On Sept. 26, faculty and staff at the University of Washington Bothell gave new and returning students a warm welcome to the start of the 2023-24 academic year.
The incoming class includes 1,186 first-year students and 510 transfer students — the largest in the university’s 34-year history. With returning students, UW Bothell has a total student body of 5,816 for the 2023 autumn quarter, including 5,255 undergraduates and 561 graduate students.
The average class size is 30 for undergraduates and 19 for graduate students. The University has 365 faculty members and 383 staff.
“We are proud of our small community feel and our focus on personalizing each student’s educational experience,” Kristin G. Esterberg, UW Bothell chancellor. “We prize having small class sizes that allow students and faculty to get to know each other.
“Our faculty are committed not just to being teachers and mentors but also to bringing their students — even first-year students — into their research and community projects,” she noted, adding that, as one of three UW campuses, UW Bothell also offers students access to large university resources, such as a world-class library, research labs, a clean room and a makerspace.
Current students who have declared majors or are in graduate programs break out as follows: 26% are in the School of STEM, 15% in the School of Business, 13% in the School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences, 6% in the School of Nursing & Health Studies and 3% in the School of Educational Studies. Another 36% of UW Bothell students are first-year or pre-major students.
Some other statistics about the UW Bothell at the start of the 2023-24 academic year include:
- 38% of incoming first-year students and 42% of new incoming transfer students will be the first in their immediate families to graduate from a four-year institution.
- 28% of incoming first-year students and 33% of incoming transfer students are eligible for Pell Grants, the federal aid program for low-income families.
- 6% of students — more than 350 in total — are eligible for veteran’s benefits, a group that includes spouses and children of veterans.
The student body is known for its diversity, as well. Approximately 34% of all students identify as Asian, 28% white, 9% Black or African American, 10% Hispanic or Latino, 7% two or more races, less than 1% American Indian or Alaska Native, and less than 1% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander. Another 5% are international students here on a student visa.
“Engaging in higher education calls for all of us to listen to others with open minds and hearts,” the chancellor told incoming students last month at the annual convocation event that marks the start of the new academic year. “It challenges us to learn to have conversations about things that matter with people who think differently from ourselves.
“That’s what education is about — and I believe our democracy depends on it.”
Among all students at UW Bothell, 92% are Washington residents, with 58% coming from King County and 28% from Snohomish County.
The University of Washington Bothell was established by approval of the state legislature in 1989, held its first classes in fall 1990 and graduated its first class of three students in 1991.
There are now approximately 30,000 UW Bothell alumni, and more than 90% live and work in the state of Washington.
