Whitman College

Overview

Rankings

• #1 Best Biology Colleges in Washington
• #4 Best Colleges in Washington
• #5 Best Bachelor's Programs in Washington
• #5 Best Master's Programs in Washington
• #5 Best Computer Science Colleges in Washington
• #5 Best Data Science Colleges in Washington
• #6 Best Psychology Colleges in Washington
• #9 Most Test-Optional-Friendly Colleges

Academics & Admissions

Is It Hard to Get Into Whitman College? Acceptance Rate & Requirements

Based in Walla Walla, Washington, Whitman College reviews applications selectively. The acceptance rate runs near 38%. Admitted students typically arrive with an average SAT score near 1,410. The graduation rate is roughly 81%.

Acceptance Rate

38%

Retention Rate

87%

SAT Average

1410

ACT Midpoint

31

SAT Range

1310–1480

ACT Range

29–33

Full-Time Faculty

87%

Faculty Salary (mo)

$10,628

Student–Faculty Ratio

9:1

Diversity Index

0.64

First-Gen Students

12%

Applicants

5,497

Admitted

2,622

Inside the Admissions Office

School-reported Common Data Set · 2024-25

The acceptance rate tells you how hard Whitman College is to get into. Its Common Data Set tells you what happens once you are admitted: how many students say yes, how many arrived without test scores, and whether applying early tilts the odds. 9% of admitted students go on to enroll here, making it a school most admitted students ultimately pass on.

Yield Rate

9%

of admits enroll

Submitted SAT

9%

of enrolled freshmen

Submitted ACT

7%

of enrolled freshmen

Early Decision Admit Rate

19.0%

vs 44.9% overall

Cost & Financial Aid

How Much Does It Cost to Attend Whitman College? Tuition, Net Price & Aid

Published tuition at Whitman College is $64,050, but few families pay that. The number to watch is net price, what students actually pay each year after federal grants and institutional scholarships. Here it averages about $33,313. Students from families earning under $30,000 typically pay closer to $13,567 after need-based grants. The median graduate leaves with about $18,437 in federal student loans.

In-State Tuition

$64,050

Out-of-State

$64,050

Avg Net Price

$33,313

Median Debt

$18,437

Pell Grant Rate

16%

Federal Loan Rate

54%

Students Like You

Tell us a little about yourself to see what students like you have typically experienced at Whitman College — the net price for your income, your admission odds, and the outcomes that follow. These are patterns from federal data, not predictions.

Graduate Outcomes

Is Whitman College Worth It? Graduate Earnings & ROI

Ten years out, alumni of Whitman College earn a median of $67,589, roughly in line with the national average for college graduates.

6 Years After Entry

$45,594

8 Years

$60,428

10 Years

$67,589

Debt-to-Earnings

0.27x

Earning > $25K

63%

Social Mobility

Data: Raj Chetty's Mobility Report Card · 30M+ anonymized tax records

Does Whitman College Drive Upward Mobility? Economic Mobility & Low-Income Outcomes

Whitman College is a measurable contributor to upward mobility. Its mobility rate, the share of students who start in the bottom income quintile and climb to the top, is 0.89%, in line with strong performers nationally. Access is narrower: only about 2.7% of students come from the bottom income quintile, typical of more selective, higher-income institutions. Among bottom-quintile students who attend, roughly 32.8% go on to reach the top of the income ladder. The median family income of students sits near $138,200, a snapshot of the campus's socioeconomic mix.

Mobility Rate

0.89%

Bottom 20% → Top 20%

Success Rate

32.8%

If bottom 20% get in

From Bottom 20%

2.7%

Share of students

Parent Median Income

$187,765

today's $ (2015 cohort data)

Social Capital

Data: Opportunity Insights Social Capital Atlas

How Connected Is Whitman College? Social Capital & Cross-Class Networks

Social capital, the web of cross-class friendships that researchers link to long-run upward mobility, runs high at Whitman College. Its economic connectedness score is 1.83, where about 1.0 is the national norm. Its friending bias is low (-0.01), a sign that students from different economic backgrounds actually mix rather than self-segregate. Around 17% of students take part in civic and volunteering activity.

Economic Connectedness

1.83

Cross-class friendships

Friending Bias

-0.01

Lower = more inclusive

Volunteering Rate

17.0%

Support Ratio

1.00

Community support

Innovation & Knowledge Creation

Patents, inventors, and research influence · Opportunity Insights & Times Higher Education

Whitman College produces inventors at a measurable rate, with 27 patents tied to its graduates.

Inventor Rate

0.78%

Top 29% nationally

Patents Produced

27

Linked to graduates

Patent Citations

153

Downstream influence

Institutional Finances

Data: NCES IPEDS

Federal Grants

$1,746,920

Investment Income

$-169,298,206

Top Programs

The fields Whitman College awards the most degrees in, by share of completions. Where federal field-of-study data exists, we show what graduates in that major earned early in their careers. Each links to its degree guide — or see what someone with your income, scores, and major would pay and earn here in the Students Like You simulator.

• Social Sciences 23% $50,714 early-career
• Biology & Biomedical 16% $27,327 early-career
• Visual & Performing Arts 14% $31,312 early-career
• Physical Sciences 10%
• Psychology 8% $32,775 early-career
• English & Literature 7% $22,419 early-career
• Computer Science & IT 5%
• Mathematics & Statistics 2%

Early-career median earnings by major (typically 1–2 years after completion, bachelor's level where available), in today's dollars (CPI-adjusted). Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard field of study. Distinct from the school-wide 10-year median; suppressed for small programs.