An international applicant is one who is not a US citizen and does not hold a US Permanent Resident Visa ("green card" or "immigrant").  This definition also includes students who hold US visas, such as F-1 students, J-1 exchange visitors, H1-B, or any other non-immigrant classifications.  International applicants need to follow a slightly different application procedure.

Deadlines

TOEFL scores

Applicants who are not US citizens must submit scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), unless they are citizens of Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, or the United Kingdom, or have received a bachelor's or advanced degree from an accredited institution in the US or in one of these countries. An applicant must present a score of at least 580 on the written TOEFL,  237 on the computer based TOEFL, or 45 on the Reading, Listening, and Writing portions of the internet based TOEFL (TOEFL iBT)  to be considered for admission to the Mathematics Department.  For financial support, we prefer to see scores of 600 (written)/250 (computer) / 45 (TOEFL iBT) or higher. 

Spoken English proficiency

Because all financial support offers include teaching assistantships, it is important for us to be able to evaluate the spoken English proficiency of international applicants for admission with financial support. Applicants who are not citizens of the US, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, or the United Kingdom are strongly encouraged to take the TOEFL iBT, which includes a test of spoken English proficiency, or to submit scores on the Test of Spoken English (TSE) offered by the Educational Testing Service. If you are unable to take the TSE, it would be helpful to submit a letter from someone who is familiar with your spoken English proficiency (preferably a teacher or supervisor who has spent time in an English-speaking environment).

International applicants who submit a satisfactory score on either the Speaking section of the TOEFL iBT or on the  TSE , or who present other compelling proof of spoken English proficiency will have a much higher chance of being offered admission with financial support than those who do not.  The University of Washington requires international teaching assistants to pass a test of English language proficiency before they can be assigned classroom duties. Thus if you are offered financial support without having submitted a satisfactory TOEFL iBT or TSE score, you will be given an opportunity to pass a test similar to the TSE when you first arrive in Seattle. If you do not pass it on the first try, you will be required to enroll in courses in English as a Second Language repeatedly until you pass. In order for your financial support to be renewed for your second year, you will need to pass the spoken English requirement no later than the end of Winter Quarter of your first year in the program.

Transcripts

In addition to the set of transcripts that must be sent to the Math Department, international applicants are required to submit a second set of official transcripts directly to the UW Office of Graduate Admissions. See How to Apply for more information.

Statement of Financial Ability

Once an international applicant has completed the online UW application, he or she will be asked to log back into the application website to fill out the University of Washington Statement of Financial Ability. Even if you are applying for financial support from the Math Department, you must complete this form to ensure an accurate student visa application. If you are awarded financial support from the Math Department, your stipend plus tuition waiver should be enough, or nearly enough, to cover the financial resources required to get a visa. Even though you don't yet know whether you will be offered support, you must still complete and return the form in order to ensure an accurate student visa application. Check the box that says you have submitted an application to be considered for a Teaching or Research Assistantship from the department, complete the Dependents section of the form, sign it, and return it to the Office of Graduate Admissions at the address printed on the form.

If you're planning to support yourself, then you will have to prove that you have personal financial resources sufficient to cover your cost of living plus tuition for the first year, which in recent years has amounted to more than US $40,000.