Pacific Northwest Tour - Whitman College

Stix, students climb on for good luck before exams or big papers.

Whitman College

 So I'm going to start by being honest - no one goes to Whitman College by accident. The reason I say that is it is not a place you stumble upon. We drove 4+ hours to get there (it is located in the south east corner of Washington state) so, as you might imagine, the it is a very intentional place. The students who attend feel a connection to the community and opt to be there on purpose. (*Note: driving from Portland or Seattle is not the only way to reach campus, a student from NYC would likely opt to fly to one of these cities and then take a short regional flight to one of two airports, either 7 minutes or 45 minutes from campus).

Whitman has about 1,500 and is totally focused on the undergraduate experience. There is a challenging curriculum paired with individual support. Virtually all majors have a thesis requirement and a senior comprehensive exam (often with an oral component). Writing is taken seriously. There is Greek life, but I certainly didn't get a party school vibe. These are opportunities to connect with peers, not be exclusionary.

Students are earnest and seek out connections, both with one another and with the local community. Lifting one another up is considered part of the fabric of the school culture. My tour guide chose to come to Whitman after getting into schools like Yale. Her reason? She said that she valued the "humble intelligence" of Whitman students.

Whitman is test-optional and about 25% of the students opt to go this route. They are admitted to the school at the same rate as those that submit test scores (about 50% acceptance rate, for those wondering). They still utilize an old school holistic reading process, with at least two readers per file. There is not currently a supplement for the application and anyone who applies before December 1 doesn't have an application fee either. Barriers aren't really Whitman's thing. They are much more interested in identifying the students who will be the best fit and helping them grow and develop.

Like many small liberal arts colleges, Whitman is a place with room to grow in terms of diversity. But unlike many schools, they seem to be making efforts across all parts of the school (not just the Admission Office) to make their campus a safe place for difficult conversations. Pretty much every presenter/person we heard from mentioned the annual Privilege and Power Symposium, a day each spring when classes are cancelled and the campus engages in a day full of panels and discussions around topics of access, privilege, identity, and social justice. There is also a term that I (and other counselors) noticed being used here which is 'first generation working class' - something that Whitman has a clear focus on and a population they appear to both seek out and subsequently empower. In addition, like our other visits, LGBTQ+ students are embraced and celebrated, it seems we have found a common theme for this grouping of schools.

Whitman is not yet in a place where they can meet full demonstrated financial need for admitted students, but they said their average gap is currently only about $4,000 a year. In the scheme of things, this is still pretty darn great and makes this an attractive option for students looking to minimize debt. About three quarters of students receive financial aid, a stat that speaks some of the difference one might feel from the highly selective East Coast small liberal arts colleges that have a stereotype of being full of only majority full pay students.

Appealing for their ability to push students to grow without an environment of pressure and anxiety, Whitman strikes me as a happy place with a thoughtful and reflective student body. The surrounding area is small compared to New York City, but is far larger and more developed than the neighborhoods of placed like Wesleyan or Beloit.

While we technically had a tour of Reed late this afternoon, I'm saving my blog post about them until tomorrow.