Standards Virginia | Net Position $1.130B (Page 11) | Campus Comprehensive Plan 2025
The College of William & Mary, the second-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, was founded on February 8, 1693, through a royal charter granted by King William III and Queen Mary II of England. Named in their honor, the college aimed to establish a “perpetual College of Divinity, Philosophy, Languages, and the good arts and sciences” in the Virginia colony.
Efforts to create a college in Virginia dated back to 1618, but earlier plans failed due to events like the 1622 Powhatan uprising and political upheavals. In 1691, the Virginia General Assembly sent Reverend James Blair, a Scottish clergyman and representative of the Bishop of London, to England to secure approval. Blair successfully petitioned the monarchs, who issued the charter and appointed him as the college’s first president—a position he held until 1743.
The institution, initially Anglican-focused with schools for grammar, philosophy, and divinity, received funding from tobacco taxes, land grants, and even pirate forfeitures. Construction of its main building (now the Wren Building) began in 1695 at Middle Plantation, before Williamsburg existed.
“The Wren” | My Spot (Matt Capel)
Undergrade Gender Imbalance: 41% male, 59% female
National Marriage Project (University of Virginia): Where have all the good men gone?
WCWM Student Radio
Wishing our students a happy first day of classes – stay dry, W&M! pic.twitter.com/q2zImH6CyN
— William & Mary (@williamandmary) September 1, 2021
* According to a 2013 report from the Aspen Institute and Washington Monthly based on LinkedIn data for graduates from 2000 to 2010, 32.1% of William & Mary graduates reported positions in government and non-profit sectors as their first and second jobs after graduation.
This includes government roles but is not limited to them.More recent first-destination surveys from William & Mary’s Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement (e.g., for the Class of 2024) do not break down employment percentages by specific sectors like government. However, they categorize mean salaries for “public service careers” at $53,529, indicating some graduates pursue roles in that area (which often overlaps with government).
The university is consistently ranked highly for fostering service-oriented careers, such as #12 for “Best Colleges for Service” by Washington Monthly in 2022
