The College of Wooster is a private liberal arts college primarily known for its emphasis on mentored undergraduate research. It enrolls approximately 2,000 students, and is located in Wooster, Ohio, United States, approximately 95mi northeast of Columbus. Founded in 1866 by the Presbyterian Church as the University of Wooster, it was from its creation a co-educational institution. The school is a member of The Five Colleges of Ohio and the Great Lakes Colleges Association. As of April 30, 2015, Wooster's endowment stood at approximately $274 million.
Wooster is one of forty colleges named in Loren Pope's influential book Colleges That Change Lives, in which he called it his "original best-kept secret in higher education." It is consistently ranked among the nation's top liberal arts colleges, according to U.S. News and World Report. In US News' "Best Colleges 2017", for the fifteenth year in a row, Wooster is recognized for its “outstanding” undergraduate research opportunities and its senior capstone program, known as I.S. Only two schools have been named to both lists in each of the past fifteen years: Wooster and Princeton University.