Apply to SPU

First-year students
Transfer students
  • If you have completed one or more college courses after your high school graduation, you will apply as a transfer student.
  • If you have completed an associate’s degree from a Washington, Oregon, or California regionally accredited university or two-year college, your degree may fulfill Common and Exploratory Curriculum requirements. Find out if you have a direct transfer degree.
Application deadlines
If you want... First year application deadline Transfer application deadline
Autumn Quarter 2025 (Early Action)* November 1, 2024 April 1, 2025
Autumn Quarter 2025 (Regular Deadline) January 15, 2025 July 1, 2025
Winter Quarter 2025 November 15, 2024 November 15, 2024
Spring Quarter 2025 February 1, 2025 February 1, 2025

*Early Action applicants will receive priority financial aid consideration, an application fee waiver, and a fast admissions decision.

More personal

“I quickly learned to appreciate the smaller, more contained, more personal feeling of SPU both inside and outside classes, especially when compared to the sprawling campuses and inner cities of the UW.”

Israel Branham ’20


Thank you for your interest in pursuing an undergraduate degree at Seattle Pacific University. We look forward to reviewing your application. We will be in communication with you within one week to let you know the next steps in your application process.

If you applied with the Common Application, you can check the status of your SPU application beginning two days after submission. After your application has been processed, you will receive an email (sent to the address you provided on your application) with instructions on creating your account. You will be directed to a login screen and will be prompted to enter the email address that you used for your application. If you have forgotten your account password, you can reset it by clicking "Forgot Your Password?".

How to check your application status

  1. To check the progress of your SPU application, log in to the SPU Portal.
  2. Once you have logged onto your status page, you will be able to view information about your application and update basic contact information.
  3. You’ll be able to view your application checklist. Here you will see:
    • All items that have been received and processed*
    • Any required items that have not been received or processed yet
  4. A message will display when your application is complete.

*If you’ve submitted an item that isn’t listed, it is likely still being processed. Please note that it can take 2-4 weeks for test scores to be received and processed by our office.


Don't fill out the Common Application or SPU Application twice!

If you have ever applied to SPU, or if you have ever attended SPU as a matriculated student, you do not have to fill out the SPU Application or Common Application again! Instead, you can reapply here. This is a simple, shorter application that tells us what you have been up to since you last applied for or attended SPU.

Do you qualify for reapplication?

This is for students who have either:

  1. Completed an SPU application or Common Application in the past, and are looking to reapply to Seattle Pacific University for the next academic year.*
  2. Formerly completed coursework at SPU as a matriculated student, but have not enrolled at SPU for four quarters or more, including summer.**

If you do not qualify under either of these options, you can still apply to SPU using the SPU Application.

*Admitted students who wish to change the quarter in which they plan to enroll within the same academic year as their original application, please request a Quarter Change from Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

** Reapplication is only required for SPU students who have been separated from SPU for four quarters or more, including summer. If you have been away for three or fewer quarters, please work with the Office of the Registrar to re-enroll.

Reapplication checklist

Submit the following:

  • Reapply for admission with this shortened application
  • Official transcripts of coursework you have completed since you last applied to/attended SPU.
  • Final high school transcript: only required if you graduated high school since you last applied to SPU and you have completed fewer than 45 college level quarter credits (30 semester credits).

Seattle Pacific is test optional. Students can apply to SPU without providing SAT or ACT scores. See below for details, exceptions, and score reporting instructions.

Policy exceptions and considerations

Before you decide whether or not to submit test scores, please consider the following:

  • Although not required, we recommend submitting test scores to be considered for our Distinguished Scholar Award and direct admission to any major in the School of Business, Government, and Economics, or the Nursing major.
  • Test scores might also be useful to be considered for the In-State Matching Scholar Commitment. Students must have a 3.7-3.99 GPA (unweighted) and test scores (SAT 1270+ or ACT 27+), or a 3.9-4.0 GPA (unweighted)
  • While recommendations are not required for admission, we strongly recommend that students who choose not to submit test scores provide two recommendations (at least one academic).
  • Interviews are recommended but not required for students who choose not to submit test scores.
  • Students coming from schools that submit written evaluations instead of letter grades are required to submit a test score.
  • Although we do not require test scores to apply to the Honors Program, we strongly recommend them as a helpful measure of academic preparation.

Will this affect my scholarships and financial aid?

Apart from the scholarships listed above, test-optional students are fully considered for merit and need-based aid.

How to submit test scores

For students who wish to submit an official test score when applying, SPU will accept scores reported in the following ways:

  • Official scores reported directly by the testing agency
  • Official scores listed on an official high school transcript
  • Official scores emailed directly to admissions@spu.edu from the student’s high school counselor
  • A copy of the official test score emailed to admissions@spu.edu from the student

Superscoring SAT/ACT scores

Seattle Pacific will superscore test results from the ACT or SAT. This means that if you took a test more than once, we will combine your highest subsection scores from tests taken on different dates. We will also use your highest overall superscored tests between all tests taken for review. If you have taken the test multiple times, we strongly recommend you send all scores to SPU for review of your best overall test score. Seattle Pacific does not accept SAT subject scores.

What's my application type?

Ready to begin the application process but not sure if you’re a freshman or transfer applicant? Contact us.