Scholarship Applications Now Being Accepted

Applications for Worcester State University’s donor-funded scholarships are now being accepted. Get auto-matched to all eligible scholarships for the 2023-24 academic year with one application. Get started…

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About
About

Welcome to
Worcester State
We are a liberal arts and sciences university with a long tradition of academic excellence.
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Worcester State University at a glance.

Our students receive a variety of multi-disciplinary opportunities enabling them to explore their academic interests and prepare for their careers. Our students:

  • Conduct innovative research and develop creative ideas with acclaimed faculty.
  • Engage in service learning and internships in the community.
  • Pursue study away opportunities in the U.S. and abroad.

We prepare our students to take on real-world challenges with portfolios that include critical thinking, teamwork, problem solving, communication, technology, and global awareness skills. They are ready to succeed.

Worcester State University offers 60 undergraduate majors and minors, 29 master’s degrees, post-baccalaureate certificates, and graduate programs, and real-time access to online, noncredit professional training. Our accreditation by the New England Commission on Higher Education, Inc. (NECHE), formerly the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), demonstrates that our liberal arts and sciences curriculum meets or exceeds its criteria for assessment of quality.

Commitment to Academic Excellence

Worcester State University is state-supported, and that puts an excellent undergraduate and graduate education, rooted in the liberal arts and sciences, within reach for so many. Our commitment to academic excellence and affordability earned us the following recognition:

  • We are the only Massachusetts state university to receive the “Best in the Northeast” ranking for 14 consecutive years.
  • We have made The Princeton Review’s list of the nation’s “Best Value Colleges.”

Consistent Leadership Through Turbulent Times

President Barry M. Maloney reflects on 10 years at Worcester State

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Campus Location

The Worcester State University campus is centrally located in Massachusetts about an hour’s drive from Boston and Springfield, Mass. and Providence, R.I. Our 58-acre campus is nestled in the residential northwest side of Worcester—the second largest city in New England and home to 37,000 college students at more than a dozen colleges and universities.

In 1932, the Helen J. Shaughnessy Administration Building housed all the classrooms, labs, faculty and administration offices, gymnasium, library, and assembly hall. Today, the campus features 10 buildings, reflecting our transition from a teacher-training college to a liberal arts and sciences university. Our athletics facilities include John F. Coughlin Field and Rockwood Field. We continue to grow:

  • A fourth residence hall, Sheehan Hall, opened in fall 2014.
  • Our state-of-the-art Wellness Center opened in fall 2016.

Worcester State University is deeply rooted in the greater Worcester community, with students in a variety of liberal arts and sciences programs contributing approximately 161,646 hours in 508 engagement opportunities. Our unique programming—from theatre productions to guest lectures to resource fairs—attracts thousands to our campus annually.

By the Numbers
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149 Student Projects
presented at the Celebration of Scholarship and Creativity
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540 Solar Panels
on the Learning Resource Center
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80+
Undergraduate majors & minors
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39
Graduate programs
Our History
Founded in 1874 as a teacher-training school, Worcester State University has grown to become a traditional liberal arts and sciences university with programs spanning the biomedical sciences, business, humanities, behavioral sciences, the health professions, and, of course, education.
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Worcester State University’s Early Years
Worcester State University was founded as the Worcester Normal School in 1874 as the fifth state-funded normal school in Massachusetts. We were among the dozens of teacher-training schools established during the 19th century. Our first campus was on St. Ann’s Hill in Worcester.
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Becoming Worcester State Teachers College
In 1932, we became Worcester State Teachers College and moved to our present location, which was owned by Worcester inventor and philanthropist George I. Rockwood. Our sole building, the Administration Building, housed classrooms, labs, faculty and offices, gymnasium, library, and assembly hall.
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Transition to a Liberal Arts and Sciences College
By 1963, we had evolved into a liberal arts and sciences college, The Massachusetts Board of Education acknowledged this in 1963 when it voted to drop the word “teachers” and change our name to Worcester State College.
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Recognition as a State University
We became Worcester State University in 2010 when the Massachusetts Legislature voted to grant university status to all Massachusetts state colleges. This recognized the fact that we qualified as university according to the classification of institutions of higher education established by the Carnegie Foundation.
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