English Composition

To complete your undergraduate degree, you must take at least one First-Year Composition course. On the UW Bothell campus, you can choose to take a one-quarter class (B WRIT 134: Composition), or you can choose to take a two-quarter stretch option (B WRIT 132: Composition Stretch I and B WRIT 133: Composition Stretch II) that will provide an extended experience at working with reading and writing. You should complete the Directed Self-Placement Survey in order to determine which option is best for you. Many majors will require Research Writing as well, called B WRIT 135.

Grade required

Most schools require you to have at least a 2.0 in your English Composition course, including the School of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences. The course may not be taken with the satisfactory/not satisfactory (S/NS) grading option. There are some exceptions for transfer students.

No overlap

The course you use to satisfy the English Composition requirement does not count toward the additional writing requirement, with the exception of the two-quarter stretch option (B WRIT 132 will earn you a “W” and B WRIT 133 will earn you a “C”). Nor do they count toward the Areas of Inquiry requirement. Your English Composition course may count toward your major, but this is rare.

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AP & IB

Starting with students who enter the university in summer 2003 or later, UW Bothell grants credit for English literature, but not composition, for AP scores of 4 or 5. If you entered UW Bothell before summer 2003 you will receive English Composition credit for your AP score of 4 or 5. For more details see the AP policies page on the Admissions website.

Starting with students who submit their IB scores in summer 2003 or later, UW Bothell grants 5 credits of English literature, not composition, for IB scores of 5 or above on the higher level exam. If you submitted your IB score before summer 2003 you will receive 5 credits of ENGL 999 for your IB score of 5 or higher, and the credits can be counted toward either the composition requirement, or toward both VLPA and the additional writing requirement. For more details see the IB policies page on the Admissions website.

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For transfer students

English Composition courses that transfer as at least 4.5 credits may be used to satisfy this requirement and should be marked “C” on your transfer evaluation. You can also combine two 3-credit English Composition courses. If you completed an English Composition course that didn’t transfer properly and is not marked “C,” consult an advisor.

If you took your English composition course(s) pass/fail at another college before you were a UW Bothell student, you are allowed to count it toward the requirement. Also, if the course was available only on a non-graded basis, you are allowed to count it toward the requirement no matter when you completed it.

You can check the UW Bothell Equivalency Guide for Washington Community and Technical Colleges to determine which courses from Washington community colleges count toward UW Bothell’s English Composition requirement; they are marked in the lists with a “C.”

For postbaccalaureate students

Postbaccalaureate students are not required to complete the English Composition requirement.

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