University of Washington (Seattle)

University of Washington Logo

University of Washington is an exchange destination for University College Utrecht students, located in Seattle, USA.

University of Washington is interesting for all fields. Recommended for premed students. UCU has an agreement with the Honors Bachelor programme. 

Please note: Honours college students must have a 3.4 GPA (minimum) in order to apply for this destination, while for students of other departments a GPA of 3.0/4.0 is suggested.

Semester preference

We recommend going in the Spring semester, since going in Fall semester may lead to a credit shortage (7,5 ECTS).

Webpages
Number of places available

1 per semester

Academic calendar

Fall Semester: Late September - Mid-December (Autumn)
Spring Semester: Early January - Mid-March (Winter), Late March - Early June (Spring)

Language of instruction

English

Course offerings

UCU has an agreement with the Honors Bachelor program at UW, which means that you are only supposed to take honors courses!

Course levels

The UW has various levels of courses, which are recognisable by their course code (1xx, 2xx, etcetera). 100-400 levels are for undergraduates, 500 and higher are graduate courses. 

Credit system

You can find information on this university’s credits in the credit conversion table

Grade system

The UW uses a numerical grading system. Instructors may report grades from 4.0 to 0.7 in 0.1 increments and the grade 0.0. Grades in the range 0.6 to 0.1 may not be assigned.

Numerical grades may be considered equivalent to letter grades as follows:

Grade Basic grade point Numerical Grade
A 4.0 40-3.9
A- 3.7 3.8-3.5
B+ 3.3 3.4-3.2
B 3.0 3.1-2.9
B- 2.7 2.8-2.5
C+ 2.3 2.4-2.2
C 2.0 2.1-1.9
C- 1.7 1.8-1.5
D 1.3 1.4-1.2
D 1.0 1.1-0.9
D 0.7 0.8-0.7
F 0.0 0.0
Housing

There are different housing options on campus: in residences (in a double room) and in apartments, which have cooking facilities. There are many dining options on campus too. Living off-campus is also allowed and the university provides information for students wishing so. More information.

Costs

Going on exchange to the U.S. is generally quite expensive when taking in account the travel, visa, insurance, housing and meal costs. There are many different options for housing at UW and the costs are very different: everything between $1,300- 3,000 (€1100-2400) per quarter is possible. Of course, the living circumstances will be in accordance with the costs. UW doesn’t have meal plans, but a system that allows students to pay only for the times (and the quantity) they eat. Again, note that the costs will be higher if you go on exchange during Spring semester.

Orientation

FIUTS organises a non-compulsory orientation with both practical information and fun activities at the beginning of every quarter. FIUTS also organises the Home-Stay Program: for a very small fee, you’ll be welcomed by a family living in Seattle. You’ll live the first few days at their house (before going to the Uni), to recover from the jetlag and they’ll help you with you ‘transition’. An excellent opportunity to immerge in American culture!

Situation

The university is located in the city of Seattle, a large city whose metropolitan area has about 4 million inhabitants. It is a relatively young city and has many tourist sites. The area is mainly known for its beautiful natural surroundings: forested and mountainous. It is very close to the Canadian border and the city itself is on the Pacific Ocean.  

Student life

The university has about 50,000 students. It has three campuses. The main one is located near the center of Seattle. It has extensive sports facilities. You can find the campus map here. As with most American universities, there are hundreds of student organizations, ranging from fraternities and sororities to sports and cultural clubs. FIUTS organizes trips and events periodically as well. 

Student experiences

University of Washington is a great place to spend your exchange semester! UW offers a broad range of courses and the quality of education is very high. Class sizes are often small, professors are enthusiastic and active participation is expected – even in the larger classes. Try to take only 300 or 400 level courses; the lower level classes are mainly taken by freshmen. On-campus housing facilities are good, especially the apartment style dorms. However, most students recommend finding a room off-campus in the U-district: on-campus housing is often oversubscribed and overpriced. Seattle is a “magical” city with many fun activities; the nature surrounding the city is “breathtaking”. Easy access to public transportation allows you to travel easily within the Seattle area; on the weekends, take a bus down to Portland, OR or visit Vancouver, BC!

More information

For information about the requirements for studying abroad, the application procedure and more, go to UCU's Study abroad page. 

You can browse through all UCU exchange destinations and UU exchange destinations in the exchange catalog.