Western Michigan University Overview
Western Michigan University is a public institution situated in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The surrounding area of the school is a good match for students who enjoy city life.
What Is Western Michigan University Known For?
- Although it may not be available for every major, the doctor's degree is the highest award a student can attain at WMU.
- For the 2017-2018 academic year, 63% of the faculty were full-time.
- Students who graduate from WMU with a bachelor's degree make about $45,000 a year. That's 10% more than those who graduate from other schools.
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Western Michigan University Rankings
These rankings may look different from those published by other outlets, because we use an outcomes-based approach rather than a subjective one. We get our data from a number of places, including the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and the College Scorecard. For more information, check out our rankings and methodology page.
Program Level Awards
These are highlights of some of the most noteworthy awards granted to specific programs at WMU.
Awards From Around the Web
The following table lists some notable awards WMU has earned from around the web.
Rank | Ranking Name | Source |
---|---|---|
#1 | Best Tourism and Travel Services Marketing Operations Schools | College Factual |
#3 | Best General Drafting & Design Technology Schools | College Factual |
#10 | Best Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Schools | College Factual |
#18 | Best Industrial Production Technology Schools | College Factual |
#22 | Best Vehicle Maintenance & Repair Schools | College Factual |
#35 | Best Mechanic & Repair Technologies Schools | College Factual |
Where Is Western Michigan University?

Contact details for WMU are given below.
Contact Details | |
---|---|
Address: | 1903 W Michigan Ave, Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5200 |
Phone: | 269-387-1000 |
Facebook: | http://www.facebook.com/wmich |
Twitter: | http://twitter.com/wmunews |
How Do I Get Into WMU?
You can apply to WMU online at: https://wmich.edu/apply/
Admission Requirements for WMU
Submission | Required? |
---|---|
High School GPA | required |
High School Rank | neither required nor recommended |
High School Transcript | required |
College Prep Program | recommended |
Recommendations | neither required nor recommended |
SAT or ACT Scores | required |
TOEFL | required |
How Hard Is It To Get Into WMU?
Approximately 45% of accepted students are men and 55% are women. The acceptance rate for men is 84%, and the acceptance rate for women is 86%.
Average Test Scores
About 67% of students accepted to WMU submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 500 and 610. Math scores were between 510 and 610.
Can I Afford Western Michigan University?
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid.
Student Loan Debt
While almost two-thirds of students nationwide take out loans to pay for college, the percentage may be quite different for the school you plan on attending. At WMU, approximately 57% of students took out student loans averaging $8,965 a year. That adds up to $35,860 over four years for those students.
The student loan default rate at WMU is 7.8%. Although this is lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, you'll still want to keep this in mind when taking out student loans.
Western Michigan University Undergraduate Student Diversity

There are also 3,918 graduate students at the school.
Gender Diversity
Of the 13,296 full-time undergraduates at WMU, 50% are male and 50% are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity
The racial-ethnic breakdown of Western Michigan University students is as follows.

Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 298 |
Black or African American | 1,305 |
Hispanic or Latino | 1,027 |
White | 9,121 |
International Students | 790 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 755 |
Geographic Diversity
Michigan students aren't the only ones who study at Western Michigan University. At this time, 28 states are represented by the student population at the school.
Over 94 countries are represented at WMU. The most popular countries sending students to the school are Saudi Arabia, India, and China.
Online Learning at Western Michigan University
The following chart shows how the online learning population at WMU has changed over the last few years.

This school is the 25th most popular in Michigan for online learning according to the online graduations recorded by the Department of Education for the academic year 2019-2020.
Online Affordability Rankings of WMU
The following table shows how WMU is ranked for affordability for both in-state and out-of-state students among colleges and universities that are not mostly online.
Major | Tuition for In-State Students | Tuition for Out-of-State Students |
---|---|---|
Natural Resources & Conservation | #7 | #14 |
Natural Resources Conservation | #7 | #11 |
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions | #7 | #4 |
Communication Sciences | #10 | #1 |
Transportation & Materials Moving | #16 | #10 |
Air Transportation | #16 | #10 |
Other Education | #32 | #4 |
Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies | #37 | #10 |
Human Development & Family Studies | #46 | #19 |
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences | #61 | #31 |
Information Technology | #67 | #31 |
Online Growth Rankings of WMU
The average growth rate over the last four years of online students at Western Michigan University was 112.8%. This is the #389 largest growth rate of all schools that are only partially online. This refers to all students at WMU regardless of major.
The following table shows the 1-year growth rate of WMU majors that offer at least one online course. This table only includes majors with positive growth.
Major | 1-Year Growth Rate |
---|---|
Communication Sciences | 8% |
Computer & Information Sciences | 9% |
Education | 11% |
Geological & Earth Sciences | 12% |
Gerontology | 33% |
Health Professions | 1% |
Information Technology | 20% |
Nursing | 4% |
Other Education | 95% |
Physical Sciences | 17% |
Teacher Education Subject Specific | 10% |
The table below shows how the average growth rate over 4 years at WMU ranks compared to all other partially online schools that offer a specific major. Note that the majors may or may not be offered online at WMU.
When we speak of partially online, we are referring to schools whose online population is less than 50% of its total student body. Mostly online refers to those with online populations greater than or equal to 50%.
Western Michigan University Undergraduate Concentrations
The table below shows the number of awards for each concentration.
References
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
- College Factual
- National Center for Education Statistics
- Image Credit: By TheKuLeR under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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