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Boston University

Boston University Overview

Boston University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Boston, Massachusetts. The surrounding area of the school is a good match for students who enjoy city life.

What Is Boston University Known For?

5,232 Undergraduate Awards
$59,796 Avg Cost After Aid
14% Acceptance Rate
  • The highest award offered at Boston U is the doctor's degree.
  • During a recent academic cycle, 70% of the faculty were full-time.
  • A student who earns a bachelor's degree from Boston U makes roughly $83,238 a year. This is 104% more than their peers from other colleges and universities.
  • The average Boston U student graduates in 4.1 years. That's better than the national average of 4.4 years.

Where Is Boston University?

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Contact details for Boston U are given below.

Contact Details
Address: One Silber Way, Boston, MA 02215
Phone: 617-353-2000
Website: www.bu.edu

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How Do I Get Into Boston U?

You can apply to Boston U online at: www.bu.edu/admissions/apply

Admission Requirements for Boston U

Submission Required?
High School GPA 1
High School Rank 5
High School Transcript 1
College Prep Program 1
Recommendations 1
SAT or ACT Scores 5
TOEFL 1

How Hard Is It To Get Into Boston U?

14% Acceptance Rate
56% Of Accepted Are Women
23% Submit SAT Scores
If you plan to apply to Boston U, make sure you don't wait until the last minute to fill out your application. The school is one of the most selective in the United States and has a low acceptance rate of 14%. If you are admitted, that's something to brag about!

Approximately 44% of accepted students are men and 56% are women. The acceptance rate for men is 16%, and the acceptance rate for women is 13%.

Average Test Scores

About 23% of students accepted to Boston U submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 660 and 730. Math scores were between 690 and 770.

SAT Reading and Writing Scores for Boston University  ( 660 to 730 )
200
800

SAT Math Scores for Boston University  ( 690 to 770 )
200
800
Boston U received ACT scores from 12% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT English scores ranged between 32 and 35. Math scores were between 28 and 0. Composite scores were between 31 and 34.

ACT English Scores for Boston University  ( 32 to 35 )
1
36
ACT Composite Scores for Boston University  ( 31 to 34 )
1
36

Can I Afford Boston University?

$59,796 Net Price
23% Take Out Loans
The overall average net price of Boston U is $59,796. 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

It's not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At Boston U, approximately 23% of students took out student loans averaging $10,425 a year. That adds up to $41,700 over four years for those students.

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Boston University Undergraduate Student Diversity

16,026 Full-Time Undergraduates
59% Women
39% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
There are 16,872 undergraduate students at Boston U, with 16,026 being full-time and 846 being part-time.

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There are also 15,846 graduate students at the school.

Gender Diversity

Of the 16,026 full-time undergraduates at Boston U, 41% are male and 59% are female.

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Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 3,023
Black or African American 652
Hispanic or Latino 1,910
White 5,552
International Students 3,450
Other Races/Ethnicities 1,439

Geographic Diversity

Massachusetts students aren't the only ones who study at Boston University. At this time, 49 states are represented by the student population at the school.

Over 138 countries are represented at Boston U. The most popular countries sending students to the school are China, India, and South Korea.

Boston University Undergraduate Concentrations

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

Major Basic Certificate Undergraduate Certificate Bachelor’s Graduate Certificate Master’s Doctor’s TOTAL
Business Administration & Management 2 23 672 0 1,198 0 1,895
Computer Science 0 0 305 0 227 18 550
Economics 0 0 307 0 155 21 483
Public Relations & Advertising 1 1 297 0 127 0 426
Management Sciences & Quantitative Methods 10 8 0 0 370 0 388
Public Health 8 0 0 0 375 4 387
General Psychology 0 0 305 0 34 11 350
Social Work 0 2 0 0 321 4 327
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 0 0 195 0 97 1 293
Finance & Financial Management 0 15 0 0 277 0 292
Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Biology 0 0 39 0 221 1 261
Information Science 0 0 0 0 257 0 257
Biomedical Engineering 0 0 132 0 93 26 251
Law 0 0 0 0 0 245 245
International Relations & National Security 0 0 189 0 51 0 240
Legal Research 0 0 0 0 214 0 214
General Biology 0 0 153 0 44 14 211
Biological & Biomedical Sciences (Other) 0 11 0 0 191 0 202
Mechanical Engineering 0 0 124 0 58 19 201
Dentistry 0 0 0 0 0 193 193
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions 0 0 29 0 0 163 192
Teacher Education Subject Specific 0 3 14 7 147 13 184
Marketing 0 9 0 0 169 0 178
Political Science & Government 0 0 162 0 10 5 177
Data Processing 0 0 0 0 175 0 175
Electrical Engineering 0 0 43 0 99 17 159
Criminal Justice & Corrections 0 35 2 0 122 0 159
Health Sciences & Services 0 0 155 0 0 0 155
Medicine 0 0 0 0 0 149 149
Biochemistry, Biophysics & Molecular Biology 0 0 138 0 1 1 140
Biomathematics & Bioinformatics 0 0 0 0 122 18 140
Music 0 0 39 9 65 25 138
Journalism 0 0 91 0 46 0 137
Mathematics 0 0 128 0 3 6 137
Applied Mathematics 0 0 32 0 100 1 133
Neurobiology & Neurosciences 0 0 121 0 1 5 127
Hospitality Management 0 0 73 0 52 0 125
Communication & Media Studies 0 0 60 0 65 0 125
Computer Software & Applications 0 18 0 0 102 0 120
Other Business, Management & Marketing 0 35 0 0 74 5 114
Computer Engineering 0 4 99 0 2 9 114
Physiology & Pathology Sciences 0 0 92 0 15 0 107
Other Social Sciences 0 75 32 0 0 0 107
Curriculum & Instruction 0 0 0 0 102 3 105
Theological & Ministerial Studies 0 10 0 0 79 15 104
Advanced Dentistry & Oral Sciences 0 0 0 61 25 6 92
Health & Medical Administrative Services 0 0 0 0 89 3 92
General English Literature 0 0 56 0 24 4 84
Educational Administration 0 0 0 4 54 19 77
Drama & Theater Arts 0 0 51 2 23 0 76
Fine & Studio Arts 0 0 42 0 30 3 75
Arts & Media Management 0 15 0 0 57 0 72
Mathematical Economics 0 0 71 0 0 0 71
Philosophy 0 0 62 0 0 6 68
Statistics 0 0 0 0 61 6 67
Design & Applied Arts 0 0 39 0 26 0 65
Communication Sciences 0 0 12 0 47 2 61
Health/Medical Prep Programs 0 2 18 0 40 0 60
Chemistry 0 0 36 0 7 15 58
Nutrition Science 0 0 22 0 34 0 56
Physics 0 0 39 0 5 12 56
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology 0 0 1 0 50 5 56
Other Health Professions 0 1 29 0 25 0 55
Sociology 0 0 47 0 1 5 53
Linguistics & Comparative Literature 0 0 23 0 29 0 52
History 0 0 39 0 7 4 50
Computer Information Systems 0 20 4 0 22 0 46
Special Education 0 0 7 0 38 0 45
Materials Engineering 0 0 0 0 37 8 45
Teacher Education Grade Specific 0 0 19 0 25 0 44
Anthropology 0 0 21 0 14 6 41
Cell Biology & Anatomical Sciences 0 0 0 0 12 28 40
Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies 0 19 19 0 0 0 38
Student Counseling 0 0 0 0 32 1 33
Area Studies 0 7 11 0 6 8 32
Natural Resources Conservation 0 0 32 0 0 0 32
Writing Studies 0 14 0 0 17 0 31
Systems Engineering 0 0 0 0 17 9 26
Astronomy & Astrophysics 0 0 17 0 4 5 26
Robotics Engineering 0 0 0 0 21 0 21
Biotechnology 0 0 0 0 20 0 20
Systems Theory 0 0 0 0 20 0 20
Culinary Arts 0 0 0 0 20 0 20
Geological & Earth Sciences 0 0 0 0 3 15 18
Information Technology 0 12 0 0 5 0 17
Manufacturing Engineering 0 0 0 0 17 0 17
Human Development & Family Studies 0 0 0 0 17 0 17
Romance Languages 0 0 12 0 0 5 17
Classical & Ancient Studies 0 0 10 0 5 2 17
Architectural History 0 0 16 0 0 0 16
Urban & Regional Planning 0 0 0 0 16 0 16
Insurance 0 0 0 0 16 0 16
Teaching English or French 0 1 0 0 15 0 16
Allied Health Professions 0 0 0 0 15 0 15
Other Public Administration 0 0 0 0 7 7 14
Entrepreneurial Studies 0 13 0 0 0 0 13
Medical Illustration & Informatics 0 3 0 0 10 0 13
Other Visual Art 7 6 0 0 0 0 13
Archeology 0 0 5 0 4 3 12
East Asian Languages 0 0 11 0 0 0 11
Mental & Social Health Services 0 0 0 0 11 0 11
Religious Studies 0 1 3 0 3 4 11
Urban Studies 0 0 0 0 10 0 10
Security Science and Technology 0 0 0 0 9 0 9
Pharmacology & Toxicology 0 0 0 0 0 8 8
Ethnic Studies 0 8 0 0 0 0 8
Multilingual Education 0 0 6 0 0 0 6
Bioethics/Medical Ethics 0 0 0 0 6 0 6
General Education 0 2 1 0 0 2 5
Public Policy 0 0 0 0 5 0 5
Theology & Religious Vocations (Other) 0 5 0 0 0 0 5
Historic Preservation 0 0 0 0 4 0 4
Other Computer & Information Sciences 0 3 0 0 0 0 3
Engineering Physics 0 0 3 0 0 0 3
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science 0 0 3 0 0 0 3
Microbiological Sciences & Immunology 0 0 0 0 1 1 2
Taxation 0 0 0 0 2 0 2
Computer Engineering Technology 0 2 0 0 0 0 2
Medical Science 0 0 0 0 1 1 2
Legal Professions (Other) 2 0 0 0 0 0 2
Sacred Music 0 0 0 0 2 0 2
English Literature (Other) 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
Germanic Languages 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
Slavic, Baltic & Albanian Languages 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
General Physical Sciences 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
Genetics 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Molecular Medicine 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Human Resource Management 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Computer Systems Networking 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Educational Assessment 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Instructional Media Design 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other Education 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
General Engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other Engineering 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Classical Languages & Literature 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Middle Eastern Semitic Languages 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other Statistics 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Child Development & Psychology 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
General Social Sciences 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Geography & Cartography 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Public Administration 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Biblical Studies 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
General Visual & Performing Arts 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
TOTAL 30 383 4,819 83 6,984 1,196 13,495

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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