Private Nonprofit Graduate Good 59/100

Benedictine University

See admissions data, costs, student outcomes, and academic programs, all verified from official US government sources.

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Lisle, Illinois

About Benedictine University

Thinking about Benedictine University, a college in Illinois where more students graduate in Business than anything else? The four things worth knowing are what it actually costs after aid, whether you would get in, whether students finish, and what they earn after they do.

Benedictine University is a private nonprofit institution offering graduate degrees based in Lisle, Illinois. It enrolls 1,942 students (a mid-sized student body), according to IPEDS 2023-24 data. Every figure on this page is reported by the federal government, not supplied by the college, so it can be compared like for like against anywhere else you are looking.

Acceptance
95.2%
Graduation
48.5%
Net Price
$22,313
Median Earnings (10yr)
$63,446
Enrollment
1,942
Student : Faculty
13:1

Accreditor Higher Learning Commission
Academic Calendar Semester

How It Measures Up

These four scores answer one question: compared with similar colleges, is this one worth the money? Each runs 0 to 100 and is judged only against its peer group (4-Year Selective), so a community college is never marked down for not being Harvard. Everything is computed from federal data. Nobody can pay to move a score, and a pillar with missing data is left unscored rather than guessed.

Good
59/100
UCD Score · 4-Year Selective
Outcomes 28
Value 56
Affordability 53
Selectivity 30

Admissions & Acceptance Rate

Benedictine University admits 95.2% of applicants, which makes it open to most qualified applicants, so admission is unlikely to be the hurdle.

Acceptance Rate
95.2%
Open
SAT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported
ACT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported
Test Policy Not Considered Standardized test scores are not used in admissions decisions.

5-Year Admission Trend

Acceptance rate over the last five admission cycles. The trend tells you whether Benedictine University is getting harder, easier, or staying about the same.

Becoming less selective ↑ 35.5 pts since 2019
41.7%201961%202080%202193.1%202277.2%2023

Cost & Financial Aid

Ignore the sticker price. What matters is the net price, which is what a typical family pays here after grants and scholarships come off. At $22,313 a year on average, it sits in line with what private nonprofit colleges charge nationally. Plan for the gap between that and what you can pay without borrowing. Figures are College Scorecard 2023-24.

The average hides a wide spread by household income, so it is worth estimating what a family at your income would actually pay before treating this as the price.

Average Net Price
$22,313
Per year, after typical aid
Receive Pell Grants
39%
Need-based federal aid
Receive Federal Loans
46%
Borrowing to attend

Full Cost Breakdown

Published cost of attendance, the sticker price before grants and scholarships. Most students underestimate room & board and other expenses.

Tuition & Fees
$35,940
Room & Board (on-campus)
$10,850
Room & Board (off-campus)
$10,944
Books & Supplies
$1,976
Other Expenses (on-campus)
$3,622
Other Expenses (off-campus)
$4,960
Total Cost of Attendance
$46,713

Net Price by Family Income

Aid is need-based, so net price varies by family income. Here's what each bracket typically pays after grants and scholarships.

  • Under $30,000
    $20,168
  • $30,001 – $48,000
    $17,869
  • $48,001 – $75,000
    $18,628
  • $75,001 – $110,000
    $23,517
  • Over $110,000
    $27,454

Debt at Graduation

Cumulative federal-loan debt across the full borrowing distribution. The 10th and 90th percentiles bracket the typical range; the median sits in the middle.

$3,500
10% percentile
$6,265
25% percentile
$22,500
Median percentile
$26,000
75% percentile
$35,141
90% percentile

Median Debt by Student Type

Median federal-loan debt at graduation broken down by demographic. Each slice's size is proportional to the dollar amount that group typically borrows.

GroupDebtvs Median
Pell recipients $19,460 ↓ $3,040
No Pell $14,282 ↓ $8,218
Dependent students $17,213 ↓ $5,287
Independent students $18,750 ↓ $3,750
Female students $18,886 ↓ $3,614
Male students $15,688 ↓ $6,812
Pell recipients: 18.7% (4,199 students)No Pell: 13.7% (3,082 students)Dependent students: 16.5% (3,714 students)Independent students: 18.0% (4,046 students)Female students: 18.1% (4,075 students)Male students: 15.0% (3,385 students)Overall Median$22,500
Worth knowing: Students who don't finish leave with a median debt of $9,500, less than completers ($22,500), but still a meaningful obligation without a degree in hand.

Graduation Rate & Retention

48% of students who start here finish within six years, and 68% come back after first year. Fewer than half finish in six years. Ask what support exists for students who fall behind. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.

Completion and earnings carry the most weight in this college's score, and how the UCD Score weighs each measure sets out exactly how they are combined.

6-Year Graduation Rate
48%
Of students who graduate within six years
First-Year Retention
68%
Returning for their second year

After Graduation: Earnings & Outcomes

Ten years after starting here, the median student earns $63,446 a year, above the national median. That is a healthy return for most cost levels. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.

Median Earnings (10 yrs)
$63,446
Earning > $25K
85%
10 yrs after entry

Earnings Growth After Graduation

Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.

$48,000$53,000$57,000$61,000$65,0006 yrs8 yrs10 yrs

Earnings by Demographic

Mean annual earnings 10 years after entry, segmented by demographic. Reveals gaps the headline median can't show.

By Gender

Female graduates
$50,300

Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.

Male graduates
$66,500

Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.


By Family Income at Entry

Family income (lowest third)
$52,400

Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.

Family income (middle third)
$51,600

Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.

Family income (highest third)
$63,200

Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.

The gender gap: Male graduates earn $16,200, about 24% more than female graduates ten years out. The gap reflects industry mix, role choice, and structural pay differences that exist across most US colleges.

Loan Repayment Progression

Share of completer-cohort borrowers paying down at least $1 of principal at the 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year mark. Climbing rates show graduates settling into careers and managing debt; flat or declining rates are a warning.

Climbing: graduates increasingly paying down debt ↑ 10.5 pts across 6 years
68.4%1yr74.5%3yr73.4%5yr78.9%7yr
What this signals: Strong. 79% of graduates are actively reducing their debt seven years out.

Who Studies Here

Who you would actually be sitting next to: 1,942 students, a mid-sized community. Worth knowing: 34% are the first in their family to go to college.

Total Enrolled
1,942
Part-Time
7%
First-Generation
34%

Race & Ethnicity Breakdown

Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.

GroupShareStudents
White 38.8% 753
Hispanic 21.5% 417
Asian 21.0% 408
Black 9.7% 189
Other 4.4% 86
International 3.4% 66
White: 38.8% (753 students)Hispanic: 21.5% (417 students)Asian: 21.0% (408 students)Black: 9.7% (189 students)Other: 4.4% (86 students)International: 3.4% (66 students)Total1,942

Student Life & Campus Culture

Where students live, learn, and connect at Benedictine University. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.

Setting
Large Suburb Lisle, Illinois
Housing
Partly residential 498 beds available
Adult Learners
8% of students are 25 or older
Athletics
NCAA athletic-conference member
Academic Calendar
Semester scheduling structure
Designation
Religiously affiliated

What You Can Study

After that comes the national picture for Health graduates, which shows what the field pays across every college rather than just this one.

Benedictine University offers an extensive catalog of programs: 65 distinct programs across 22 majors. Below are its strongest majors, each with flagship programs and typical earnings. Open a major to explore it in depth, or browse the full program catalog.

17 Programs
10 Programs
4 Programs
2 Programs
2 Programs

Faculty & Resources

There are 13 students for every instructor here: about average, so expect a mix of small seminars and big lectures.

Student : Faculty
13:1
Students per instructional faculty member
Endowment
$100M
Modest endowment
Avg Faculty Salary
$82,605
9-month equivalent across all ranks

Faculty by Rank

99 instructional faculty across 4 ranks. The rank mix shows how many senior faculty are teaching versus contingent or junior staff, with average salary equated to a 9-month contract.

Rank Faculty Count Share Avg Salary
Full Professors 41 41% $97,797
Associate Professors 36 36% $76,199
Assistant Professors 16 16% $66,138
Instructors 6 6% $61,144

Pros & Cons of Benedictine University

No college is right for everyone. Here is where Benedictine University is likely to suit you and where it may not, based on the same figures shown above.

Read against a single profile these cut both ways, which is why it helps to put two colleges side by side on the same measures rather than judging one in isolation.

PROS
  • Accessible admissions for most applicants
  • Reasonable class sizes
  • Solid post-graduation earnings
CONS
  • Above-average net price
  • Below-average completion rate
  • First-year retention is below typical
Best for: Based on the data, Benedictine University is a fit for students who want a clear path to start college without a competitive admissions barrier.

Frequently Asked Questions about Benedictine University

The questions families ask most about Benedictine University, answered straight from the federal data rather than from the college's own marketing.

Is Benedictine University hard to get into?
Not especially. Benedictine University admits most qualified applicants, with an acceptance rate of 95.2%. Plan around cost and whether students finish, not your odds of getting in.
What is the acceptance rate at Benedictine University?
95.2% of applicants are admitted. Most applicants who meet the basic requirements are admitted. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
How much does Benedictine University cost?
Budget around $22,313 a year. That is the net price, what families typically pay once grants and scholarships come off, not the sticker price. Your own figure depends on household income, so treat this as a midpoint rather than a quote. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Benedictine University worth it?
On the numbers, yes: moderate return on investment. Ten years in, the median graduate earns $63,446 a year against a net price of $22,313, about 2.8 dollars of earnings for every dollar of annual cost. That ratio ignores whether you finish and what you study, which matter just as much. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
What is Benedictine University known for?
Mostly Business Administration, Public Health, Management Information Systems. Those are the fields where it awards the most degrees, which is a better guide to where the teaching strength sits than any reputation ranking. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What do Benedictine University graduates earn?
About $63,446 a year, measured ten years after students first enrolled. Half earn more and half earn less, and what you study moves that figure far more than where you study. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Benedictine University accredited?
Yes. Benedictine University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
How many students attend Benedictine University?
1,942 students. Small enough that you will recognize faces across campus, and small enough that course choice can be limited. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What is the graduation rate at Benedictine University?
48% finish within six years. That means most students do not finish in six years. Ask the school directly what support exists for students who fall behind. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Is Benedictine University a public or private college?
It is Private Nonprofit. Private nonprofit, so the sticker price is higher but institutional aid is often larger too.
Where is Benedictine University located?
Benedictine University is located in Lisle, Illinois.
What programs does Benedictine University offer?
65 different programs, most commonly Business Administration, Public Health, Management Information Systems. If the subject you want is not among them, check the full list before applying rather than assuming it is offered.
What is the student-to-faculty ratio at Benedictine University?
13 students per instructor. About average, so a mix of seminars and larger lectures. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.

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