Graduate Program Admission | Department of Anthropology

Overview

The Department of Anthropology at the University of Washington recognizes three principal sub-fields of anthropology into which its graduate programs are divided: archaeology, biological anthropology, and sociocultural anthropology. We currently offer several graduate programs within these subdivisions:

Admission

Archaeology and Biological Anthropology admissions will be run every year, Sociocultural Anthropology only offers admissions every other year. The next admission cycle for Sociocultural Anthropology will be for Autumn 2026. Applications open on September 1st and close on December 15th. Applicants may apply for and be admitted for autumn quarter only. Offers of admission are usually mailed prior to the first of March. Those receiving offers of admission must respond by April 15.

Applicants are considered on the basis of academic ability, career motivation, and promise for achieving professional competence associated with the PhD, with interests and goals that fit with departmental programs and faculty interests. It is recommended that the applicant complete an undergraduate program appropriate for graduate work in anthropology, but a BA/BS in anthropology is not specifically required. Please visit the Graduate School Requirements for a list of University-wide application requirements.

Apply

If you wish to apply to the Department of Anthropology, you must complete the online application on the University of Washington Graduate School website. Please note that applicants may only apply to one of the three PhD track programs. All applicant materials (including letters of recommendation and unofficial transcripts) will be collected online and the deadline to apply is December 15th.

International Applicants

For information about the Financial Ability Requirement, F-1 Employment Options, and detailed information about the post admission process, please visit the International Applicants page on The Graduate School's website.

English Language Proficiency

For information about English language requirements please review Policy 3.2: Graduate School English Language Proficiency Requirements.

Application Fee Waiver

For information about your eligibility and the application process for this fee waiver, please visit the Application Fee Waiver page on The Graduate School's website.

Non-Degree Enrollment for UW Credit Classes

Persons who want to register for graduate courses at the UW, but do not plan to apply the credits they earn toward a graduate-level degree, should consider non-matriculated (NM) status: see Non-Degree Enrollment for UW Credit Classes.

Graduated Non-Matriculated (GNM) Students

Graduate non-matriculated (GNM) status allows post baccalaureate students who are not presently seeking a graduate degree at the University of Washington to take UW graduate courses and apply credits toward degree requirements should they later be accepted into a graduate program at the UW (acceptance as a GNM student does not confer priority for later admission to a graduate program at the UW). To learn more please visit Graduate Non-Matriculated Student. GNM students apply to our program during the graduate admission cycle.

Tuition & Funding

Students who receive assistantships are granted a tuition waiver and receive a stipend for the quarter in which they hold their appointment. Please visit the Department Funding page for more information. For more information about tuition/fees and financial assistance options, please visit the Paying for Graduate School page on The Graduate School's website.

For an overview of the cost of attendance for full-time, resident and non-resident students please visit Cost of Admission on the Office of Admission's website. To learn about WA residency status, as it relates to tuition costs, please visit the Washington State Residency Office.

Certificate Programs

Graduate students may also consider completing a certificate program in conjunction with most graduate degrees. Certificates are intended to enhance the education of students, beyond their regular course of study, to allow those with allied interests to incorporate additional knowledge and skills in their future careers. For a complete list, visit Graduate Certificate Programs.

Statistics Concentration

Graduate student pursuing a PhD in anthropology may also consider completing a Statistics Concentration in Anthropology.

Fields of Interest

Please check out our fields of interest word cloud to see which areas of research our department is publishing in most frequently and to see the individual research projects.