Freshmen make up biggest-ever class
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This year’s freshmen are part of the biggest incoming class in WWU’s history. A record 2,725 freshmen are expected to enroll this fall, though it was one of the most selective classes in 15 years.
See freshmen and transfers by the numbers
Transfer students also faced greater competition for admission, with an 11-percent increase in applications over last fall. In light of Western’s move to an early registration schedule for continuing students, WWU officials scaled back the number of transfer students admitted in order to make sure enough classes were available for all students.
While the largest increase in transfer applications was from students at other four-year schools, about three-quarters of incoming transfer students are from the state’s community colleges.
Incoming students continue to enrich and diversify Western’s campus. With a record number of applications coming from ethnic minority groups, students of color make up about 24 percent of the incoming freshman class and 17 percent of the transfer class. Out-of-state students make up 12.4% of the freshman class. Students also report fluency in many languages including Arabic, Korean, Mandarin, Tagalog, and Russian, among others.
And what’s the extracurricular activity the most freshmen say they’re interested in at Western? Volunteerism, at 70 percent.
Freshmen and transfer students by the numbers
Top 5 home counties for in-state freshmen- King
- Snohomish
- Pierce
- Whatcom
- Kitsap
- Colorado
- Oregon
- California
- Alaska
- Idaho
- Psychology
- Biology
- Environmental Science/Studies
- Art
- Elementary Education
- Volunteerism
- Sports
- Outdoor Activities
- Study Abroad
- Fine and Performing Arts
Incoming students report fluency in a variety of languages, including:
- Spanish
- Mandarin
- Cantonese
- American Sign Language
- Russian
- Vietnamese
- French
- German
- Japanese
- Oromo
- Urdu
- Tagalog
- Portuguese
- Punjabi
- Hindi
- Farsi
- Arabic
With 9,620 apps, this was a record year for freshman applications. This year, 72.6 percent of students were admitted, the third-lowest admit rate in 15 years.
Among transfer applications, 57.8 percent of this year’s applicants were admitted, compared with 69.4 percent in fall 2008, the second-lowest admit rate in 15 years. WWU reduced the number of spaces for transfer students this fall in order to help manage course access as WWU moved to spring registration for students continuing in the fall. With a traditionally large transfer applicant pool in winter quarter, WWU will adjust winter 2010 transfer enrollment targets as needed.
