by our College Data Analytics TeamWashington Adventist University is a private not-for-profit institution in Takoma Park, Maryland enrolling 452 undergraduates. It accepts 46% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 29%, near the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,962 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 38%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.
Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.
Washington Adventist University ranks #1,962 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 38%.
In its yearly rankings, College Factual analyzes over 2,000 colleges and universities to determine which ones are the best in a variety of categories, such as overall value, quality, diversity, which schools are the best for each major, and much more.
College Factual ranked WAU as #1,962 out of 5,159 colleges and universities in the country on its 2027 Best Colleges list.
WAU is also ranked #34 on the Best Colleges in Maryland list.
See all of the rankings for Washington Adventist University.
Washington Adventist University has an acceptance rate of 46%, which means the school is serious about who it admits. Take your time in putting together a strong application that highlights why you are a good fit for WAU.
About 14% of students accepted to WAU submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 450 and 580. Math scores were between 410 and 550.
Learn more about Washington Adventist University admissions.
The student to faculty ratio at WAU is an impressive 9 to 1. That’s quite good when you compare it to the national average of 15 to 1. This is a good sign that students at the school will have more opportunities for one-on-one interactions with their professors.
Another measure that is often used to estimate how much access students will have to their professors is how many faculty members are full-time. The idea here is that part-time faculty tend to spend less time on campus, so they may not be as available to students as full-timers.
The full-time faculty percentage at Washington Adventist University is 26%. This is lower than the national average of 47%.
The freshmen retention rate tells us what percentage of first-year, full-time students choose to continue on to their sophomore year at a particular school. The rate at Washington Adventist University is 64%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 68%.
The on-time graduation rate is the percent of first-time, full-time students who get their bachelor’s degree within four years. At WAU this rate is 29%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Washington Adventist University.
During the most recent academic year, there were 452 undergraduates at WAU.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at Washington Adventist University.
The average net price of WAU is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $17,534 | $15,160 | $19,311 | $22,090 | $21,480 |
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of WAU, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
While almost two-thirds of students nationwide take out loans to pay for college, the percentage may be quite different for the school you plan on attending. At WAU, approximately 45% of students took out student loans averaging $8,953 a year. That adds up to $35,812 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 9.3%. This is about the same as the national default rate of 10.1%. Get more details about paying for Washington Adventist University.
The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Washington Adventist University make about $64,249 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. This is good news for future Washington Adventist University graduates since it is 31% more than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year.
See which majors at Washington Adventist University make the most money.
Washington Adventist University is an private not-for-profit institution located in Takoma Park, Maryland. WAU is located in a safe and convenient suburb. Get more details about the location of Washington Adventist University.
Get in touch with Washington Adventist University can be found below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 7600 Flower Ave, Takoma Park, MD 20912 |
| Phone: | 3018914000 |
| Website: | www.wau.edu |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/WashingtonAdventistUniversity?ref=ts |
| Twitter: | twitter.com/waunews |
During the most recent year for which we have data, students from 11 majors graduated from Washington Adventist University. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.
| Most Popular Majors | Completions | Average Salary of Graduates |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-Disciplinary Studies | 132 | NA |
| Nursing | 22 | NA |
| Health/Medical Admin Services | 20 | NA |
| Clinical & Counseling Psychology | 17 | NA |
| Business Administration & Management | 15 | NA |
| Allied Health Professions | 11 | NA |
| Liberal Arts General Studies | 8 | NA |
| General Psychology | 6 | NA |
| Theological & Ministerial Studies | 6 | NA |
| Music | 6 | NA |
114 students took at least one online class at Washington Adventist University.
Online learning is becoming popular at even the oldest colleges and universities in the United States. Not only are online classes great for returning adults with busy schedules, they are also frequented by a growing number of traditional students.
Learn more about online learning at Washington Adventist University.
Curious how schools stack up against WAU? Match them up using College Combat, our free tool for head-to-head college comparisons.
Footnotes
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
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