Admit rate has ranged 14%–21% over the last 5 years. 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.
Wesleyan University is a fiercely intellectual, creatively charged liberal arts college where unconventional thinkers thrive. With a 16% acceptance rate and median SAT scores around 1460, it attracts students who blend academic rigor with artistic experimentation—evident in its standout film, neuroscience, and government programs. The campus pulses with activist energy, DIY music scenes, and a 'work hard, play hard' ethos in the quirky college town of Middletown, CT.
Admission requirements
Test-optional — scores considered if submitted
Required
High school transcript
Letters of recommendation
TOEFL (non-native English)
Considered (not required)
Grade point average
Class rank
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
3,067
In-state tuition
$70,342
Out-of-state tuition
$70,342
Location
Middletown, CT (pop. 47,000)
Acceptance Rate
16.5% (Class of 2027)
Most Popular Majors
Social Sciences, Psychology, Visual/Performing Arts
Student Organizations
100+
Six-Year Graduation Rate
92%
Average Financial Aid Package
$75,903
Outcomes & value
Outcomes & value
Median earnings (10 yr)
$73,897
Value (earnings ÷ net price)
2.4×
Median debt at graduation
$17,000
Graduation rate
93%
First-year retention
95%
Reducing loan balance (3 yr)
88%
Pell (lower-income) share
48%
First-generation share
20%
Endowment / student
$516,239
Financial health
3.0 / 3.0Meets the federal financial-responsibility standard
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.
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities$36,334
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)
2
Per 1,000 students
0.65
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
95
Summer high
81°F
Winter low
26°F
Annual rain
55.5"
Annual snow
25.6"
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).
Deep dive — research, future-scholar output & economic mobility▾
Research output
Institutional h-index
293
Scholarly works
14,985
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.
Share of this school’s graduates who go on to earn research doctorates (2010–20), by national rank and per-capita yield (NSF institutional-yield ratio). A signal of a research-oriented student culture — not a causal promise, since it partly reflects who enrolls. Only top producers appear. Source: NSF NCSES, Baccalaureate Origins of U.S. Research Doctorate Recipients.
Economic mobility
Quick answers
What is the acceptance rate at Wesleyan University?
Wesleyan University's acceptance rate is approximately 16% (Middletown, CT), based on the most recent figures we compiled from public and primary sources.
What SAT score do you need for Wesleyan University?
Admitted students at Wesleyan University typically score 1415–1540 on the SAT (the middle-50% range). Scores outside this band are still admitted, especially with strong applications.
How much does Wesleyan University cost?
At Wesleyan University, the average net price (after aid) is about $30,177 per year. Actual cost varies with financial aid and residency.
How many undergraduates attend Wesleyan University?
Wesleyan University enrolls approximately 3,067 undergraduate students.
Where is Wesleyan University located?
Wesleyan University is located in Middletown, CT.
Admissions
Wesleyan's admissions process is highly selective, with a 16.5% acceptance rate for the Class of 2027 (up slightly from 15.9% the prior year). The middle 50% SAT range for admitted students is 1340–1510, with median scores of 710 ERW and 710 Math; ACT scores show a median of 34. Notably, 67% of admitted students chose to submit test scores in recent cycles. The university received 14,400 applications for the Class of 2027, admitting roughly 2,400 students.
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.
Mobility rate
2.0%
Bottom → top quintile
47%
From bottom quintile
4%
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.
Wesleyan’s academic identity orbits around bold, interdisciplinary liberal arts with a reputation for combining rigor and experimentation. The most popular majors include Social Sciences, Psychology, and Visual/Performing Arts, but the university shines in neuroscience, film studies, and government. Students praise the science curriculum as 'exceptional,' with opportunities to blend technical fields with humanities through programs like Applied Mathematical Science. With 50+ majors and 33 minors, Wesleyan encourages intellectual cross-pollination—think a physics major minoring in dance or a novelist studying biochemistry.
Life at Wesleyan crackles with creative energy and activism. The residential campus hosts 100+ student organizations, from anarchist collectives to a cappella groups. Middletown’s college-town vibe offers bars, indie music venues, and global cuisine—students call it 'perfect for Wesleyan’s size.' Nights might involve DIY basement shows, late-night debates at Usdan Café, or protests organized via student coalitions. The vibe is unpretentious but intense: 'People here don’t just join clubs—they start them, then write manifestos about them.'
Wesleyan’s 92% six-year graduation rate lands it in the top 5% nationally. Alumni outcomes reflect the school’s eclectic strengths: 88% of graduates secure placements at law schools (well above national averages), while others dive into arts, tech startups, or policy work. Median earnings one year post-graduation hover around $36,427, though this skews higher for STEM and finance grads. The Gordon Career Center reports strong trajectories, with many students leveraging Wesleyan’s alumni network in NYC and Boston for internships and jobs.
Wesleyan’s sticker price is steep—$85,730 for 2024–25 (tuition, room, board, and fees)—but the university meets 100% of demonstrated need. The average financial aid package is $75,903, with 42.56% of students receiving aid. Families earning under $60,000 typically pay $0 in tuition. The net price calculator suggests Wesleyan is more affordable than many peers, though middle-income families sometimes face gaps. Merit scholarships are rare; aid is need-based only.
Wesleyan isn’t for everyone—and it doesn’t want to be. This is a school for self-directed iconoclasts who’d rather stage a protest than join a frat, who see a chemistry lab and a poetry workshop as equally thrilling. Its open curriculum means no core requirements, so students craft wildly individual paths (one recent grad combined computer science with avant-garde theater). The film program rivals NYU’s, the neuroscience department feeds top PhD programs, and the activist culture ensures campus is never politically quiet. If you’re the type who’d spend Friday night debating Foucault and dancing to a student-band cover of Bikini Kill, you’ll find your people here.
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