SPU Facts
President
Philip W. Eaton
Mission
Seattle Pacific University seeks to be a premier Christian university fully committed to engaging the culture and changing the world by graduating people of competence and character, becoming people of wisdom, and modeling grace-filled community.
Denominational Affiliation
SPU is a private university founded in 1891 by the Free Methodist Church of North America. Students and faculty represent more than 50 different Christian denominations.
Location
SPU's 43-acre city campus is located in a residential neighborhood on the north slope of Queen Anne Hill, only 10 minutes from the heart of downtown Seattle. SPU also owns and operates a wilderness campus and field station on Blakely Island, and a seaside campus/retreat facility on Whidbey Island.
Enrollment
(Statistics are based on Autumn Quarter 2011)
Total enrollment: 4,167
Undergraduate enrollment: 3,194
Post-baccalaureate enrollment: 24
Graduate enrollment: 949
(Summer 2011)
Continuing education enrollment: 3,712
Academic Programs Offered
Undergraduate majors: 61
Undergraduate minors: 53
Undergraduate concentrations: 39
Master's degree programs: 15
Master's concentrations: 34
Doctoral degree programs: 5
Graduate certificates: 8
Students
(undergraduate through doctorate)
Average Age of students
Undergraduate: 21
Post-baccalaureate: 34
Master's: 32
Doctoral: 33
Gender
Men: 32%
Women: 68%
Student-Faculty Ratio
14:1 (based on Common Data Set definition)
Undergraduate Information
Average High School GPA
Entering freshmen: 3.59
Entering transfers: 3.20
Average SAT Scores of Entering Freshmen
National average: 1012
Washington state average: 1052
SPU average: 1149
Class Size
77 percent of Autumn Quarter 2011 undergraduate classes had enrollments of 30 or less.
Ethnic Diversity
26% (undergraduate ethnic minority students)
Retention Rate
85% (based on first-year persistence)
Six-year Graduation Rate
76% (reported Autumn 2011)
Top 10 Undergraduate Programs
By number of students enrolled Autumn Quarter and accepted into a major:
- Psychology
- Business Administration
- Nursing
- Communication
- English
- Integrated Studies
- Political Science
- Physiology
- Biology
- Sociology
For additional facts about Seattle Pacific, visit Information and Data Management.
You can also review SPU financial statements and the SPU Facts archive.

