Located in downtown Seattle, the University of Washington has been educating students since 1861, and with an annual enrollment total of over 92,000 students, as of 2011, the UW has the largest student population of all colleges in the northwest. The school offers more than 250 different degree programs, over 7,000 undergraduate research opportunities, 500 student organizations, over 70 languages to study and over 4,000 faculty staff members. The school also provides high quality art, music and drama programs as well as innovative science programs that contribute to the discoveries and knowledge base of the scientific community.
Located in central Seattle, Cornish College of the Arts is one of the nation's only private, nonprofit performing and visual arts colleges. Though Cornish is a relatively small school with only 800 students annually enrolled in degree programs, as of 2011, the school is highly respected around the nation and is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With a focus on humanities and sciences, Cornish provides numerous performing arts and visual arts programs, including bachelor's degrees for music and several bachelor's of fine arts degrees for art, design, dance, theater and performance production.
Seattle University is a school that emphasizes and follows the traditions of Jesuit culture and Jesuit education. The curriculum of the school involves three phases. The first phase is called Foundations of Wisdom and focuses on critical thinking skills, academic inquiry and cultural knowledge, with the purpose of enhancing the intellectual development and personal self-awareness of the students. Courses for this phase include composition and argument, literature and historical origins. The second phase, Person in Society, discusses morals, injustice, Catholicism and the responsibilities of human beings while participating in a society. Classes for the second phase include social sciences, philosophy and theology. The third phase, known as Responsibility and Service, trains the students to use the education they have acquired in the school to contribute to society. Some third phase classes include ethics, theology and senior synthesis projects.
Argosy University is a college with campuses dispersed all throughout the U.S., including a campus location in the heart of Seattle. Argosy provides bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, doctoral degrees and professional certificates for a diverse range of educational programs. The school prides itself on informative curricula, innovative resources and experienced, high quality teachers. The programs offered by the school include business, education, criminal justice, psychology, health sciences and liberal arts, and each program contains numerous different degree opportunities that would train and enable students to fulfill successful careers within their particular field.