Washington

Your impact on education can be measured.

Does your state provide an intellectually rich, high-quality college education at an affordable price? See how your state is doing compared to others.

STATE
DATA

Unless otherwise indicated, data from this state rankings survey include all regionally accredited, public four-year institutions with a stated liberal arts mission. ACTA’s survey does not include institutions with a vocational, technical, or otherwise narrow mission focus. Data are drawn from the National Center for Education Statistics’ (NCES) Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) unless otherwise specified.

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Measures of Cost Effectiveness

State Rank

Tuition as % of Median Household Income

State Rank

12.93%

14

12.93%
14

Percentages are calculated by dividing what institutions report to IPEDS as “Published in-state tuition and fees” by the state median household income reported by the American Community Survey. To calculate percentages, dollar values are inflation-adjusted using the CPI-U-RS annual average. Values are based on weighted averages using undergraduate enrollment (“Reported full-time equivalent (FTE) undergraduate enrollment”) so that schools that serve a larger percentage of students within the state contribute more to the state’s average. Higher rankings correspond with lower percentages.

Administrator to Professor Ratio

State Rank

1.36

31

1.36
31

The Administrator-to-Professor Ratio is calculated by dividing the statewide sum of what institutions report to IPEDS as full-time “Managers,” “Business and Financial Operations” staff, and “Office and Administrative Support” staff by the statewide sum of what institutions report as full-time instructors with academic ranks of “Professors,” “Associate Professors,” and “Assistant Professors.” Higher rankings correspond with lower ratios (fewer administrators for each professor).

Student to Administrator Ratio

State Rank

14.32

37

14.32
37

The Student-to-Administrator Ratio is calculated using the statewide sum of full-time equivalent (FTE) undergraduate students divided by FTE administrators, which are defined as what institutions report to IPEDS as “Managers,” “Business and Financial Operations” staff, and “Office and Administrative Support” staff. FTE students and staff are calculated using NCES’ recommended method of adding the number of full-time students or staff plus one-third the number of part-time students or staff. Higher rankings correspond with higher ratios (more students for each administrator).

[Note: Some institutions that operate multiple campuses choose to report staffing data in a single record (usually the main campus). In these rare cases, we divided the total number of administrators by all students within the system, even students at schools outside of our survey, to account for the total student-to-administrator ratio.]

Administrative Spending Per Student

State Rank

$4,554

42

$4,554
42

Spending amounts are calculated using what institutions report to IPEDS as “institutional support” expenses, or those for the “day-to-day operational support of the institution.” Institutional support commonly includes costs for executive management, legal departments, fiscal operations, public relations, and development. To calculate administrative spending on a per-student basis, the total state spending is divided by the “Full-time equivalent enrollment (Fall enrollment derivation)” variable reported in IPEDS. Higher rankings correspond with lower amounts of per-student spending.

[Note: Some institutions that operate multiple campuses choose to report spending data in a single record (usually the main campus). In these rare cases, we divided the total spending by all students within the system, even students at schools outside of our survey, to account for the total per-student spending.]

Student Services Spending Per Student

State Rank

$1,307

3

$1,307
3

Spending amounts are calculated using what institutions report to IPEDS as “student services” expenses, or those for “admissions, registrar activities, and activities whose primary purpose is to contribute to students’ emotional and physical well-being and to their intellectual, cultural, and social development outside the context of the formal instructional program.” To calculate student services spending on a per-student basis, the total state spending is divided by the “Full-time equivalent enrollment (Fall enrollment derivation)” variable reported in IPEDS. Higher rankings correspond with lower amounts of per-student spending.

[Note: Some institutions that operate multiple campuses choose to report spending data in a single record (usually the main campus). In these rare cases, we divided the total spending by all students within the system, even students at schools outside of our survey, to account for the total per-student spending.]

Measures of Academic Quality

State Rank

Core Curriculum

State Rank

0.66

48

0.66
48

The Core Curriculum ranking is determined using ACTA’s What Will They Learn?® (WWTL) project. WWTL grades colleges and universities on an “A”–“F” scale based on how many of the following seven core subjects they require in their general education programs: Composition, Literature, (intermediate) Foreign Language, U.S. Government or History, Economics, Mathematics, and Natural Science. To calculate a state’s average, the Core Curriculum ranking converts the WWTL grades to numerical values using the standard college GPA system (A = 4.0, B = 3.0, etc.). Values are weighted by undergraduate enrollment so that schools that serve a larger percentage of students within the state contribute more to the state’s average. Higher state rankings correspond with higher average GPAs.

Speech Code Policies

State Rank

1.60

46

1.60
46

The Speech Code ranking is based on the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education’s (FIRE) Spotlight Database, which assigns a “red light,” “yellow light,” or “green light” rating to institutions based on the extent to which their policies restrict free speech. To calculate a state’s average, the Speech Code ranking converts FIRE’s ratings to numerical values (1= “red light,” clear and substantially restrictive; 2= “yellow light,” some limited restrictions; 3 = “green light,” no serious restrictions). Values are weighted by undergraduate enrollment so that schools that serve a larger percentage of students within the state contribute more to the state’s average. Institutions in ACTA’s survey that are not rated by FIRE are assigned a null rating so as not to affect a state’s average. Moreover, the Speech Code ranking is reflective of institutions’ written policies, not necessarily their practices. Higher rankings correspond with higher average values.

4 Year Graduation Rate

State Rank

47.82

17

47.82
17

The Four-Year Graduation Rate ranking uses data drawn from the NCES’ College Navigator website for first-time, full-time freshmen pursuing bachelor’s degrees. The state ranking is created by averaging each school’s graduation rate weighted by undergraduate enrollment.

Student to Faculty Ratio

State Rank

18.10

40

18.10
40

The Student-to-Faculty Ratio is calculated using what institutions report to IPEDS as their “student-to-faculty ratio,” defined as “total FTE students not in graduate or professional programs divided by total FTE instructional staff not teaching in graduate or professional programs.” This ratio is weighted by each school’s full-time undergraduate student population, calculated as all full-time undergraduate students and 1/3 of all part-time undergraduate students. Higher rankings correspond with lower ratios (fewer students for each faculty member).

Pell Student Graduation Gap

State Rank

10.18

20

10.18
20

To calculate the Pell Student Graduation Gap, each state’s six-year graduation rate is calculated by dividing the total number of students who received a Bachelor’s degree in six years by the “adjusted cohort,” or the total number of students who began six years ago, as reported to IPEDS. Students who did not graduate for non-academic related reasons (deployed, transferred, or died) were removed. The six-year graduation rate for Pell Grant recipients was calculated the same way, using only students who received the Pell Grant. The Pell Student Graduation Gap is the difference between the state’s six-year graduation rate and the Pell Grant recipients’ six-year graduation rate.

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RESOURCES

In-Depth
Research

State Reports

ACTA’s state report cards provide at-a-glance information in key areas of public interest, including general education requirements, cost and effectiveness, intellectual diversity, and governance structures. Contact ACTA to learn more about commissioning a study for your state’s public higher education system.

WHO WE ARE

Launched in 1995, we are the only organization that works with alumni, donors, trustees, and education leaders across the United States to support liberal arts education, uphold high academic standards, safeguard the free exchange of ideas on campus, and ensure that the next generation receives an intellectually rich, high-quality college education at an affordable price.

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