University of Pennsylvania Overview
University of Pennsylvania is a private not-for-profit institution located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The location of UPenn is great for students who prefer living in an urban area.
What Is University of Pennsylvania Known For?
- Students who want to work more closely with their professors have an easier time at UPenn since the student to facuty ratio is 6 to 1.
- The student loan default rate at UPenn is 1%, which is significantly lower than the national rate of 10.1%. That's great news for students who are worrying about paying off their student loans.
- Although it may not be available for every major, the doctor's degree is the highest award a student can attain at UPenn.
- In 2019-2020, 79% of the faculty were full-time.
- A student who earns a bachelor's degree from UPenn makes roughly $103,246 a year. This is 153% more than their peers from other colleges and universities.
- On average, it takes about 4.1 years for students from UPenn to earn a bachelor's degree. This is excellent when compared to the average of 4.4 years.
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University of Pennsylvania Rankings
UPenn is ranked #18 out of 2,018 schools in the nation for overall quality on our 2023 Best Colleges list. This puts it in the top 1% of all schools in the nation! UPenn also holds the #3 spot on the Best Colleges in Pennsylvania ranking.
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.
UPenn has also been awarded the following overall awards by our latest rankings.
Rank | Ranking Name | Share |
---|---|---|
#10 | Best Doctor’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#12 | Best Graduate Certificate Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#13 | Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
#15 | Best Master’s Degree Schools | Tweet It - Post It |
Program Level Awards
These are highlights of some of the most noteworthy awards granted to specific programs at UPenn.
Awards From Around the Web
The following table lists some notable awards UPenn has earned from around the web.
Rank | Ranking Name | Source |
---|---|---|
#1 | Best Philosophy & Religious Studies Schools | College Factual |
#2 | Best Business, Management & Marketing Schools | College Factual |
#2 | Best Computer & Information Sciences Graduate Degree Schools | College Factual |
#2 | Best Legal Professions Schools | College Factual |
#6 | Best Health Professions Schools | College Factual |
#14 | Best Nursing Schools | Nursing Degree Search |
Where Is University of Pennsylvania?

Contact details for UPenn are given below.
Contact Details | |
---|---|
Address: | 34Th & Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6303 |
Phone: | 215-898-5000 |
Website: | www.upenn.edu |
Facebook: | http://www.facebook.com/pages/Philadelphia-PA/University-of-Pennsylvania/98508878775 |
Twitter: | http://twitter.com/Penn |
How Do I Get Into UPenn?
You can apply to UPenn online at: www.admissions.upenn.edu/apply/
Admission Requirements for UPenn
Submission | Required? |
---|---|
High School GPA | required |
High School Rank | neither required nor recommended |
High School Transcript | required |
College Prep Program | recommended |
Recommendations | required |
SAT or ACT Scores | required |
TOEFL | recommended |
How Hard Is It To Get Into UPenn?
Approximately 47% of accepted students are men and 53% are women. The acceptance rate for men is 8%, and the acceptance rate for women is 10%.
Average Test Scores
About 65% of students accepted to UPenn submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 710 and 770. Math scores were between 750 and 800.
Can I Afford University of Pennsylvania?
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 UPenn, approximately 12% of students took out student loans averaging $10,681 a year. That adds up to $42,724 over four years for those students.
The student loan default rate at UPenn is 0.9%. 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.
University of Pennsylvania Undergraduate Student Diversity

There are also 15,397 graduate students at the school.
Gender Diversity
Of the 9,960 full-time undergraduates at UPenn, 46% are male and 54% are female.

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

Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 2,438 |
Black or African American | 758 |
Hispanic or Latino | 1,028 |
White | 3,618 |
International Students | 1,288 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 830 |
Geographic Diversity
Pennsylvania students aren't the only ones who study at University of Pennsylvania. At this time, 49 states are represented by the student population at the school.
Over 138 countries are represented at UPenn. The most popular countries sending students to the school are China, India, and South Korea.
Online Learning at University of Pennsylvania
The following chart shows how the online learning population at UPenn has changed over the last few years.

This school is the 15th most popular in Pennsylvania for online learning according to the online graduations recorded by the Department of Education for the academic year 2019-2020.
Online Affordability Rankings of UPenn
During the most recent year for which we have data, the full-time undergraduate tuition at University of Pennsylvania was $60,042 for both in-state and out-of-state students. The following table shows how UPenn 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 |
---|---|---|
Other Health Professions | #25 | #25 |
Online Affordability Rankings of UPenn Rankings
During the most recent year for which we have data, the full-time undergraduate tuition at University of Pennsylvania was $60,042 for both in-state and out-of-state students. The following table shows how UPenn 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 |
---|---|---|
Management Sciences & Quantitative Methods | #51 | #51 |
Online Growth Rankings of UPenn
The average growth rate over the last four years of online students at University of Pennsylvania was 447.0%. This is the #181 largest growth rate of all schools that are mostly online. This refers to all students at UPenn regardless of major.
The following table shows the 1-year growth rate of UPenn majors that offer at least one online course. This table only includes majors with positive growth.
Major | 1-Year Growth Rate |
---|---|
Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology | 21% |
English Language & Literature | 34% |
Health Professions | 4% |
Human Resource Management | 27% |
Multi / Interdisciplinary Studies | 11% |
Nursing | 2% |
Other Statistics | 57% |
Physical Sciences | 5% |
Psychology | 12% |
Writing Studies | 78% |
The table below shows how the average growth rate over 4 years at UPenn 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 UPenn.
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%.
University of Pennsylvania 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 WestCoastivieS under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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