WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON COLLEGE

Washington & Jefferson College (W&J) is a private, selective liberal arts college located in Washington, Pennsylvania. It owes its history to two separate institutions, Washington College and Jefferson College which merged in 1865 but both have a history dating back to the late 1700s having been founded shortly after the American Declaration of Independence. The school has long-been considered a pillar of education in Western Pennsylvania and continues that tradition today, focussed exclusively on a broad, liberal arts programme at undergraduate level only.

Washington & Jefferson embodies the small liberal arts college ethos which has come to define tertiary education across the Northeastern United States, particularly. The college occupies an intimate site on the outskirts of Washington, a town in Appalachian Pennsylvania, some 30 miles south of Pittsburgh.

The Presidents, as the denizens of W&J are known (so-named for the two Presidents for which the founding colleges take their respective names), undergo instruction in multiple disciplines, ranging from artistic and cultural studies to mathematical and scientific courses. They must undertake a programme of rigorous studies in order to attain a degree from the school and, as such, the college is known as a selective and challenging institution attracting some of the brightest minds in the country. Indeed, the college is regularly ranked amongst the upper tiers of third-level schools in North America. The college has ambitious strategic plans to continue to attract the best students and to compete further against other elite colleges and universities.

That being said, W&J is also well-known for its vibrant student life and athletics programmes, in which it is a competitive Division III school. Washington & Jefferson competes against other prestigious colleges and universities through the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC). Greek life plays a large part in the daily routines of many Presidents as do the various clubs and societies active on campus. Students are even housed with others who share common interests and pursuits.

Washington & Jefferson College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) and is a member of both the Pennsylvania Liberal Arts Consortium (PCLA) and the Annapolis Group of Liberal Arts Colleges.