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Biola University

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Biola University Overview

Located in La Mirada, California, Biola University is a private not-for-profit institution. La Mirada is considered a suburb and offers tranquility and safety near the excitement of a city center.

What Is Biola University Known For?

941 Undergraduate Awards
$37,750 Avg Cost After Aid
64% Acceptance Rate
  • The 2% student loan default rate at Biola is better than the national rate of 10.1%. That's a good sign that you may be able to pay off student loans easier than your peers at other schools can.
  • The doctor's degree is the highest award offered at Biola.
  • For the 2017-2018 academic year, 61% of the faculty were full-time.
  • After graduation, Biola bachelor's degree recipients go on to jobs where they make $44,500 a year. That's about 9% more than their peers at other schools.

Best Schools

Biola University Rankings

These rankings may look different from those published by other outlets, because we use an outcomes-based approach rather than a subjective one. We get our data from a number of places, including the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and the College Scorecard. For more information, check out our rankings and methodology page.

Program Level Awards

These are highlights of some of the most noteworthy awards granted to specific programs at Biola.

Rank Ranking Name Share
#1 Best Other Philosophy & Religion Master’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#1 Best Value Other Philosophy & Religion Master’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#2 Best Value Philosophy Master’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#2 Best Other Theology & Religion Doctor’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#6 Best Value Philosophy & Religious Studies Master’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#15 Best Clinical & Counseling Psychology Bachelor’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#26 Best Value Social Sciences Master’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#65 Best Business Administration & Management Bachelor’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#93 Best Business, Management & Marketing Bachelor’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It
#158 Best General Psychology Bachelor’s Degree Schools Tweet It - Post It

Awards From Around the Web

The following table lists some notable awards Biola has earned from around the web.

Rank Ranking Name Source
#1 Best Other Philosophy & Religious Studies Master’s Degree Schools College Factual
#6 Best Missionary Studies Schools College Factual
#128 Best Business Administration & Management Schools College Factual
#219 Best Business, Management & Marketing Schools College Factual
#240 Best Business Schools Business Degree Central
#283 Best Health Professions Schools College Factual

Where Is Biola University?

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Contact details for Biola are given below.

Contact Details
Address: 13800 Biola Ave, La Mirada, CA 90639-0001
Phone: 562-903-6000
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Biola
Twitter: http://twitter.com/biolau

How Do I Get Into Biola?

You can apply to Biola online at: https://www.biola.edu/admissions/undergrad#apply-now

Admission Requirements for Biola

Submission Required?
High School GPA required
High School Rank neither required nor recommended
High School Transcript required
College Prep Program recommended
Recommendations neither required nor recommended
SAT or ACT Scores required
TOEFL required

How Hard Is It To Get Into Biola?

64% Acceptance Rate
68% Of Accepted Are Women
77% Submit SAT Scores
Biola has an acceptance rate of 64%, which means it is fairly selective. Take that into account when you are working on your application and gathering requested materials. Do what you can to stand out among other applicants.

Approximately 32% of accepted students are men and 68% are women. The acceptance rate for men is 62%, and the acceptance rate for women is 65%.

Average Test Scores

About 77% of students accepted to Biola submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 540 and 650. Math scores were between 530 and 640.

SAT Reading and Writing Scores for Biola University  ( 540 to 650 )
200
800

SAT Math Scores for Biola University  ( 530 to 640 )
200
800
Biola received ACT scores from 32% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT English scores ranged between 22 and 31. Math scores were between 21 and 27. Composite scores were between 22 and 29.

ACT English Scores for Biola University  ( 22 to 31 )
1
36
ACT Math Scores for Biola University  ( 21 to 27 )
1
36
ACT Composite Scores for Biola University  ( 22 to 29 )
1
36

Can I Afford Biola University?

$37,750 Net Price
55% Take Out Loans
1.6% Loan Default Rate
The overall average net price of Biola is $37,750. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group.

The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid.

Student Loan Debt

While almost two-thirds of students nationwide take out loans to pay for college, the percentage may be quite different for the school you plan on attending. At Biola, approximately 55% of students took out student loans averaging $9,137 a year. That adds up to $36,548 over four years for those students.

The student loan default rate at Biola is 1.6%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you'll be able to pay back your student loans.

Biola University Undergraduate Student Diversity

3,391 Full-Time Undergraduates
64% Women
46% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
There are 3,683 undergraduate students at Biola, with 3,391 being full-time and 292 being part-time.

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There are also 2,132 graduate students at the school.

Gender Diversity

Of the 3,391 full-time undergraduates at Biola, 36% are male and 64% are female.

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Racial-Ethnic Diversity

The racial-ethnic breakdown of Biola University students is as follows.

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 531
Black or African American 92
Hispanic or Latino 681
White 1,510
International Students 179
Other Races/Ethnicities 398

Geographic Diversity

California students aren't the only ones who study at Biola University. At this time, 36 states are represented by the student population at the school.

Over 45 countries are represented at Biola. The most popular countries sending students to the school are South Korea, Indonesia, and China.

Online Learning at Biola University

5,594 Took All Classes Online
5,683 Took At Least One Class Online
192.3% Avg Growth Over 4 Years
There are 16 bachelor’s degree and 6 master’s degree programs available online at Biola. In 2019-2020, 5,683 students took at least one online class at the school.

The following chart shows how the online learning population at Biola has changed over the last few years.

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This school is the 56th most popular in California for online learning according to the online graduations recorded by the Department of Education for the academic year 2019-2020.

Online Affordability Rankings of Biola

The following table shows how Biola is ranked for affordability for both in-state and out-of-state students among colleges and universities that are not mostly online.

Major Tuition for In-State Students Tuition for Out-of-State Students
Multicultural & Diversity Studies #7 #7
Religious Education #41 #41
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology #70 #70

Online Affordability Rankings of Biola Rankings

The following table shows how Biola is ranked for affordability for both in-state and out-of-state students among colleges and universities that are mostly online.

Major Tuition for In-State Students Tuition for Out-of-State Students
General Physical Sciences #1 #1
Multilingual Education #1 #1
Missionary Studies #8 #8
Physical Sciences #13 #13
Philosophy #16 #16
Religious Education #16 #16
Journalism #16 #16
Teaching English or French #31 #31
Teacher Education Subject Specific #33 #33
Philosophy & Religious Studies #40 #40
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology #44 #44
Design & Applied Arts #46 #46
English Language & Literature #52 #52
Computer Science #54 #54
Theology & Religious Vocations #58 #58
General English Literature #58 #58
General Education #68 #68

Online Growth Rankings of Biola

The average growth rate over the last four years of online students at Biola University was 192.3%. This is the #287 largest growth rate of all schools that are mostly online. This refers to all students at Biola regardless of major.

The following table shows the 1-year growth rate of Biola majors that offer at least one online course. This table only includes majors with positive growth.

Major 1-Year Growth Rate
Business Administration & Management 17%
Communication & Journalism 13%
Foreign Languages & Linguistics 27%
General Psychology 30%
Journalism 15%
Linguistics & Comparative Literature 38%
Multilingual Education 56%
Psychology 6%
Theology & Religious Vocations 3%

The table below shows how the average growth rate over 4 years at Biola ranks compared to all other mostly online schools that offer a specific major. Note that the majors may or may not be offered online at Biola.

Major Growth Rate Rank
Philosophy #1
Missionary Studies #1
Journalism #1
General Physical Sciences #1
Religious Education #4
Linguistics & Comparative Literature #4
Computer Science #7
General English Literature #7
Multilingual Education #7
Music #7
Philosophy & Religious Studies #9
Physical Sciences #10
Design & Applied Arts #10
Foreign Languages & Linguistics #10
General Education #13
Theology & Religious Vocations #16
English Language & Literature #18
Teaching English or French #18
Visual & Performing Arts #22
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology #23
General Psychology #25
Communication & Journalism #38
Teacher Education Grade Specific #38
Psychology #46
Teacher Education Subject Specific #51
Special Education #52
Computer & Information Sciences #66
Liberal Arts General Studies #72
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities #72
Education #131
Business Administration & Management #139
Business, Management & Marketing #202

When we speak of partially online, we are referring to schools whose online population is less than 50% of its total student body. Mostly online refers to those with online populations greater than or equal to 50%.

Biola University Undergraduate Concentrations

The table below shows the number of awards for each concentration.

Major Bachelor’s Graduate Certificate Master’s Doctor’s TOTAL
Business Administration & Management 137 0 6 0 143
General Psychology 94 0 0 0 94
Biblical Studies 38 6 26 0 70
Nursing 59 0 0 0 59
Theological & Ministerial Studies 0 4 54 0 58
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 56 0 0 0 56
Communication Sciences 29 0 24 0 53
General Education 16 0 35 0 51
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology 13 0 20 17 50
Other Philosophy & Religious Studies 0 0 49 0 49
Theology & Religious Vocations (Other) 0 2 25 19 46
Multicultural & Diversity Studies 15 0 24 4 43
Mental & Social Health Services 0 42 0 0 42
Religious Education 32 0 0 10 42
Public Relations & Advertising 36 0 0 0 36
General Biology 35 0 0 0 35
Communication & Media Studies 35 0 0 0 35
Sociology 33 0 0 0 33
Teacher Education Grade Specific 31 0 0 0 31
Fine & Studio Arts 30 0 0 0 30
Accounting 17 0 12 0 29
Journalism 27 0 0 0 27
Health & Physical Education 27 0 0 0 27
Political Science & Government 25 0 0 0 25
General English Literature 24 0 0 0 24
Music 24 0 0 0 24
General Business/Commerce 0 0 18 0 18
Computer Science 18 0 0 0 18
Teaching English or French 0 0 15 0 15
Mathematics 15 0 0 0 15
Philosophy 6 0 8 0 14
Pastoral Counseling & Specialized Ministries 0 0 14 0 14
History 12 0 0 0 12
Multilingual Education 0 0 0 9 9
Engineering Physics 9 0 0 0 9
Sacred Music 9 0 0 0 9
Linguistics & Comparative Literature 0 0 8 0 8
Interdisciplinary Studies 7 0 0 0 7
Biochemistry, Biophysics & Molecular Biology 6 0 0 0 6
Anthropology 4 0 1 0 5
Special Education 0 0 4 0 4
Teacher Education Subject Specific 4 0 0 0 4
Drama & Theater Arts 4 0 0 0 4
Romance Languages 3 0 0 0 3
Design & Applied Arts 3 0 0 0 3
Chemistry 2 0 0 0 2
Physics 2 0 0 0 2
General Social Sciences 2 0 0 0 2
Curriculum & Instruction 0 0 1 0 1
Natural Resources Conservation 1 0 0 0 1
Urban Studies 1 0 0 0 1
Missionary Studies 0 0 0 1 1
Liberal Arts General Studies 0 0 0 0 0
General Physical Sciences 0 0 0 0 0
TOTAL 941 54 344 60 1,399

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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