Declaring the Major

The BS in Environmental Public Health is a "minimum requirements" major, which means that all students who meet the minimum requirements listed below, and who can complete the degree within the UW's maximum time frame, are admitted. The application deadline is the third Friday of each quarter. 

Minimum requirements

Students with 30-90 credits, and/or fewer than 6 quarters completed at the time of application will apply under early admission. Students with more than 90 credits and/or 6 quarters or more completed will apply under upper division requirements. Applicants must have a 2.0 in each of the prerequisites courses. Early admission applicants must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0. Upper division applicants must have a cumulative GPA of 2.5.

Students do not have to complete the math graduation requirement before applying to the major. However, we recommend that students complete a math course before they register for the other supporting science courses. The recommended preparation for PHYS 114 is a previous algebra course covering concepts such as trigonometry and exponential functions. The recommended preparation for CHEM 142 is a good working knowledge of algebra.

Students may have prerequisites courses in progress at the time of application. Students who have questions about the major or the admission process are encouraged to meet with an adviser.

Early Admission Prerequisites

30-90 credits / fewer than 6 quarters completed at time of application

CHEM 142, 152 Chemistry series
ENGL 131 or equivalent English composition

Upper Division Admission Prerequisites

90 or more credits / 6 or more quarters completed at time of application

complete all early admission prerequisites above plus:

BIOL 180, 200, 220 (15) Introductory Biology with labs
CHEM 142, 152, 162, CHEM 237, 238, 241 OR
CHEM 142, 152, CHEM 223, 224, 241 OR
CHEM 142, 152, CHEM 220 General and Organic Chemistry (choose one sequence) 

Application checklist

The application opens 4 weeks before the application deadline. The upcoming application windows for entry to the following quarters are:

  • Summer Quarter 2024: March 15 - April 12, 2024
  • Fall Quarter 2024: June 7 - July 5, 2024
  • Winter Quarter 2025: September 20 - October 11, 2024
  • Spring Quarter 2025: January 3 - January 24, 2025

The application consists of three components which you should prepare before you access the online application form

1. Personal statement:  Your statement should be approximately 500 words, and should address the following questions:

  • Why do you want to be an Environmental Public Health major?
  • How will completing this degree help you to achieve your professional and academic goals?

2. Unofficial UW transcript: Current students may access unofficial transcripts through the Grades and Transcripts section found on the Academics block on MyUW. Select the Academics block at the bottom of the page. Next, select Unofficial Transcript under the Grades and Transcripts section. Select Printer-Friendly Version on the Unofficial Transcript page. It will create a PDF file of your unofficial transcript, which you can save and then upload into the application form.

3. Prerequisites and satisfactory progress: In the application you will be asked whether you are applying for early or upper division admission, and you will need to list out the prerequisites that you've already completed. You will also need to indicate how many quarters and credits you have completed.  If you have any questions about early versus upper division admission, or prerequisites, please contact an advisor

online application form

Notification: All applicants will be contacted by an adviser 2 weeks after the application deadline. Applicants who meet the minimum prerequisites and can complete the degree within the UW's maximum time frame will be asked to come in for an advising appointment to formally declare the major. 

Transfer student information

Transfer students can apply to the major after they have been admitted to UW. Please consult the transfer admission website for more information about applying to the UW.  Local students should plan to attend the weekly Transfer Thursday sessions, if possible.  Washington State Community College students should use the online equivalency guide to help plan for transfer.  Students transferring in as juniors should complete the upper division prerequisite courses prior to enrolling at UW.

All transfer students are encouraged to talk with a UW Environmental Public Health adviser before applying. To schedule an appointment either in person or over the phone, see the Contact an Adviser page.