Admission requirements

Prerequisites

Applicants to the Master's program in Human Centered Design & Engineering must have a Bachelor's degree by the time the program begins in autumn quarter to be considered.
Because we place great value on a variety of different perspectives, there is no specific type of Bachelor's degree (or previous course-work) that we require applicants to have. Our admitted student cohort is typically comprised of applicants divided equally between engineering/technical science, social science, and design backgrounds. 
The department does not collect GRE scores for the Master's program. 
Applicants whose native language is not English must meet certain language requirements: More information for International Applicants.

Application materials

The HCDE application materials include three letters of recommendation, a statement of purpose, an academic transcript, and a resume. Applicants submit materials to the University of Washington's Graduate School online application. 

Online application (opens a new tab) See all application materials

Application fee waiver: There are waivers available based on criteria/timing. See more info about our criteria and our process.

Deadlines

HCDE runs admissions for the Master's only once a year. Students are encouraged to begin collecting application materials at least two months before the deadline to ensure submission is complete on or before the due date. Please note, however, that we do not begin the review of applications until after the deadline, so there is no special incentive to apply early.

The 2027 application will be first made available on September 1, 2026.

Deadline to submit your application: January 13, 2027 at 11:59pm PST. 

Materials (including unofficial transcripts and recommendations) must be received by the deadline in order for an application to be reviewed. It is possible than when you go to upload materials, or submit, or pay the application fee, that there will be some technical difficulties. Because of that, it's best to submit your application the day before the deadline (or a few days before, that would be ideal!), so that when you email askhcde@uw.edu with your questions, there's enough time to help you.