Dakota Wesleyan University Overview
Dakota Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit institution situated in Mitchell, South Dakota. Mitchell is a good match for students who enjoy small-town life.
What Is Dakota Wesleyan University Known For?
- Dakota Wesleyan University has an impressive student to faculty ratio of 9 to 1.
- The highest award offered at Dakota Wesleyan University is the master's degree.
- For the 2017-2018 academic year, 35% of the faculty were full-time.
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Dakota Wesleyan University Rankings
Our rankings are based on an outcomes-based approach rather than subjective ones used by other media outlets. As such, we utilize data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and the College Scorecard, among other sources. Visit our rankings and methodology section to learn more.
Program Level Awards
These are highlights of some of the most noteworthy awards granted to specific programs at Dakota Wesleyan University.
Awards From Around the Web
The following table lists some notable awards Dakota Wesleyan University has earned from around the web.
Rank | Ranking Name | Source |
---|---|---|
#36 | Best Value Colleges for Health Professions | College Factual |
Where Is Dakota Wesleyan University?

Contact details for Dakota Wesleyan University are given below.
Contact Details | |
---|---|
Address: | 1200 W University Ave, Mitchell, SD 57301-4398 |
Phone: | 605-995-2600 |
Website: | www.dwu.edu |
Facebook: | http://www.facebook.com/dwublue |
Twitter: | http://twitter.com/dakotawesleyan |
How Do I Get Into Dakota Wesleyan University?
You can apply to Dakota Wesleyan University online at: www.dwu.edu/apply
Admission Requirements for Dakota Wesleyan University
Submission | Required? |
---|---|
High School GPA | required |
High School Rank | considered but not required |
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 Dakota Wesleyan University?
Approximately 56% of accepted students are men and 44% are women. The acceptance rate for men is 76%, and the acceptance rate for women is 76%.
Average Test Scores
About 6% of students accepted to Dakota Wesleyan University submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 360 and 600. Math scores were between 390 and 570.
Can I Afford Dakota Wesleyan University?
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid.
Student Loan Debt
Almost 66% of college students who graduated with the class of 2018 took out student loans, but that percentage varies from school to school. At Dakota Wesleyan University, approximately 88% of students took out student loans averaging $8,503 a year. That adds up to $34,012 over four years for those students.
The student loan default rate at Dakota Wesleyan University is 5.9%. 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.
Dakota Wesleyan University Undergraduate Student Diversity

There are also 140 graduate students at the school.
Gender Diversity
Of the 689 full-time undergraduates at Dakota Wesleyan University, 48% are male and 52% are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity
The racial-ethnic breakdown of Dakota Wesleyan University students is as follows.

Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 2 |
Black or African American | 16 |
Hispanic or Latino | 49 |
White | 568 |
International Students | 13 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 41 |
Geographic Diversity
South Dakota students aren't the only ones who study at Dakota Wesleyan University. At this time, 12 states are represented by the student population at the school.
Over 7 countries are represented at Dakota Wesleyan University. The most popular countries sending students to the school are Canada, United Kingdom, and Argentina.
Online Learning at Dakota Wesleyan University
The following chart shows how the online learning population at Dakota Wesleyan University has changed over the last few years.

This school is the 14th most popular in South Dakota for online learning according to the online graduations recorded by the Department of Education for the academic year 2017-2018.
Online Growth Rankings of Dakota Wesleyan University
The average growth rate over the last four years of online students at Dakota Wesleyan University was 0.0%. This is the #2,023 largest growth rate of all schools that are only partially online. This refers to all students at Dakota Wesleyan University regardless of major.
The following table shows the 1-year growth rate of Dakota Wesleyan University majors that offer at least one online course. This table only includes majors with positive growth.
Major | 1-Year Growth Rate |
---|---|
Accounting | 12% |
Business, Management & Marketing | 4% |
Communication & Journalism | 33% |
Criminal Justice & Corrections | 80% |
Finance & Financial Management | 60% |
Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting | 80% |
Philosophy & Religious Studies | 83% |
Religious Studies | 83% |
The table below shows how the average growth rate over 4 years at Dakota Wesleyan University ranks compared to all other partially online schools that offer a specific major. Note that the majors may or may not be offered online at Dakota Wesleyan University.
Major | Growth Rate Rank | |
---|---|---|
Other Business, Management & Marketing | #32 | |
Curriculum & Instruction | #130 | |
Educational Administration | #239 | |
Teacher Education Grade Specific | #267 | |
Nursing | #458 |
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%.
Dakota Wesleyan University Undergraduate Concentrations
The table below shows the number of awards for each concentration.
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.
- College Factual
- National Center for Education Statistics
- Image Credit: By Jake DeGroot under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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