Admit rate has ranged 42%–59% over the last 5 years — notably volatile. Source: IPEDS via Urban Institute.
Acceptance & SAT from Common Data Set / IPEDS; net price, earnings & graduation from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Figures lag ~1–2 years — verify with the school.
Perched in the Napa Valley foothills, Pacific Union College blends Seventh-day Adventist spirituality with rigorous academics—particularly in nursing and health sciences—and a tight-knit, substance-free campus culture. With a 47% acceptance rate and a graduation rate hovering around 51%, PUC attracts students seeking a faith-integrated education amid California wine country, where outdoor adventures and close faculty mentorship define the experience.
Admission requirements
Test-optional — scores considered if submitted
Required
High school transcript
Grade point average
TOEFL (non-native English)
Considered (not required)
Letters of recommendation
Test scores (SAT/ACT)
College-prep program
Source: IPEDS Admissions survey (2022) via Urban Institute. Covers formal factors only — it does not reflect essays, extracurriculars, or other holistic criteria.
More details
Undergrad enrollment
805
In-state tuition
$37,173
Out-of-state tuition
$37,173
Location
Napa Valley foothills, CA
Must-Know
Under-22s live on campus
Top Major
Nursing
Campus Vibe
Substance-free, outdoorsy
Acceptance Rate
47%
Graduation Rate
51%
Student-Faculty Ratio
11:1
Outcomes & value
Outcomes & value
Median earnings (10 yr)
$70,484
Value (earnings ÷ net price)
1.7×
Median debt at graduation
$27,500
Graduation rate
58%
First-year retention
89%
Reducing loan balance (3 yr)
60%
Pell (lower-income) share
56%
First-generation share
26%
Endowment / student
$39,841
Financial health
-0.2 / 3.0Below the federal standard — financial stress
U.S. Dept. of Education Financial Responsibility Composite Score (FY2022-23). Scale −1.0 to 3.0; ≥1.5 meets the standard. Reported for private nonprofit & for-profit institutions only — public universities are state-backed and not scored, so this is a stability signal, not a ranking.
Top-earning majors
Median earnings by field of study (highest credential), ~2 years after completion.
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$92,410
Business/Commerce, General$31,839
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness$25,967
Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (field-of-study earnings). Figures cover graduates who received federal aid and lag ~2 years; not all programs report data.
Campus & location
Campus safety
On-campus violent crimes (2024)
0
Per 1,000 students
0.00
On-campus criminal offenses classed as violent (murder/non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) for the most recent reported year. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education Campus Safety and Security (Clery Act). Counts reflect what’s reported to the school, and urban campuses often report more partly due to non-student incidents nearby — read alongside campus size and setting, not as a standalone safety verdict.
Climate
Pleasant days / yr
107
Summer high
89°F
Winter low
36°F
Annual rain
26.6"
Annual snow
2.6"
Natural-hazard risk
Relatively High
Pleasant days counts days per year with a mean temperature of 55–75°F, a high at or below 90°F, a low at or above 45°F, and little precipitation — a transparent comfort measure, not a weighting we invented. Computed from Open-Meteo ERA5 daily history (2019–2023). Natural-hazard risk is the county’s composite rating from the FEMA National Risk Index.
Deep dive — research, future-scholar output & economic mobility▾
Research output
Institutional h-index
37
Scholarly works
354
Institutional research volume and impact from OpenAlex. The h-index reflects large research universities and will be low for teaching-focused liberal-arts colleges — not a measure of undergraduate quality.
Economic mobility
Mobility rate
2.8%
Bottom → top quintile
45%
From bottom quintile
6%
Mobility rate = the share of students who both start in the bottom household-income quintile and reach the top quintile; bottom → top is that chance conditional on starting at the bottom. Source: Opportunity Insights Mobility Report Cards (Chetty, Friedman, Saez, Turner & Yagan). Reflects 1980–82 birth cohorts, so it’s directional, not current.
Quick answers
What is the acceptance rate at Pacific Union College?
Pacific Union College's acceptance rate is approximately 47% (Angwin, CA), based on the most recent figures we compiled from public and primary sources.
How much does Pacific Union College cost?
At Pacific Union College, the average net price (after aid) is about $41,008 per year. Actual cost varies with financial aid and residency.
How many undergraduates attend Pacific Union College?
Pacific Union College enrolls approximately 805 undergraduate students.
Where is Pacific Union College located?
Pacific Union College is located in Angwin, CA.
Admissions
Pacific Union College admits roughly half its applicants, with Acceptance rateThe share of applicants a college admits in a given year. A 10% acceptance rate means it admits about 1 in 10 applicants. ranging from 42.5% to 47.3% across sources. The middle 50% of admitted students typically present SAT scores around 1120 and GPAs between 3.5 and 3.9, though the college is Test-optionalA policy where you choose whether to submit SAT or ACT scores. If you don't, the rest of your application carries more weight.. Rolling admissions mean applications are reviewed year-round, with a notably female-skewed student body (62.3% women). The college emphasizes equal opportunity regardless of race, disability, or ethnicity, per its catalog.
Earnings = median of students working ~10 years after entry; debt = median of graduates. Value divides 10-yr earnings by one year’s net price — read it as earnings per dollar of annual cost, not a full lifetime ROI; it favors lower-cost schools. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Figures lag ~2 years and reflect all students, not your intended major.
Academics
PUC offers 60+ undergraduate majors and three master’s programs, with nursing as the most popular major. A 11:1 student-faculty ratio enables close mentorship, particularly in STEM fields like biochemistry (highlighted in a student success story). The college’s health science programs dominate enrollment, and its catalog touts a Christ-integrated curriculum emphasizing 'intellectual curiosity and critical thinking.'
Top Major: Nursing (US News)
Student-Faculty Ratio: 11:1 (US News)
Notable Programs: Health sciences, biochemistry (Wikipedia, PUC News)
Life at PUC revolves around its substance-free, residential campus—all students under 22 must live on campus unless granted an exception. With 963 undergraduates, the vibe is intimate and outdoorsy, leveraging its Napa Valley location for hiking and vineyard-adjacent serenity. Spiritual life is woven into daily routines, from worship to student-led ministries. Athletics and clubs fill the social calendar, though Niche notes the absence of Greek life or party culture.
Enrollment: 963 (fall 2024, US News)
Residency Requirement: Under-22s must live on campus (PUC 'Good to Know')
Notable Perks: Proximity to Napa outdoors, faith-based activities (YouTube, PUC Life page)
PUC’s 51% graduation rate lags behind national averages, but its nursing program boasts an 88.6% retention rate and strong NCLEX pass rates. PayScale ranks PUC third for associate degree salary potential ($97,000 median), though federal data suggests mixed ROI for bachelor’s grads. Alumni often enter healthcare, buoyed by the college’s Adventist hospital network connections.
Graduation Rate: 51% (Research.com)
Nursing Retention: 88.6% (AllNurses)
Salary Standout: $97k median for associate grads (PUC News)
At $49,550 sticker price, PUC offsets costs with generous institutional aid—averaging $21,640 per student—bringing the Net priceWhat a family actually pays after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the sticker price — usually far less than the published cost. down to $22,799 for many. Federal and state grants add another layer, with Pell recipients typically getting $5,478. The college actively promotes its net price calculator to demystify costs.
PUC carves a niche as a faith-forward oasis in wine country, where nursing students train near world-class vineyards and biochemistry majors like Tiffany Do (profiled by PUC) thrive via faculty mentorship. Its quirks—mandatory residency, no alcohol, Adventist Sabbath observance—create a cloistered but purposeful community. While graduation rates raise eyebrows, its healthcare pipeline and outlier salary potential for associate degrees hint at hidden strengths.
Pacific Union College logo · sourceAbout - Pacific Union College · sourceCampus Services - Pacific Union College · sourcePacific Union College - Angwin, CA | Appily · source
