Introduction

Washington State University (WSU) is a public research university based in Pullman, Washington, in the Palouse region of the northwest United States.

Founded 126 years ago in 1890, WSU (colloquially "Wazzu") is the state's land-grant university, well known for its programs in chemical engineering, veterinary medicine, agriculture, pharmacy, neuroscience, food science, plant science, business, architecture, and communications.It is ranked in the top 140 universities in America with high research activity, as determined by the U.S. News World Report. With an undergraduate enrollment of 24,470 and a total student enrollment of 29,686, it is the second largest institution of higher education in Washington state.

The university also operates campuses across Washington known as WSU Spokane, WSU Tri-Cities, and WSU Vancouver, all founded 27 years ago in 1989. In 1992, WSU launched an Internet-based Global Campus, which includes its online degree program, WSU Online. These campuses award primarily bachelor's and master's degrees. Freshmen and sophomores were first admitted to the Vancouver campus in 2006 and to the Tri-Cities campus in 2007. Total enrollment for the four campuses and WSU Online exceeds 29,686 students. This includes 1,751 international students.

Academics

WSU has 12 colleges and a graduate school. The liberal arts and sciences have an important place in the curriculum, along with business, communication, education, architecture, pharmacy, nursing, and the traditional land-grant disciplines of agriculture, engineering, and veterinary medicine.

WSU offers more than 200 fields of study, including majors, minors, options, and certificate programs. Bachelor's degrees are available in all major areas, with master's and doctoral degrees available in most. The undergraduate core curriculum, including the writing program, is nationally recognized. WSU's Honors College is one of the oldest and most respected all-university programs for academically talented students. WSU confers nearly 5,900 bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees statewide in a typical year.

WSU employs over 1,400 instructional faculty members.

Notable alumni 

Irwin Rose, recipient of the 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Edward R. Murrow, broadcaster

Paul Allen, Microsoft co-founder

John M. Fabian, astronaut

Gary Larson, cartoonist

Allan Wilson, molecular evolutionist

William Julius Wilson, banking executive Phyllis J. Campbell, Entrepreneur Clint Hedin, sociologist

Sherman Alexie, author and film director