Direct Entry - Master of Science in Business Analytics | Milgard School of Business

Did you earn a Business Data Analytics Minor?

Upskill with the MSBA

Milgard offers a truncated admission process, or direct entry into the MSBA, for students who have completed the BDA minor at UW Tacoma. Students who meet the requirements below will complete an abbreviated application for admission to the MSBA.

Milgard BDA to MSBA Flyer.pdf

Direct Entry Requirements

4-5 BDA minor courses completed
Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or greater
Our application software requires applicants to submit contact information for two recommendations. BDA minors are only required to have one recommendation from a UWT faculty member. Please make sure to enter your faculty recommenders contact information as a reference in your application. For the second recommendation, please list Ginger Monroe (vmonroe@uw.edu). We appreciate your understanding and flexibility as we work to improve the MSBA application process and implement this new application system for the 2025-2026 academic year.

Streamlined Application

Direct Entry applicants are exempted from submitting the following materials:

Prerequisite self-review
Video interview

Benefits

Admission to the MSBA program is competitive and seats fill quickly. Seats have been reserved for Direct Entry. Students who qualify to apply through this program will receive a guaranteed scholarship. Additionally, the $250 Enrollment Confirmation Deposit (ECD) is waived for all BDA minor applicants.

Students can email Ginger Monroe (vmonroe@uw.edu) if they intend to confirm their enrollment in the program. Ginger will complete an ECD payment waiver on behalf of the student. Please note students will still need to pay a $250 deposit that will go toward their tuition.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Direct Entry applicants will submit an abbreviated version of the MSBA program application. Please note, you will submit the general MSBA application but skip the following sections: prerequisite self-review and video interview. For sections that are not required to be completed for BDA minor applicants, put “N/A BDA Minor”.

Application Deadlines

November 15: Round 1 - Early applicants

January 15: Round 2 - Priority domestic applicants and international students planning to apply for a new student visa (F1/J1)

April 15: Final application deadline for domestic applicants (US citizens or permanent residents with green cards) and international applicants who currently have an H1-B, H4, or other visa (including transferring an I-20 from another school)

APPLICATION MATERIALS

ONLINE APPLICANT PROFILE

Create your online application profile via the UW Graduate Admissions website. After creating your profile, you will be asked to select program information:

Select your application type: “Graduate”
Select your graduate program: “UW Tacoma's Milgard School of Business Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA Program)”
Complete the rest of the new application. Be sure to indicate the quarter and year you wish to enter

PERSONAL STATEMENT

A personal statement is required as a part of your online application. The essay must be within 750 words and should answer the following questions:

Why are you interested in the UW Tacoma Milgard MSBA program and what skills do you hope to gain from it?
What are your future career goals and plans in the next 5 to 10 years? How will the MSBA Program help you reach your goals?
Applicants are selected not only for their potential to benefit from the program but also for the experiences and knowledge they can contribute to the class. What will you contribute to the MSBA Program?

RESUME

Your resume must be uploaded to your online application. It should be a complete summary of your education and professional work history in reverse chronological format. For each position, include:

Company name and division/group/department
Position title
Dates of employment or internship
Responsibility summary – a 2 to 4 sentence section describing your primary responsibilities for each position
Accomplishments– 2 to 4 bullets for each position

TRANSCRIPTS

Transcripts are required from all college institutions in which a degree was granted. For the application review process, you are required to upload a copy of your unofficial transcripts to your online application. These documents should be generated by the institution (e.g., a scan of an official document or a PDF created from a student portal). Anything appearing self-generated is not considered a valid document. If you are offered admission to MSBA, you will be required to submit an official copy of your transcripts to the UW Graduate School. Please do not mail official transcripts to the MSBA office; additional instructions will be provided to admitted students.

Required content for all transcripts:

Full name of applicant (former names are acceptable if indicated on application)
Name of degree-granting institution
Title(s) of academic degree(s) awarded
Dates of enrollment, including date of graduation/degree conferral
Names of individual courses
Grades, marks, or ratings of individual courses
International transcripts must include official English translations
Both marks sheets and degree statements are required, if applicable

NON-REFUNDABLE APPLICATION FEE ($85)

A non-refundable application fee of $85 must be paid by credit card through the online application system. You must submit a separate application and pay a separate application fee for each graduate program you are applying to. We are not able to transfer applications between programs. Application fee waiver information is available here.

INFORMATION SESSIONS

Information Session

Join an Information Session to learn more about the MSBA admission requirements, courses and program design. Zoom sessions are available the last Thursday of every month from 11am-12pm PST.
Unable to join an Information Session? Review information at your convenience.

BDA-MSBA Information Session

Information Sessions

Contact the MSBA Team

Email: msba@uw.edu

Phone: (253) 692-5630

Schedule an appointment with the MSBA Pre-Admission Advisor/Recruiter here.

I WAS ADMITTED! NEXT STEPS

To request disability accommodation, including American Sign Language interpretation, contact the Disability Resources for Students office at 253-692-4508, submit a request here, or email msba@uw.edu preferably at least 10 days in advance of events.

Direct Entry - Master of Science in Business Analytics

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