Worcester Polytechnic Institute: Statistics

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Position Category
#717 of 14,131 In the World
#238 of 2,597 In North America
#211 of 2,496 In the United States
#11 of 88 In Massachusetts
#2 of 7 In Worcester
#66 of 1,053 For Firefighting and Fire Science
Top50% For 143 other topics
Subject rankings

Quick Review

Acceptance rate
57%
Avg. cost to attend
$46,876 /y
Aid receiving
97%
Undergraduates
5,246
Graduates
2,062
Male:Female Ratio
64:36
Control
Private
not-for-profit
Highest Degree
Doctor's degree
Website
www.wpi.edu

Worcester Polytechnic Institute Acceptance rate and admissions statistics

Worcester Polytechnic Institute has an acceptance rate of 57% and is among the top 19% of the most difficult universities to gain admission to in the United States. The university reports the admission statistics without distinguishing between local and international students.

Total Men Women
Acceptance Rate 57% 51% 74%
Applicants 11,599 8,247 3,352
Admissions 6,667 4,180 2,487
Freshmen enrolled full time 1,354 931 423

729 students enrolled in some distance education courses.

806 enrolled exclusively in distance education.

Admissions requirements

College-preparatory program Required
Recommendations Required
Secondary school record Required
TOEFL Required
Secondary school GPA Considered but not required
Secondary school rank Considered but not required
Formal demonstration of competencies Neither required nor recommended
Other Tests Neither required nor recommended
SAT/ACT Neither required nor recommended

Enrollment demographics by race or ethnicity

White 4233 (58%)
Nonresident Alien 1100 (15%)
Asian 739 (10%)
Hispanic 567 (8%)
Two or more races 227 (3%)
Race or Ethnicity unknown 221 (3%)
Black or African American 217 (3%)
Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander 2 (0%)
American Indian or Alaska Native 2 (0%)

Costs per year: Tuition, Housing, Fees

The average net cost to attend Worcester Polytechnic Institute is $46,876 per year, calculated as the sum of the average cost of tuition, room and board, books, and supplies, reduced by the amount of average financial aid received.

The final cost of attendance varies for each student based on household income, residency, program, and other factors.

Net average cost to attend
$46,876/year
Average aid awarded
$27,059
Students receiving aid
97%

Average costs by household income

<$30K $30,910
$30-48K $30,348
$48-75K $35,916
$75-110K $42,582
$110K+ $48,017

Tuition and fees

UndergraduatesGraduates
Tuition in-district $56,000$28,980
Tuition in-state $56,000$28,980
Tuition out-of-state $56,000$28,980
Fee in-district $1,096$60
Fee in-state $1,096$60
Fee out-of-state $1,096$60

Room and board costs

Dormitory capacity 2,369
Combined charge for room and board $16,688
Room charge $9,482
Meal charge $7,206

Worcester Polytechnic Institute majors

Worcester Polytechnic Institute has granted 1,197 bachelor's degrees across 32 programs, 684 master's across 38 programs, and 69 doctorate degrees across 21 programs. Below is a table with majors that lead to degrees at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Major Bachelor Master Doctoral
Mechanical Engineering 238 96 5
Computer Science 183 56 4
Electrical and Electronics Engineering 78 70 10
Bioengineering and Biomedical Engineering 130 16 4
Mechatronics, Robotics, and Automation Engineering 74 48 2
Chemical Engineering 92 19 3
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical & Space Engineering, General 64 32 1
Data Science, General 10 42 10
Civil Engineering, General 53 2 2
Biology & Biological Sciences, General 46 4 1
Business & Commerce, General 7 42
Business Administration and Management, General 41 3
Multi- & Interdisciplinary Studies, Other 5 28
Physics, General 27 4 2
Systems Engineering 29 1
Materials Engineering 18 10
Biochemistry 20 4 1
Biotechnology 25
Mathematics, General 22 3
Engineering, Other 22 2
Environmental & Environmental Health Engineering 11 10
Industrial Engineering 21
Game and Interactive Media Design 20
Computer Software and Media Applications, Other 9 7
Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology, Other 12 3
Chemistry, General 11 1 2
Architectural Engineering 13
Engineering & Industrial Management 13
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods, Other 11
Psychology, General 11
Management Information Systems, General 9
Manufacturing Engineering 8 1
Statistics, General 7 1
Business Analytics 7
Mathematics and Statistics, Other 7
Mathematics, Other 7
Human Computer Interaction 4
Information Technology 4
Educational & Instructional Technology 2 1
Engineering Physics & Applied Physics 3
Management Science 3
Marketing, Other 3
Applied Mathematics, General 2
Applied Mathematics, Other 2
Computer and Information Systems Security & Auditing & Information Assurance 2
Neuroscience 2
Science, Technology and Society 2
Sustainability Studies 2
Technical and Scientific Communication 2
Econometrics and Quantitative Economics 1
Humanities & Humanistic Studies 1
Physics, Other 1
Grand Total 1,197 684 69

Worcester Polytechnic Institute has a graduation rate of 89%, which is among the 5% highest for universities in the US.

Total Men Women
Graduation rate 89% 88% 91%
  • Full-time retention rate - 91%

Publications & Citations

Worcester Polytechnic Institute is a world-class research university with 18,552 scientific papers published and 383,157 citations received. The research profile covers a range of fields, including Engineering, Physics, Computer Science, Chemistry, Quantum and Particle physics, Biology, Environmental Science, Liberal Arts & Social Sciences, Materials Science, and Mathematics.

Publications
18,552
Citations
383,157

Publication / Citation count by topic

Engineering
13,399 / 288,326
Physics
11,359 / 236,937
Computer Science
10,079 / 210,165
Chemistry
8,639 / 185,307
Quantum and Particle physics
8,235 / 178,270
Biology
7,387 / 170,696
Environmental Science
7,155 / 168,306
Liberal Arts & Social Sciences
7,045 / 154,497
Materials Science
6,134 / 133,061
Mathematics
5,470 / 128,795
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
5,251 / 97,120
Medicine
4,466 / 87,281
Organic Chemistry
4,431 / 108,817
Business
3,995 / 94,252
Statistics
3,738 / 87,226
Electrical Engineering
3,717 / 80,266
Geology
3,696 / 85,257
Geography and Cartography
3,629 / 78,906
Philosophy
3,494 / 71,217
Optical Engineering
3,334 / 69,406
Political Science
3,284 / 80,745
Psychology
3,253 / 67,278
Law
3,152 / 78,608
Biochemistry
3,131 / 80,289
Genetics
2,767 / 63,431
Mechanical Engineering
2,752 / 50,428
Telecommunications
2,733 / 50,494
Ecology
2,520 / 66,493
Management
2,360 / 51,694
Computer Networking
2,359 / 55,011
Machine Learning
2,340 / 47,363
Economics
2,171 / 50,038
Metallurgical Engineering
2,153 / 50,818
Sociology
2,069 / 45,634
Paleontology
1,947 / 49,015
Computer Vision
1,942 / 33,601
History
1,909 / 41,061
Art & Design
1,811 / 29,285
Linguistics
1,811 / 32,579
Physical chemistry
1,726 / 38,592

Annual publication & citation counts

Year Publications Citations
1991 148 893
1992 196 1043
1993 202 1108
1994 198 1292
1995 173 1374
1996 194 1499
1997 185 1676
1998 217 1864
1999 232 2139
2000 286 2379
2001 300 2517
2002 554 4632
2003 479 4371
2004 409 4984
2005 449 5845
2006 469 6930
2007 425 7586
2008 441 8391
2009 519 9247
2010 525 10445
2011 514 11919
2012 529 13297
2013 635 15479
2014 741 16991
2015 734 17873
2016 719 18581
2017 791 18817
2018 784 21902
2019 891 24474
2020 1053 28399
2021 950 33153
2022 863 34148
2023 892 34149
Academic rankings

Worcester Polytechnic Institute alumni

  1. Dean Kamen

    Dean Kamen
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1951-.. (age 73)
    Occupations
    inventorentrepreneur
    Biography

    Dean Lawrence Kamen is an American engineer, inventor, and businessman. He is known for his invention of the Segway and iBOT, as well as founding the non-profit organization FIRST with Woodie Flowers. Kamen holds over 1,000 patents.

  2. Robert H. Goddard

    Robert H. Goddard
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1882-1945 (aged 63)
    Occupations
    aerospace engineerastronomerphysicistinventorengineer
    Biography

    Robert Hutchings Goddard was an American engineer, professor, physicist, and inventor who is credited with creating and building the world's first liquid-fueled rocket, which was successfully launched on March 16, 1926. By 1915 his pioneering work had dramatically improved the efficiency of the solid-fueled rocket, signaling the era of the modern rocket and innovation. He and his team launched 34 rockets between 1926 and 1941, achieving altitudes as high as 2.6 km (1.6 mi) and speeds as fast as 885 km/h (550 mph).

  3. J. Geils

    J. Geils
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1946-2017 (aged 71)
    Occupations
    guitaristjazz guitarist
    Biography

    John Warren Geils Jr., known professionally as J. Geils or Jay Geils, was an American guitarist. He was known as the leader of The J. Geils Band.

  4. Todd Akin

    Todd Akin
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1947-2021 (aged 74)
    Enrolled in Worcester Polytechnic Institute
    In 1971 graduated with Bachelor of Science
    Occupations
    politician
    Biography

    William Todd Akin was an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Missouri's 2nd congressional district from 2001 to 2013. He was a member of the Republican Party. Born in New York City, Akin grew up in the Greater St. Louis area. After receiving his bachelor's degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts, Akin served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and worked in the computer and steel industries. In 1988, he was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives. He served in the state house until 2000, when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, in which he served until 2013.

All 38 notable alumni

General info

Alternative names WPI
Founded 1865
Motto Lehr und Kunst
Theory and Practice
Colors crimson, grey
Academic calendar August to May (August - October; October-December; January-March; March-May). Also Summer Session (June-July)
Total FTE staff 1,287
Carnegie classification Doctoral Universities: Higher Research Activity

Location and contacts

Address 100 Institute Road
Worcester, Massachusetts, 01609-2280
United States
City population 207,000
Phone 5088315000

Worcester Polytechnic Institute in social media