Washington and Lee Welcomes the Class of 2029

Washington and Lee Welcomes the Class of 2029 Hailing from 42 states and 35 countries, the Class of 2029 represents an impressive range of accomplishments, interests and backgrounds.

Office of Communications and Public Affairs
September 9, 2025

Washington and Lee University proudly welcomed 499 new first-year and four transfer undergraduate students to campus in August. The first-year students moved into residence halls, said goodbye to parents and families, and headed off to begin their Leading Edge orientation activities, where they were introduced to the campus community through shared, meaningful experiences designed to help them forge new friendships, acclimate to college life and begin developing the necessary skills to flourish at W&L.

"The Class of 2029 includes students from 408 different secondary schools who demonstrate a commitment to leadership and community engagement, and whose curiosity and ambition stood out among the 8,969 applications we received this year," said Vice President for Admissions and Financial Aid Sally Stone Richmond. Twenty-two percent of the class are domestic students of color, 11% are the first generation in their family to attend college, and 11% are children of W&L alumni.

The class represents a pool of well-rounded and academically gifted leaders, including 50 Johnson Scholars comprising 10% of the class and 38 QuestBridge finalists. W&L continues to recruit a geographically diverse class with 35 countries of origin and 42 U.S. states and territories represented. Twenty-five languages are spoken at home among members of this class, and students hailing from rural areas comprise 15% of the class.

"The university's commitment to making a W&L education accessible to students from all financial backgrounds reached new heights when recruiting the Class of 2029," said Richmond. "Because of the incredible generosity of Bill Miller '72, this was our first year as a need-blind admissions operation. We are grateful to have the opportunity to focus solely on a student's talent when making our admissions decisions and to ensure a student's financial circumstances do not prevent them from attending W&L."

Sixty-three percent of the class is receiving W&L grant assistance, and the average need and/or merit-based institutional award is $71,792. In addition, 15% of this year's class are federal Pell Grant recipients, reflecting the university's commitment, as a member of the American Talent Initiative, to expanding access and opportunity for talented low- and moderate-income students.

The university's admissions team, through careful, whole-person consideration, recruits, admits and enrolls individuals who will contribute to W&L's vibrant community and benefit from the distinct and personalized education the university offers.

"It has been such a pleasure to get to know these students during the admissions process, and we look forward to seeing each of them find their home here at W&L," said Richmond. "We are fortunate to welcome such impressive students to campus every year, looking to be challenged and inspired by the university's rigorous curriculum and welcoming community. We are grateful to this community, faculty, staff, students and alumni, for investing in W&L and each entering class of new students."

Members of the Class of 2029 have served as honor council members, student body presidents, published authors, state champion athletes and musicians, community servants, editors-in-chief, family translators and Eagle Scouts. They include a Junior Eurovision Song Contest participant, an aviator, a Shakespearean Insult Contest champion, a Swiss alpenhorn player, an interpreter for Afghan refugees, and they have worked as a firefighter, ski school instructor, landscape design consultant, brick mason and ball boy at the U.S. Open.

Learn more about the incoming class here, and take a few moments to meet some members of the Class of 2029 in the video below: