Worcester Polytechnic Institute Overview
Worcester Polytechnic Institute is a private not-for-profit institution located in Worcester, Massachusetts. The surrounding area of the school is a good match for students who enjoy city life.
What Is Worcester Polytechnic Institute Known For?
- The 1% student loan default rate at WPI is better than the national rate of 10.1%. That's a good sign that you may be able to pay off student loans easier than your peers at other schools can.
- The highest award offered at WPI is the doctor's degree.
- For the 2017-2018 academic year, 82% of the faculty were full-time.
- Students who graduate from WPI with a bachelor's degree make about $84,900 a year. That's 108% more than those who graduate from other schools.
- It takes the average WPI student 4.1 years to graduate. This is pretty good when compared to the national rate of 4.4 years.
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Worcester Polytechnic Institute Rankings
WPI landed the #77 spot in our 2021 ranking of best colleges. We analyzed 2,320 colleges and universities across the nation to determine this ranking. This lands it a coveted spot in the top 5% of all colleges and universities in the country. Out of the 63 colleges in Massachusetts, it is ranked at #9.
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.
WPI has also been awarded the following overall awards by our latest rankings.
Rank | Ranking Name | Share |
---|---|---|
#13 | Best Graduate Certificate Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#36 | Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#50 | Best Master’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#60 | Best Doctor’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#290 | Most Popular Master’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
Program Level Awards
These are highlights of some of the most noteworthy awards granted to specific programs at WPI.
Awards From Around the Web
The following table lists some notable awards WPI has earned from around the web.
Rank | Ranking Name | Source |
---|---|---|
#4 | Best Colleges for Computer & Information Sciences | College Factual |
#5 | Best Colleges for Engineering | College Factual |
#6 | Best Colleges for Mechanical Engineering | College Factual |
#6 | Best Colleges for Computer Science | College Factual |
#6 | Best Colleges for Chemical Engineering | College Factual |
#16 | Best Business Schools | Business Degree Central |
Where Is Worcester Polytechnic Institute?

Contact details for WPI are given below.
Contact Details | |
---|---|
Address: | 100 Institute Road, Worcester, MA 01609-2280 |
Phone: | 508-831-5000 |
Website: | https://www.wpi.edu/ |
Facebook: | http://www.facebook.com/wpi.edu |
Twitter: | http://www.twitter.com/wpi |
How Do I Get Into WPI?
You can apply to WPI online at: https://www.wpi.edu/admissions/undergraduate/apply/how-to
Admission Requirements for WPI
Submission | Required? |
---|---|
High School GPA | considered but not required |
High School Rank | considered but not required |
High School Transcript | required |
College Prep Program | required |
Recommendations | required |
SAT or ACT Scores | neither required nor recommended |
TOEFL | required |
How Hard Is It To Get Into WPI?
Approximately 66% of accepted students are men and 34% are women. The acceptance rate for men is 43%, and the acceptance rate for women is 64%.
Can I Afford Worcester Polytechnic Institute?
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid.
Student Loan Debt
It's not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At WPI, approximately 53% of students took out student loans averaging $13,238 a year. That adds up to $52,952 over four years for those students.
The student loan default rate at WPI is 1.1%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you'll be able to pay back your student loans.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute Undergraduate Student Diversity

There are also 2,133 graduate students at the school.
Gender Diversity
Of the 4,642 full-time undergraduates at WPI, 60% are male and 40% are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity
The racial-ethnic breakdown of Worcester Polytechnic Institute students is as follows.

Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 293 |
Black or African American | 137 |
Hispanic or Latino | 411 |
White | 2,872 |
International Students | 395 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 534 |
Geographic Diversity
Massachusetts students aren't the only ones who study at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. At this time, 37 states are represented by the student population at the school.
Over 80 countries are represented at WPI. The most popular countries sending students to the school are China, India, and Vietnam.
Online Learning at Worcester Polytechnic Institute
The following chart shows how the online learning population at WPI has changed over the last few years.

This school is the 15th most popular in Massachusetts for online learning according to the online graduations recorded by the Department of Education for the academic year 2017-2018.
Online Growth Rankings of WPI
The average growth rate over the last four years of online students at Worcester Polytechnic Institute was 12.2%. This is the #1,200 largest growth rate of all schools that are only partially online. This refers to all students at WPI regardless of major.
The following table shows the 1-year growth rate of WPI majors that offer at least one online course. This table only includes majors with positive growth.
Major | 1-Year Growth Rate |
---|---|
Civil Engineering | 19% |
Computer & Information Sciences | 4% |
Computer Science | 7% |
Electrical Engineering | 11% |
Engineering | 10% |
Environmental Engineering | 19% |
Mathematics & Computer Science | 2% |
Mechanical Engineering | 18% |
Other Engineering | 4% |
Robotics Engineering | 12% |
Systems Engineering | 17% |
The table below shows how the average growth rate over 4 years at WPI 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 WPI.
Major | Growth Rate Rank | |
---|---|---|
Mathematics & Computer Science | #1 | |
Robotics Engineering | #1 | |
Systems Theory | #2 | |
Environmental Engineering | #5 | |
Biomedical Engineering | #6 | |
Other Engineering | #11 | |
Mathematics | #13 | |
Systems Engineering | #14 | |
General Biology | #15 | |
Mechanical Engineering | #16 | |
Civil Engineering | #17 | |
Mathematics & Statistics | #21 | |
Electrical Engineering | #24 | |
Biological & Biomedical Sciences | #29 | |
Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies | #41 | |
Engineering | #51 | |
Multi / Interdisciplinary Studies | #86 |
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%.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute 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 Runningonbrains under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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