How to Become a UWHS Teacher

UWHS teacher applications are now open and will close on April 12, 2023. We encourage you to apply early — some courses fill up quickly.

UWHS Teacher Application Form (login via Google required)

You must apply to teach a specific course and be approved by the UW department sponsoring the course. Not every course accepts teacher applications every year.

If you have questions, email the UWHS office at uwhs@uw.edu.

Course Status and Teacher Qualifications

Check the course status and teaching qualifications below for the course or courses you're interested in teaching. If the course status is listed as open, the department will accept applications from teachers who meet the qualifications. If the status is closed, applications are not being accepted for this application cycle.

At a minimum, ALL prospective UWHS teachers must:

Have a master’s degree (can be in education or teaching)
Be currently teaching in a Washington state public or private high school
Have at least two years of teaching experience in the subject area at the high school and/or college level
Meet the minimum qualifications below for the UW course(s) you would be teaching

Course	Status	Minimum Qualifications for Courses
ASTR 101: Astronomy ASTR 150: The Planets	Closed	B.S. or B.A. in astronomy, physics, chemistry, earth sciences or related field Ability to teach astronomy at the college level as demonstrated by relevant coursework, professional development experiences and/or other significant background in the field
ATM S 111: Global Warming: Understanding the Issues	Open	M.S. or M.A. in physics, chemistry, earth science/geology, oceanography, atmospheric science or engineering, or B.S. in one of the above fields and recent significant involvement in climate change literacy or field-based research experiences related to climate change teacher efforts Strongly recommended: College-level coursework in climate science
BIOL 100: Introductory Biology: Addiction and the Brain	Open	B.S. in biology or chemistry M.S. or M.A. in teaching or education At least two years teaching biology at the high school or college level
BIOL 118: Survey of Physiology	Open	B.S. in biology, chemistry or closely related field M.S. or M.A. in teaching or education Experience teaching physiology at the high school or college level
CHEM 110: Preparation for General Chemistry	Closed	B.S. or B.A. in chemistry (preferred) or a physical or life science Five total years or three consecutive years of experience teaching high school chemistry
CHIN 103: First-Year Chinese for Non-Heritage Learners	Open	M.A. in Chinese linguistics, Chinese literature, education or related field (master’s degree in another field considered if you have training in college-level Chinese instruction) At least three years of Chinese language teaching experience Strong Chinese language skills Familiarity with conversational language teaching
C LIT 240: Writing in Comparative Literature	Closed	M.A. in English or closely related field, including education or teaching Experience teaching writing, especially at the junior and senior level
CSE 121: Introduction to Computer Programming I	Open	B.A. or B.S. in STEM–related field, or B.A. in any field with two or more years of experience as a software engineer Must have taken UW CSE 121, CSE 142 or completed equivalent coursework, or taught at least one year of an approved AP CS A curriculum
CSE 163: Intermediate Data Programming	Open	Master's degree in a STEM-related field or three or more years of experience as a software engineer Must have taken UW CSE 163 or completed equivalent coursework
CSE 180: Introduction to Data Science	Open	College degree in a STEM field or three years teaching a STEM course at the high school level Demonstrated knowledge of descriptive statistics including linear regression, confidence intervals and p-values Experience using software to produce scatter plots, confidence intervals and geographic visualizations (e.g., Tableau, Excel, R Studio)
ENGL 111: Composition: Literature ENGL 131: Composition: Exposition	Closed	M.A. in English or closely related field, including education or teaching Experience teaching writing, especially at the junior and senior level
ESRM 101: Forests and Society ESRM 150: Wildlife in the Modern World	Closed	B.A or B.S. in biology, environmental science, forestry or closely related field M.S. or M.A. in teaching or education Experience teaching environmental science coursework at the high school or college level
FRENCH 103: Elementary French	Open	M.A. in French, education or related field Advanced Low (ACTFL) or C1 (CEFR) language proficiency Familiarity with conversational language teaching
FRENCH 201: Intermediate French	Open	Approval, training and experience teaching FRENCH 103
GERMAN 103: First-Year German	Open	M.A. in German, education or related field Advanced Low (ACTFL) or B2 (CEFR) language proficiency Familiarity with conversational language teaching
GERMAN 201: Second-Year German	Open	Approval, training and experience teaching UW GERMAN 103
G H 101: Introduction to Global Health: Disparities, Determinants, Policies and Outcomes	Open	No specific degree requirements; interest and background in interdisciplinary study of global health
JAPAN 103: First-Year Japanese	Open	M.A. in Japanese, education or related field, such as TESOL, Asian studies or Japan-related humanity subjects (master’s degree in another field considered if you have substantial training in or experience teaching Japanese at the secondary and/or post-secondary level) Advanced Low (ACTFL) language proficiency Familiarity with conversational language teaching
JAPAN 201: Second-Year Japanese	Open	Approval, training and experience teaching UW JAPAN 103
LATIN 103: Introductory Latin LATIN 305: Introduction to Latin Literature LATIN 307: Vergil	Open	B.A. in Latin or equivalent Experience teaching Latin, preferably at the Advanced Placement or college level
MATH 120: Precalculus MATH 124: Calculus with Analytic Geometry I MATH 125: Calculus with Analytic Geometry II	Open	B.A. or B.S in math (not math education)
PSYCH 101: Introduction to Psychology	Open	B.A. or B.S. in psychology or related field, such as biology or sociology College-level coursework and recent training and teaching experience in psychology, such as AP Psychology
SPAN 103: Elementary Spanish	Closed	M.A. in Spanish, education or related field Advanced Low (ACTFL) language proficiency Familiarity with conversational language teaching
SPAN 201: Intermediate Spanish	Closed	Approval, training and experience teaching UW SPAN 103

Application Materials

This is the list of materials you are required to submit:

UWHS teacher application cover sheet
Letter of introduction that includes:
- What course you are applying to teach
- How you meet the course-specific qualifications
- How the UW course would fit within your school’s current course catalog
Current resume that includes:
- Your contact information
- Degrees and endorsements
- Teaching experience, including grade levels and courses taught
- Additional professional development in the subject area (e.g., workshops)
Unofficial undergraduate and graduate transcripts for all degrees earned
Review below for any additional course-specific materials required for your application

Additional Application Materials (for certain courses only)

If you’re applying to any of the courses below, you must submit the additional materials indicated.

CHEM 110

Cover letter must include descriptions of the Chemistry courses taught, which grade levels, and which school years.
CHEM 110 teachers must use a college-level textbook for introductory or preparation for general chemistry. In your letter of introduction, include textbook information for the book you'd use. Please include title, edition, author, publisher and ISBN. The list of approved textbooks includes:
- Brown, LeMay, & Bursten, 2000. Chemistry: The Central Science. 8th ed., Prentice Hall.
- LeMay, et al. 2000. Chemistry: Connections to Our Changing World. 2nd Ed., Prentice Hall.
- Stoker. 2014. Introduction to Chemical Principles. 11th Ed., Pearson.
- Wilbraham, Staley, Matta, & Waterman, 2012. Chemistry. Pearson.
- Zumdahl & Decoste. 2011. Introductory Chemistry: A Foundation. 7th Ed., Cengage.
- Zumdahl & Zumdahl. 2008 Chemistry. 8th ed., Cengage.
Note: Other textbooks must be reviewed and approved by the UWHS faculty coordinator.

CSE 121

Include response in letter of introduction to these questions:
- Other than learning the Java programming language, what are some of the core competencies you hope students will demonstrate in your course?
- Have you ever completed a project that involved computer programming outside of the classroom (e.g., for a job, personal interest, etc.)? Describe this project and what you thought you did well and what you could have done better.
- If you have not completed a programming project outside of the classroom, can you describe any medium-to-large project that you completed that required learning, planning and then doing? Describe the project and what you thought you did well and what you could have done better.

CSE 163

Include response in letter of introduction to these questions:
- Other than learning the Python programming language, what are some of the core competencies you hope students will demonstrate in your course?
- Have you ever completed a project that involved computer programming outside of the classroom (e.g., for a job, personal interest, etc.)? Please describe this project, what you thought you did well on it and what you thought you could do better.
- If you have not completed a programming project outside of the classroom, can you describe any medium-to-large project that you completed that required learning, planning and then doing? Please describe this project, what you thought you did well on it and what you thought you could do better.

ENGL 111/131

A letter of introduction that includes:
- Your experience teaching writing and an explanation of how you view and incorporate the UW Program in Writing and Rhetoric Outcomes in your writing instruction
- Your philosophy and approach to equity-oriented/antiracist pedagogy and an example of an aspect of your approach you have used in your teaching or assessment of writing

FRENCH 103

For non-native speakers of French only: ACTFL test results in writing and speaking proficiency

GERMAN 103

For non-native speakers of German only: ACTFL test results in writing and speaking proficiency

JAPAN 103

For non-native speakers of Japanese only: ACTFL test results in writing and speaking proficiency

PSYCH 101

In the letter of introduction, include a discussion of your philosophy and approach to equity-oriented pedagogy and an example of an aspect of your approach you have used in your teaching
Detailed syllabus
Sample materials (e.g., exam, project, lab) from your current high school psychology course

SPAN 103

For non-native speakers of Spanish only: ACTFL test results in writing and speaking proficiency

Training for Newly Approved Teachers

Following approval, you are required to participate in both a program orientation and discipline-specific training before offering the UW course at your high school.

The program orientation covers the program's goals, policies and procedures, including course administration, student registration and access to UW online resources. The orientation is approximately 30 minutes and is completed online.

In the discipline-specific training, UW departmental representatives lead new teachers through the expectations for delivering UW courses, including the course content, recommended or required assessments, and teaching resources. The length and date for the training varies by subject area. Trainings are typically held on the UW Seattle campus in late spring.

UW in the High School