ENROLLMENT
Full-time:
809 men/883 women
Part-time:
7 men/11 women

FRESHMAN ADMISSION
PROFILE
Number who applied:
2,093
Number accepted:
1,728
Number enrolled:
508
Average SAT scores:
Middle 50%: V 540-650 M 520-650
Average ACT score:
Middle 50%: 23-28
Average GPA:
3.4 wt
Freshman retention rate:
87%

2006-2007 COSTS:
Comprehensive Fee:
$36,290

FINANCIAL AID:
Freshmen receiving aid:
85%
Average financial aid package:
$18,000

FACULTY:
Full-time:
134
Part-time:
41
Ph.D.:
96%
Student-faculty ratio:
11.5:1

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The College of Wooster

College Description
From its founding, The College of Wooster has aimed to be one of the nation's premier colleges. Throughout its 132-year history, Wooster has consistently met this goal of national excellence and has earned the reputation as a leader in educating men and women who make a difference in all areas of society. Wooster has always been an innovator. We were one of America's first co-educational colleges, the first to award a Ph.D. to a woman, and an early advocate of undergraduate research. African-American and international students have been an integral part of our campus community since the 1890's. For almost 50 years, a senior Independent Study tutorial has been the centerpiece of Wooster's curriculum. Wooster is one of the very few colleges in the nation that asks every senior to design and complete an original project. The Independent Study program sets Wooster apart and consistently draws praise for fostering creativity, resourcefulness, and self-reliance.

Academic Life
At Wooster, we have faith in our students' ability to make decisions about their education, and we give them plenty of opportunity to make their own choices. We also believe students must gain a foundation of knowledge and develop an appreciation of how various fields relate before they can benefit from a more personalized approach. Our curriculum is designed with two complementary goals — to provide our students with a foundation of knowledge and to offer freedom to take advantage of that foundation. The First-Year Seminar in Critical Inquiry provides a foundation of the liberal arts. Each section of the seminar has a different topic, but all will emphasize critical thinking. The curriculum allows students to choose from more than 700 courses in 39 majors and programs which provide remarkable depth to the academic program. Over four years, students are required to take courses in the social sciences, the natural sciences, and the humanities to ensure a truly broad-based education. The Senior Independent Study project is the ultimate freedom to learn. Students choose the subject, do the research, and make mid-course corrections throughout the process. Once they have finished, they are experts in a segment of their chosen subject. Few colleges give students this kind of freedom. Wooster operates on a semester system.

Campus Life
Wooster's heritage includes civility and warmth. We encourage an environment where students care about each other. The campus atmosphere is open and welcoming. As a residential college, Wooster has a rich co-curricular program. There are more than 70 different student organizations on our campus, including local fraternities (sections) and sororities (clubs). Students participate on committees with faculty and administrators to help make policy decisions in all areas of campus life. Student publications include a weekly newspaper and a national literary magazine. Musical organizations are plentiful and are open to everyone; non-music majors are not merely accepted, they are encouraged to participate. The Wooster Chorus and the Scot Marching Band tour annually in addition to giving on-campus performance. The Wooster Symphony Orchestra and the Choral Union include townspeople, faculty, and students. There is a jazz ensemble, a gospel choir, and other ensembles. The Department of Theatre produces a full schedule of stage and workshop performances. The variety of on-campus housing opportunities includes a series of "program houses," small housing units on the campus where groups of students participating together in volunteer programs live. The Wooster Volunteer Network encompasses 600 students who volunteer their time and their talents on the campus and in the community every semester. Our nationally-recognized program of volunteer service is one of the most active on any college campus.

Facilities and Resources
Wooster's wooded 350-acre campus sits on a hill overlooking the city of Wooster and the Killbuck Valley beyond. With 37 major buildings, the old and the new blend a sense of tradition with modern facilities. The newest campus facilities include two residence halls, two library buildings, and an art building. Luce Residence Hall, built in 1990, was designed to combine the College's residence and academic life in unique ways through the presence of a language laboratory, computer and seminar rooms, and other common space. Kenarden Lodge was the oldest residence hall on the campus but was remodeled and, like Luce, now features all suites, a computer room, meeting rooms, and a large central lounge. The Flo K. Gault Library for Independent Study opened in 1995 and features 280 Independent Study carrels, each of which is wired to the campus computer network. The Timken Science Library opened in the fall of 1998 and combines the natural science collections. Andrews Library has a collection of more than a quarter of a million books and 600,000 periodicals and other items. The spacious, modern Scheide Music Center features a 300-seat recital hall and individual practice rooms. Freedlander Theatre has a 400-seat thrust proscenium theatre with stage lift and costume and dressing rooms as well as an experimental theatre. The science facilities feature such major instruments as a scanning electron microscope, molecular modeling equipment, X-ray diffractometer, and a differential scanning calorimeter. Wooster is among the leaders in integrating computing into the liberal arts environment, and two unusual computer seminar rooms are used extensively. A new fitness center has just been completed in the Armington Physical Education Center, and the College features its own nine-hole golf course.

Athletics/Sports
Athletics play an important role at Wooster. Here, too, Wooster boasts the blend of innovation and tradition. The innovation is most evident in the North Coast Athletic Conference to which the College belongs. The eight-member NCAC was the first conference in the nation designed for men's and women's equal participation from its inception. As for evidence of a winning tradition, the College has captured five NCAC All-Sports Trophies in the 18-year existence of the conference, as well as numerous teams and individuals advancing into national competition in several sports each year. Wooster teams which have competed in the NCAA Division III National Tournament in recent years are men's basketball, baseball, field hockey, women's soccer, men's soccer, men's swimming, women's swimming and diving, women's cross country and women's track (indoor and outdoor).

Financial Aid
Wooster seeks to support students who have financial need as part of its tradition of encouraging academic excellence and maintaining a widely diverse student body. Need is met through grants (which the student does not repay), work on campus (for which the students are paid an hourly wage), and loans (which are repaid at low rates of interest). Last year, more than 85 percent of Wooster students received financial aid. To apply for need-based financial aid at Wooster, all applicants should complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and the Wooster aid application which is bound into the application for admission. Regular Decision candidates should complete these forms as soon as possible after Jan. 1 of the year in which they are applying. Wooster also features a variety of merit scholarships, which are awarded on a competitive basis.

Admission Requirements
As a selective institution, Wooster admits students whose academic records and personal qualities suggest promise and success over four years of college. Wooster's goal in the admissions process is to come to know the distinctive strengths and talents that a student will bring to Wooster. In selecting a class of approximately 500 students from more than 2,000 applicants, Wooster emphasizes the rigor of the candidate's curriculum, scholastic performances, recommendations, standardized test scores (either SAT or ACT), extracurricular achievements, and those other qualities that suggest the ability to succeed in a demanding academic environment. The application for admission consists of the Wooster application form, a personal essay, a secondary school transcript, SAT I and/or ACT scores, the guidance counselor's report, and a recommendation from a teacher in an academic subject. Wooster accepts the Common Application Form and offers electronic applications through the College's home page on the World Wide Web (www.wooster.edu). Early Decision candidates must submit an application no later than December 1. A second option for Early Decision has a Jan. 15 application deadline. Regular Decision applications are due by Feb. 15 (January 15 to be considered for competitive merit awards).

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