I am not going to tell you whether it is “good” or “bad.” Those words are not useful here. I am going to show you what the official data say about it, number by number, so that you, with what you know about your child and your family, can decide how much weight to give it.
Who This University Is
University of Washington-Bothell Campus is public, four-year, and offers programs through the master’s level as the highest level it reports. In IPEDS terms, it is an institution that awards degrees primarily at the bachelor’s level or above. That does not mean every major has a connected graduate program: if your child has a specific master’s degree in mind, that path must be confirmed program by program, not assumed from the school’s name.
Carnegie also describes it as primarily nonresidential. This has a precise technical definition: either fewer than 25 out of every 100 undergraduate students live in institution-provided housing, or fewer than half attend full time. The data do not clarify which of the two conditions applies here, and this also does not mean that residence halls do not exist—in fact, they do, as you will see later. But if your child were considering living at home and commuting every day, this is a real clue: it is worth driving the route on a weekday, at the exact time of their classes, before assuming the commute is manageable. A map almost never tells the whole truth about traffic.
One more fact about its identity: it does not have any of three federal designations—it is not a historically Black college or university, it is not a tribal college or university, and it is not a land-grant institution. These are three separate answers, and none tells you how your child will feel on that campus or which communities are active there. Those questions should be asked directly: what cultural centers exist today, which student organizations are active, and, better yet, whether you can speak with someone who already studies there.
And there is one part of this school’s story worth mentioning if your child is coming from another university: Carnegie places it among institutions that receive many transfer students. If that is your child’s path, ask in writing, before enrollment, which courses will count and which will not. The label “receives many transfer students” says nothing about how many credits are lost in the transition—that is determined by each individual evaluation.
A Midsize School, With More Men Than Women
In the official fall count, University of Washington-Bothell Campus had 5,809 students enrolled: 5,248 undergraduates and 561 graduate students. It is neither a small school nor a huge one—it falls within the range of 5,000 to 9,999, right in the middle compared with similar schools. Above all, it is a school focused on undergraduate education.
Out of every 100 undergraduate students, 44 are women—there are more men than women in the classrooms. Students ages 25 to 64 are a minority: 13 out of every 100. As for ethnic composition, 11 out of every 100 undergraduate students are Hispanic or Latino. It is a small minority, although compared with the other 519 selective public schools of this same type, it ranks above the midpoint of the group. That comparison has an important limitation: it is constructed by school type, not by state, so it does not account for Washington’s own demographic composition. If your family is Latino, it is worth asking during the visit which student group, cultural center, or person in the admissions office speaks Spanish and can guide your child.
One more number helps you understand the academic load your child may encounter in the classroom: there are 21 students for every full-time-equivalent faculty member. That is a high ratio, in the top quartile compared with similar schools. Be careful: this is not class size. It is an aggregate ratio for the entire school. If first-year class size matters to your child, that information must be requested separately, directly from the university.
How the Academic Calendar Works and What the University Does With Prior Credits
Here the year is organized into quarters: three terms of about 12 weeks, with the possibility of a fourth term in the summer. If your child is coming from a school that uses semesters, or if they plan to transfer to another institution later, this truly matters: academic calendars do not always align, and you need to verify in writing how each credit converts from one system to the other.
The university reports that it accepts credit from AP exams and military training, but it did not check the box for credit for life experience. Accepting AP does not mean that every score counts or that the credit automatically applies to your child’s major. Before you calculate how much time or money might be saved, request the equivalency evaluation in writing.
It also confirmed that it does not enroll high school students in college courses for credit—so if your child wants to earn college credits while still in high school, this particular door does not appear to be open here.
What You Can Study
In a recent year, the university awarded 1,651 bachelor’s degrees across 17 fields of study. None accounts for the bulk of them: the largest, business and management, accounted for 24 out of every 100 degrees, but no other field exceeds it. The offerings are distributed across fields, although compared with similar schools, it falls in the quartile with the fewest fields of study represented in its reported detail. This counts degrees, not people—a single student with a double major may appear more than once, and it does not necessarily reflect the complete current catalog.
It is also worth knowing which structured academic pathways the institution reports: study abroad, cocurricular undergraduate research, a complete program that can be taken only in the evenings or on weekends, and several pathways related to teacher certification, including state approval for initial certification. The fact that these opportunities appear in the report does not tell you how they work in practice or whether they fit what your child wants—that must be asked directly of the program.
Getting In: What They Require and How Likely a Yes Is
Let’s start with the simplest point: 92 out of every 100 first-time applicants were offered admission in the most recent cycle. That is a high acceptance rate, on the more accessible side compared with similar schools. But “accessible” does not mean “without requirements.”
This university does not have open admission. Of the nine considerations it reviews, it marks five as required: the high school record, GPA, completion of the required college-preparatory curriculum, the personal essay, and the English proficiency exam for applicants to whom it applies. Put plainly, that means your child has to write an essay. It is not optional here. Have them start it in the summer, not during the week of the deadline—the first draft is never the one that gets submitted. The published application fee is $60.
The SAT and ACT are not required. If your child submits them, they are considered; if not, the application remains valid. In practice, almost no one submits them: only 4 out of every 100 enrolled students submitted SAT scores, and among them, the middle half scored between 560 and 700 in reading and writing and between 610 and 770 in mathematics. Those numbers are from students who enrolled and chose to submit their scores—they are not a minimum your child needs to reach, nor a guarantee if they do.
Now, here is something many families overlook: being accepted is not the same as deciding to attend. Out of every 100 students this university admitted, only 27 ultimately enrolled. The other 73 had the acceptance letter in hand and chose another path. That is a relatively high enrollment yield compared with similar schools, but the point for your family is different: receiving a yes is only the first step. When letters arrive from several universities, place them side by side and compare net price, major, and distance before the deposit deadline. The acceptance rate of 92 out of every 100 is not what decides that comparison.
Finally, regarding students who arrive as transfers: in the most recent fall, 540 undergraduate students entered here after studying at another institution. That is a relatively high number compared with similar schools. What is not reported is how many leave this university for another one—that field is blank. Its absence does not mean that no one transfers; it means this report cannot tell you.
The Sticker Price and the Gap Between Residents and Nonresidents
Here is one of the numbers that matters most. For the 2023–24 year, the total cost of attendance—tuition, fees, housing, food, books, and other estimated expenses—was $34,684 for a student paying the Washington resident rate and living on campus. For someone from outside the state, that same budget rises to $64,038.
Broken down, it was $12,559 in tuition and fees for residents ($41,913 for nonresidents), $17,115 for on-campus housing and food, and $900 for books and supplies.
The difference between paying as a resident and paying as a nonresident is $29,354 per year. That is not a minor detail—it is nearly the full price of another university. If your family does not live in Washington, this is the first thing you need to understand before falling in love with the rest of the profile: ask the institution directly what requirements it uses to determine residency and when they apply, because the rules are not the same everywhere.
And compared with other schools of its type, this published cost at the resident rate already falls among the highest in the group. It is important to state this plainly: the sticker price here is not low, even for residents.
What Each Family Actually Pays, Based on Income
At University of Washington-Bothell Campus, among 96 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid, paid the in-state or in-district rate, and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $5,081. Among 84 students from the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $8,059; among 76 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $23,389. For dependent students, the income band combines their parents’ income with their own.
There is a difference of $18,308 between the average for the lowest-income band (96 students) and the average for the highest-income band (76 students). These are group averages, not a prediction of your family’s price. Among first-year students who received any grant or scholarship aid, the average was $10,013.
Among the 519 schools of the same type and control included in this census that reported this figure with the same period coverage, this one falls in the least expensive quartile for the lowest-income families after grants and scholarships are subtracted. That does not mean it will be inexpensive for your family. It is a data point that matters when you build the list of schools to apply to.
Because the price changes so much from one income band to another, identifying yours correctly comes first. The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at public institutions, they use the in-state or in-district rate. The overall average after grants and scholarships, when shown, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional grants or scholarships. The financial aid letter you receive is what matters most.
Grants, Pell, and Loans: How Aid Is Distributed
Here is a truth worth stating plainly: fewer than half of students receive grant or scholarship aid. Exactly 48 out of every 100 degree-seeking students received some grant or scholarship aid that does not have to be repaid. The other 52 received none of that aid. Compared with similar schools, this university falls in the quartile where grant or scholarship aid reaches fewer students. Among those who did receive it, the annual average was $15,255.
The federal Pell Grant, intended for low-income families, reached 29 out of every 100 students.
What does this mean for you? At this school, you need to pursue aid actively. It does not come automatically to most students. That does not predict what your child will be offered—but it does tell you that it is worth entering this process prepared, knowing that an aid package can look large on paper while consisting substantially of loans rather than gift aid. Always review that distinction when the offer arrives.
As for loans, only 20 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal loan in the most recent academic year. Most did not take out a federal loan that year. Compared with similar schools, students here rely on loans less than at almost all of them—nine out of ten similar schools had a higher proportion. Among those who did take out a loan, the average amount for the year was $5,640.
That low borrowing figure is a real signal and is worth noting. But it has limits you should not lose sight of: it does not include Parent PLUS loans signed by parents, it does not include debt from banks or credit cards, and it is not the cumulative debt with which a student graduates—that would require adding several years together, and that number is not in this report. The fact that a student received a loan also does not mean it was enough to cover the full year; it only means that money was lent to the student.
The institution also reports a prepaid tuition plan and participation in a Promise program as available mechanisms for paying or managing tuition.
Campus Life: Housing, Sports, and Everything Else
University of Washington-Bothell Campus does have its own housing, although it is not required for all first-time students—the institution explicitly said it was not. The reported maximum capacity is 380 students. It also offers meal plans with a fixed number of meals per week. The existence of housing does not guarantee an available bed: ask in writing for the rate for the year, the application deadline, and whether a place is guaranteed or applicants are placed on a waiting list.
Regarding ROTC, the university marked all three branches—Army, Navy, and Air Force, plus the Marine Corps option within Navy. Marking all three is not common: of the 3,012 universities in this directory, only 135 do so. But be careful: a marked box does not confirm that the program is offered on this specific campus, nor does it confirm available places or scholarships. Ask about each by name, directly.
Regarding intercollegiate athletics, the school does not report membership in any national athletic association—not NCAA, not NAIA, and not any other association on the list. This record neither confirms nor rules out the existence of teams; if sports are important to your child, confirm this directly with the school.
As for distance education, the university offers it at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, but it is the exception, not the rule: only 2 out of every 100 undergraduate students were taking all their classes remotely. It does not report a complete undergraduate program that can be finished entirely online.
The library operates with hired staff, annual spending above the threshold tracked by the government, physical and digital materials, and interlibrary lending. Among the services and supports the institution reports are combined academic and career counseling, employment services, a point of contact for veterans and military students, a veterans’ student organization, and a webpage for disability services. The fact that these services are reported does not say how effective they are or what they feel like in practice—that should be asked during the visit.
Who Stays and Who Finishes
Here we come to the numbers many families most want to know, and also the ones that require the most care when reading them.
Of the cohort of full-time students who entered for the first time in the fall of 2022, 86 out of every 100 were still enrolled here or had graduated one year later. That is high retention, in the upper part of the range compared with similar schools. Among part-time students from that same fall, the figure was lower: 76 out of every 100. Importantly, this number combines “still enrolled” with “already graduated” into a single figure—it does not tell you how many of those 86 already have a credential and how many are still on the way.
Regarding graduation, of the 771 students who began a full-time bachelor’s degree program in 2017, 526 had graduated six years later. That is 68 out of every 100—a high proportion, in the top quartile compared with similar schools. But there is one figure every family should note carefully: at four years, the timeframe most families budget for, the figure is only 50 out of every 100. There is a difference of 18 points between year four and year six. In practical terms, that means one out of every five students who does finish needs an additional year—with the corresponding additional cost of tuition, housing, and food. Before committing, ask in writing how long the specific program that interests your child typically takes and how required courses are scheduled. That one-year gap is not a minor detail in a family budget.
There is a third, broader measure: following a complete cohort of students who entered in 2015-16—both first-time students and those with prior experience, attending full time and part time—after eight years, 80 out of every 100 had earned some degree or certificate from this school. Among those who received a Pell Grant, the figure was 79 out of every 100—virtually the same. And within that broad cohort, the subcohort of first-time, full-time students had a lower outcome: 68 out of every 100, twelve points below the overall group. This does not predict your child’s outcome—it describes a cohort that entered years ago, under conditions that may have changed. It is worth asking directly about current program supports and the outcomes of more recent cohorts.
Putting the Pieces Together
You now know a real part of University of Washington-Bothell Campus: a midsize public university in a Seattle suburb, with relatively accessible admission but an essay requirement, with a high sticker price—especially for someone who is not a Washington resident—but with a notably lower net price for low-income families, with less grant and scholarship aid available than at other similar schools but also less reliance on loans, and with solid six-year graduation rates that look different if your family’s budget covers only four years.
None of these numbers decides for you. They are the ground you can stand on to think clearly. Now it is up to you to put this piece together with what your child wants to study, what they have already built in high school, and what your family can and is willing to pay. If you live outside Washington, the price gap between residents and nonresidents deserves a separate conversation before your child falls in love with the place. If your family income is low, the net price observed here is a signal worth taking seriously when building the list. And if four years is your actual budget limit, ask directly about the typical length of the program that interests your child.
A plan emerges from that combination—the university, your child, and your family. This article gives you only one of those three pieces. You have the other two.
Source note: The information in this article comes from official data reported by University of Washington-Bothell Campus to the U.S. Department of Education’s IPEDS system, corresponding primarily to the 2023 cycle and to cohorts from prior years as indicated in each section. Best College Aid does not represent University of Washington-Bothell Campus or any government agency; this piece is an independent informational resource.