November 29, 2017
University of Washington fall 2017 entering class sets record for diversity, resident students
The University of Washington welcomed the most diverse class of new students across all three campuses, and the largest number of Washington residents in UW history, according to the finalized Fall 2017 census of enrolled students released by all three campuses.
The incoming new class across all three campuses, including freshmen and transfer students, totals 11,376, of which 8,431 – 74.1 percent – are Washington residents.
A record number of underrepresented students enrolled across all three campuses this year, with 1,731 enrolled in 2017, compared to 1,646 in 2016.
A total of 3,218 community college transfer students enrolled at the UW across all three campuses – 1,511 in Seattle, 815 in Bothell, and 892 in Tacoma. Of these, 83.2 percent are Washington residents.
The UW also saw a dramatic increase in the number of students who would become the first in their immediate family to earn a four-year degree. Some 30 percent of the overall incoming freshman class in Seattle would be first-generation degree earners – including 37.4 percent of in-state residents.
The proportions of first-generation students and students from low-income families are greater than 2016. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Husky Promise, a guarantee to in-state resident students that if they are accepted to the UW, finances should not prevent them from attending. The Husky Promise guarantees full tuition and standard fees will be covered by grant or scholarship support for Pell- or State Need Grant-eligible Washington state students. In its 10 years, the program has served more than 39,000 individual students at the UW’s three campuses, and now serves nearly 10,000 total students each year.
Total enrollment increased across all three campuses from 56,656 to 57,866 (46,686 in Seattle, 5,995 at UW Bothell and 5,185 at UW Tacoma), continuing a progressive increase over the past decade.
Of the 57,866 enrolled students across all three campuses, 41,670 are undergraduates and 16,196 are pursuing graduate or professional degrees. The number of international students enrolled across all three campuses is 8,220 (14.2 percent) – 7,356 in Seattle; 576 at UW Bothell; and 288 at UW Tacoma.
UW Bothell’s commitment to increasing access to an excellent UW education extends across Washington’s King and Snohomish counties. The largest and fastest growing school on campus is the School of Science, Technology, Engineering & Math. The most sought-after degrees are in business administration and in computer science & software engineering. To expand its service to students and the region, UW Bothell continues to increase course offerings online and in off-campus locations from Seattle to Bellevue to Everett.
UW Tacoma has expanded its Pathways to Promise college-going culture-building outreach program to nine school districts in south King and Pierce counties. Students in the districts have access to transparent, assured admission criteria and UW Tacoma provides college-bound programming tailored for each high school on topics such as how to start a college or career search, and how to complete college application and financial aid forms.
