A Teaching-Focused Institution
Grounded in the liberal arts, The W also offers professional programs and plenty of opportunities for out-of-the-classroom study. Our student-focused approach gives our students the personal attention they need to succeed.
The W prides itself on those close interactions between students and faculty. Our average class size is about 11:1, allowing you to share your knowledge with interested students.
And you won’t find teaching assistants in our classrooms; most of our faculty carry a 4/4 teaching load.
In addition to traditional classrooms, the University also offers a number of undergraduate and graduate programs online, using the Canvas learning platform.
Access to Resources
Fant Memorial Library
John Clayton Fant Memorial Library is located in the heart of campus, on 5th Avenue South. Fant Library has a 26,000 volume reference collection, reference databases on dozens of subjects, and is part of the university inter-library loan program, which means you have access to all of the research materials of all eight public universities in the state.
The University and the State of Mississippi have invested $18 million to expanding Fant Library. The recent renovations doubled the storage space for the library’s collection and study spaces, added a room for the university archives, and a new home for the Kossen Center for Teaching & Learning. The new library includes a robotic storage and retrieval system, ATHENA, the only one of its kind in the state.
Faculty Research
Along with the resources at Fant Memorial Library, the Faculty Senate and the Faculty Research Committee can provide you additional resources for your personal research.
Sponsored Programs
For your larger projects, the Office of Sponsored Programs can assist you in applying for, receiving, and managing grants.
Professional Development
In the last eleven Chronicle of Higher Education’s Great Colleges To Work For surveys, our faculty ranked the University highly in Professional/Career Development Programs and Tenure Clarity and Process, among other categories. The way we see it, if you take great faculty and find ways to help them improve, everyone wins.
Faculty Development Programs
From ways to improve your pedagogy to introducing technology into the classroom, our Faculty Development Programs help you find the edge you need in connecting with your students.
Faculty Promotion and Tenure
There shouldn’t be a mystery surrounding how you can advance your career. We’ve laid out the process and exactly what you need to do in order to receive tenure and move up the ranks in our policy statements. (PS 1303, PS 1304).
The W Leadership Academy
When you are ready to take the next step in your career, The W Leadership Academy can help. The WLA is a year-long cohort-based program created to develop university leaders among the faculty and staff.