Position Title Assistant Professor of Polymer Materials Engineering About the University Western Washington University is a public institution that was founded in 1893 and is comprised of about 16,000 students. It is recognized as the top public masters-granting university in the Pacific Northwest by US News & World Report. Over the last two annual surveys of Great Colleges to Work For, the Chronicle of Higher Education has recognized Western for the following categories: faculty experience, shared governance, tenure clarity and teaching environment.