hold immigrant status (permanent residency/have a green card).

You are an international applicant if you have/will have a non-immigrant visa status, including F-1, J-1 Exchange Visitors, H-1, dependent visas. 

International students must have a U.S. visa status that allows academic study at the University of Washington.

International applicants are strongly encouraged to review the UW Graduate School FAQ for International Students.

GRE scores – Optional

If choosing to submit, GRE scores must be directly reported from ETS to UW (use institutional code 4854; department code 1603). GRE scores must be valid and five (5) years old or less on the date the application is submitted.

For consideration, official GRE scores must be submitted and properly uploaded into a candidate’s application by the Relevant Application Deadline.

Unofficial transcripts

Unofficial transcripts from all institutions attended must be uploaded into the Graduate School online application. Paper transcripts will not be accepted. Candidates should not submit official transcripts unless explicitly requested.

Letters of recommendation

Two (2) letters of recommendation must be submitted on the applicant’s behalf for the application to be considered complete; three (3) letters are preferred. The application will ask each candidate to designate mentors who will write letters of recommendation describing his/her motivation and qualification for the MAB program. Each recommender will immediately receive an e-mail directing him/her to a secure website to submit the letter and to complete an on-line evaluation form. Candidates and letter writers must use the UW online system. Letters of recommendation submitted via Interfolio or any other recommendation site will not be accepted. Applications with fewer that two (2) letters of recommendation will be considered “incomplete” and the application will not be reviewed or considered for admission.

The strongest letters of recommendation come from mentors who have seen the candidate in an academic or professional environment, and who can speak to her/his academic ability, design or research skills, teamwork and communication skills.

The MAB Application Deadline is January 31. All letters must be received by the Deadline to be considered in the review process.

Late or incomplete applications will not be reviewed or considered. Candidates should track the status of the letters of recommendation by logging back into the online application.

Statement of Purpose and Qualifications

Master of Applied Bioengineering candidates are required to submit a two part statement. Both sections must be addressed and the completed document should be two pages or less in total.

Statement of Purpose

This section should clearly and succinctly describe the candidate’s goals and motivation for completing the Master of Applied Bioengineering at the University of Washington. This statement should include the source of the candidate’s interest in the field, the candidate’s near-term career plans and long-term aspirations, and how a biodesign program, such as MAB, will help the candidate achieve these goals.

Statement of Qualifications

This section should describe how the candidate’s abilities, prior education and professional and personal experiences provide the preparation necessary to succeed in a design-oriented engineering curriculum. Such preparation may include formal engineering instruction, research or design projects conducted for school or work, self-taught technical skills and internships. Non-technical skills that facilitate entrepreneurial activities and improve team dynamics, such as experience overcoming obstacles, working with diverse clientele, exercising leadership, and communicating in a variety of information formats are all highly relevant.

Prioritize your interest in the Technical Concentrations areas

In addition to the core product development and entrepreneurship courses, each MAB student gets to craft their education by choosing Bioengineering electives taught by UW Bioengineering faculty who are leaders in their field. We have pre-curated themes to help guide students, or students are welcome to define their own. Students take a minimum of 15 credits (five to six technical courses over the course of the degree) in subjects of their choice.

The applicant is asked to evaluate their academic background, professional experiences and skills against the prerequisites listed for each Technical Tracks. For the applicant’s identified Technical Tracks, they should list their relevant academic background, professional experiences and skills that prepares them for this technical track.

Students should have a suitable academic background to successfully complete a minimum of 15 credits of the technical electives. The recommended background is as follows:

  • Biomedical Imaging: Differential equations, linear algebra, physics (waves), circuits, DSP, some programming, such as MATLAB, and physiology is beneficial.
  • Molecular Bioengineering and Biomaterials: Biology (especially fundamentals of cell biology), general chemistry, organic chemistry and biochemistry are beneficial.
  • Regenerative Medicine and Biomaterials: Biology (especially fundamentals of cell biology), general chemistry, organic chemistry and biochemistry are beneficial.

List of fellowships, scholarships, grants and awards

Please list pending graduate school award notifications in addition to any graduate school awards received.

At this time, departmental funding is not available for students in the MAB program. MAB students are not financially supported by the Department of Bioengineering. MAB students are 100% responsible for paying for their tuition, fees and benefits,

Up-to-date resume or curriculum vitae

How did you hear about the Master of Applied Bioengineering program?

Please indicate how you heard about the MAB program for our tracking purposes.

All international candidates are encouraged to first visit the UW Graduate School to review the UW Graduate School FAQ for international students.

Official TOEFL scores

International candidates who do not meet English proficiency standards (as determined by the UW Graduate School) are required to take the TOEFL. UW no longer accepts the IELTS test.

The Department requires a TOEFL score of 92 or higher to be eligible for the Master of Applied Bioengineering program.

International candidates who will not earn Bachelor’s, Master’s or Ph.D. degrees from US or UW Graduate School Memorandum No. 8 approved English speaking institutions prior to matriculation into a UW graduate program must submit official TOEFL scores, less than 2 years old, directly from ETS to the department. TOEFL scores must be valid and two (2) years old or less as of the date the application is submitted. An international candidate’s application will not be considered “complete” unless the department receives the official English language proficiency exam score by the application deadline. Please use institutional code 4854; no department code is required.

International candidates who will earn a Bachelor’s, Master’s or Ph.D. degree from a US or UW Graduate School Memorandum No. 8 approved English speaking intuition prior to matriculation into a UW graduate program do not have to complete the English proficiency exam requirement. Such candidates are instructed to select the TOEFL exam option on their application and enter an exam date that is later than the anticipated graduation date. Candidates should not register for the TOEFL though ETS. Candidates do not need to enter TOEFL exam scores. Once the candidate’s degree is earned and posted on the official transcript, the English language proficiency requirement will be removed from the application.

Candidates should note that it rarely takes less than six (6) weeks for Educational Testing Service (ETS) to send TOEFL scores and for TOEFL scores to be properly uploaded into an application. Candidates should plan to take the TOEFL well in advance of the application deadline to ensure that the official scores are uploaded by the appropriate deadline.

To avoid additional and/or unexpected delays, a candidate’s name should appear with ETS and with the Bioengineering application exactly as it appears on the candidate’s passport.

Additional application materials (official transcripts, financial ability, copy of visa, etc.)

The Graduate School only requires additional application materials from international applicants when they are recommended for admission. The Graduate School will contact international candidates directly when additional materials are required. Candidates should not submit additional application materials unless explicitly instructed to do so.