While Whitman College is located in an urban area, it is close to many outdoorsy activities due to Walla Walla’s proximity to hiking trails in the foothills of the Blue Mountains. Whitman College is a small campus with beautifully landscaped grounds. They have many virtual tours showcasing their campus.
Campus Life
Whitman College offers educates only undergraduate students. There are nearly 1,500 enrolled students on campus. Students who are looking for a small campus environment in a small city/college town with access to a lot of outdoorsy activities find Whitman College a good experience.
Almost all the incoming freshman live on campus. Whitman has a policy that all students under the age of 21 years and who have not lived four semesters on campus, must reside at on campus housing. There are 7 residence halls and 11 special interest houses. Except for one residence hall, all the other housing is coed. Whitman also owns off campus rental properties which are available to junior and senior students.
Academics
Whitman is academically strong and most students are happy with their education. The professors are available during the office hours and supportive of the student endeavors and goals. Students can also avail of free tutoring in any subject. Students have mentioned that the classroom is lively with a lot of classroom discussions. In traditional liberal arts fashion, Whitman offers many social sciences, liberal arts and science majors. Some of their most popular subjects are biology, social sciences, fine arts and psychology.
Students are required to take core courses in Arts/Fine Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences and Sciences. The teaching is performed by both full time and part time faculty. Whitman has three times as many full time faculty as compared to part time faculty, so most classes will be taught by full time faculty. Most of the faculty hold doctoral degrees. Most class sizes have students less than 20 students, with some classes having as few as 10 students or as many as 30 students.
Whitman’s Center for Global Studies is well regarded for their global study programs and initiatives. Whitman prides itself on the various fellowships and grants that have been awarded to student and faculty for their contributiosn towards teaching, public service and research as well Whitman’s Undergraduate Conference where students can present their research.
Career Placement
According to Whitman College, a large proportion of their students go to graduate schools. Students who enter the workforce upon graduation find employment across various career paths in journalism, education, sales, visual and performing arts, government and technology etc. Its reasonable proximity to Seattle and Portland means that many of Whitman graduates pursue their career options there. Some of the biggest employers in those regions are Microsoft, Amazon, Boeing, Kaiser Permanente, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Starbucks etc. Take a look at their career services to learn more about their career advising.
Extra-Curricular Activities
There are many things to do on campus beyond academics at Whitman. The activities range from Model UN, Literary Magazines and Newspapers, Dance, Musical Theatre, Musical Ensemble, Orchestra, Jazz and Concert Band, Campus Ministries, Choral Groups, Film Society and Radio and Student Government. Students also take advantage of the beautiful outdoors and the location of the college by participating in a lot of outdoors activities.
Party Scene
Students say that it is a campus with many things to do. Just like most college, there is a weekend party scene, but the general consensus is that it is not the focus of the college experience at Whitman.
Athletics
Whitman is a Div. III school and competes in the Northwestern Conference of NCAA. True to its spirit, over 60% of the students participate in sports either in , club, intramurals or varsity sports.
Cost and Finances
Whitman is on the expensive side of the cost spectrum for colleges. They offer reasonable amount of need-based aid and merit scholarships. 50% of their enrolled students were offered some form of need based aid and the reported average aid amount is $25,000 with the average aid amount ranging from $43,00-$17,000 depending on the student’s financial situation. Over 38% of the enrolled students were offered merit aid with an average amount of $13,350.
43% of the enrolled students were also offered loans towards their net cost of attendance. The median debt ranges from $14,000-18,750. These graduates can look forward to a salary of $23,300-$35,300 based on their major and employment. The salary numbers maybe a little skewed by the fact that many of the students go to graduate school after Whitman College. For students who are in the workplace, their salaries would be more on par with the entry salaries for their chosen field.
In conclusion, most students have a positive view of Whitman, often describing it as a community that is intellectually stimulating and supportive, while hoping for a bit more diversity.