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Presidential Search Washington State University Overview

University Overview

Mission: Transforming Lives

Founded as the people’s university in 1890, Washington State University fulfills that commitment by transforming lives through education, research, and community outreach. During 2015-16, the University is celebrating 125 years of delivering life-changing knowledge and discoveries to citizens across the state, region, nation, and around the world.

The state’s only land-grant institution and one of two public research universities, WSU provides a world-class education to nearly 30,000 students through its multi-campus, statewide locations and online. The University strives to ensure that higher education is accessible at an affordable cost—a decades-long WSU commitment to the state’s citizens.

The University offers more than 200 undergraduate fields of study and 127 graduate and professional degree programs. Many academic programs win recognition nationally for excellence.

WSU is one of just 108 public and private universities in the United States—out of more than 4,500—singled out for its “very high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University’s research agenda is focused on addressing challenges in health, sustainability, smart systems, national security, and opportunity and equity.

WSU is a major driver of Washington’s economy, partnering with many of the state’s leading industries, including agribusiness, aerospace, health care, software, and construction. The University is responsible for nearly 20,600 jobs statewide and generates an overall economic impact of more than $3.3 billion annually.

The institution’s operating budget expenditures total nearly $2 billion annually.

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