by our College Data Analytics TeamWestern Washington University is a public institution in Bellingham, Washington enrolling 13,544 undergraduates. It accepts 93% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 65%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #296 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 6%), 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.
Western Washington University ranks #296 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 6%.
College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.
Western Washington University was awarded 156 badges in the 2027 rankings.
College Factual ranked WWU as #296 out of 5,159 colleges and universities in the country on its 2027 Best Colleges list. This puts it in the top 10% of all schools in the nation.
WWU also holds the #9 spot on the Best Colleges in Washington ranking.
See all of the rankings for Western Washington University.
Western Washington University has an acceptance rate of 93%, so it is easier to gain admission to this school than some others. Still, the admissions staff will examine your application closely to make sure you’re a good fit for WWU.
About 9% of students accepted to WWU submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 590 and 710. Math scores were between 560 and 680.
WWU received ACT scores from 2% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 24 and 31.
Learn more about Western Washington University admissions.
With a student to faculty ratio of 18 to 1, Western Washington University is about average in this regard as the nationwide rate is 15 to 1. While this does not translate directly to class size, it’s a good indicator of how much time professors will have to spend with their students on a one-on-one basis.
In addition to the student to faculty ratio, some people look at what percentage of faculty members are full-time as a sign of how much time professors will be able to spend with their students. This is because part-time teachers may not be on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.
The full-time faculty percentage at Western Washington University is 71%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.
The freshmen retention rate of 79% tells us that most first-year, full-time students like Western Washington University enough to come back for another year. This is a fair bit higher than the national average of 68%. That’s certainly something to check off in the good column about the school.
Students are considered to have graduated on time if they finish their studies within four years. At WWU the on-time graduation rate of first-time, full-time students is 65%. That is great when compared to the national average of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Western Washington University.
During the most recent academic year, there were 13,544 undergraduates at WWU.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at Western Washington University.
The overall average net price of WWU 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 + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $12,915 | $14,147 | $17,539 | $24,301 | $27,984 |
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 WWU, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
It’s not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At WWU, approximately 29% of students took out student loans averaging $5,951 a year. That adds up to $23,804 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 3.0%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you’ll be able to pay back your student loans. Get more details about paying for Western Washington University.
Yearly salaries vary depending on what you major in, but on average, bachelor’s degree recipients from Western Washington University make around $62,569 per year during the early years of their employment. This is good news for future Western Washington University graduates since it is 27% more than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year.
See which majors at Western Washington University make the most money.
Western Washington University is a public institution located in Bellingham, Washington. Bellingham is a great location for students who prefer city over country life. Get more details about the location of Western Washington University.
Get in touch with Western Washington University are listed below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 516 High Street, Bellingham, WA 98225-9008 |
| Phone: | 3606503000 |
| Website: | www.wwu.edu |
| Wikipedia: | en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Washington_University |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/westernwashingtonuniversity |
| Twitter: | twitter.com/WWU |
In the latest year of available data, students from 23 majors graduated from Western Washington 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 | 3,389 | NA |
| General Psychology | 224 | $27,918 |
| Natural Resources Conservation | 182 | $25,380 |
| Computer Information Systems | 123 | $69,837 |
| Other Interdisciplinary Studies | 113 | $22,773 |
| Communication & Media Studies | 103 | $32,487 |
| Sociology | 102 | $26,202 |
| Marketing | 98 | $40,450 |
| Teacher Education Grade Specific | 96 | $54,064 |
| Writing Studies | 96 | $22,536 |
1,453 students took at least one online class at Western Washington 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 Western Washington University.
Interested in comparing WWU? Compare them side by side using College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.
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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