College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

The Washington University in St Louis Student to Faculty Ratio & Faculty Composition

Does WUSTL have a good student to faculty ratio?

Get a feel for student life at WUSTL by checking out the information on classes and faculty below.

On this page you’ll find:

Student to Faculty Ratio is Well Above Average

With 7 students for every one instructional faculty member, Washington University in St Louis ranks among the best colleges when compared to the national average of 15.

Instructional Staff at the College

The following table shows all the employees the school considers instructional, and therefore, part of the above student-to-faculty ratio. These include both those employees designated as either “primarily instructional” or as “instructional combined with research/public service”. It does not include employees that have been identified by Washington University in St Louis as primarily performing research or public service.

Total Full Time Part Time Percent Full Time
Total of Instructional Employees 2,389 1,945 444 81%
Total of Those With Faculty Status 2,389 1,945 444 81%
Tenured Faculty 1,058 1,056 2 100%
On Tenure Track 471 471 - 100%
Not on Tenure Track 860 418 442 49%
Without Faculty Status - - - -
Graduate Assistants 1,640 - 1,640 -

Do You Like Being Taught by Full-Time Teachers? Then You’re Picking the Right School.

At Washington University in St Louis, 81% of instructors are employed full time, which ranks among the highest in the nation.

Not Many Adjunct Teachers Here

At Washington University in St Louis, only 19% of the teaching staff are part-time non-faculty or non-tenure track faculty. This use of adjuncts is far below the national average of 51.4%, which could be indicative of Washington University in St Louis's commitment to building a strong, long-term instructional team.

Colleges often use part-time professors and adjuncts to teach courses, rather than full-time faculty. This hiring practice is primarily a way to save money amid increasingly tight budgets. However, it is a controversial practice with strong views on either side. We encourage you to understand this topic more deeply, and how the colleges you are interested in approach faculty hiring.

You May End Up Getting Taught by a Grad Assistant

Washington University in St Louis has 321 instructional graduate assistants that teach or provide teaching-related duties. These responsibilities could range from entirely teaching lower-level courses themselves, to assisting professors by developing teaching materials, preparing or giving exams and grading student work. We suggest you ask the college to what extent graduate assistants are relied on for instruction, so you know what you are paying for. Additionally, the school has 1,319 non-instructional graduate assistants.

Continue Your Research on WUSTL

References

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options