It is no secret that the iSchool Informatics program is highly competitive, admitting only a quarter of the applicants every year. The iSchool wants to make this process easier by encouraging high-school students to list Informatics as their first-choice major as part of their University of Washington undergraduate application.

The program, Freshman Direct Admission, was updated in 2015 with the goal of admitting about 5 percent of the incoming cohort. In 2017, 28 students were admitted and 16 started the program. Students are not required to complete any prerequisites.

To promote the program, iSchool Informatics program advisors engage in direct outreach to high-school students. They organize a “Freshman Friday” series that runs throughout the year. These monthly lunches introduce students to resources on campus and in the iSchool, including student groups, career services and IT.

Advisors have presented at Seattle high schools, including Chief Sealth and Cleveland. Two programs in particular – Making Connections and IGNITE – are now iSchool partners that serve high-school aged students, mostly women.

The iSchool is making this effort because studies have shown that when students identify with an academic community earlier in their college career, retention improves. Benefits to students include earlier access to Informatics courses, dedicated career advising, a stress-free major selection process, and more flexibility with their academic program because they can spread it out over a full four years instead of trying to get everything done in two.

Alumni can help spread the word and direct interested students and parents to the website or to iask@uw.edu or informatics@uw.edu with any questions.