University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Private nonprofit
- City
- 10,650 undergrads
- Admit rate
- 5%Source: College Scorecard
- Average net price
- $29,577per year, after grantsSource: College Scorecard
- Graduation rate
- 97%within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $121,68710 years after startingSource: College Scorecard
What's special
Through the Quaker Commitment, families earning under $200,000 get aid covering at least full tuition, as long as they have no more than $50,000 in cash and investments, no business or farm, and no real estate beyond their home.
Getting in
- Admit rate
- 5%About 1 in 19 applicants get in.Source: College Scorecard
- Test policy
- Test-optionalScores are considered if you send them, but not required.Source: College Scorecard
- SAT (middle 50%)
- 1510–1570Reading + math, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
- ACT (middle 50%)
- 34–36Composite, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
From University of Pennsylvania's own report
These numbers come from the school's Common Data Set for 2025–26, a standard report colleges publish about their applicants and first-year students. Open the report.
91% had a 3.75 or higher. The average was 3.90. Schools count GPA differently (weighted or not), so compare ranges loosely.
- Admit rate in this report
- 5%3,570 admitted of 72,544 first-year applicants
- Early decision admit rate
- 13%1,266 admitted of 9,503. Early decision is binding: you commit to attend if admitted.
- Off the wait list
- 2%60 admitted of 2,566 who stayed on the wait list
- ACT, middle 50%
- 34–3518% of first-years sent ACT scores
- Top 10% of their class
- 92%99% were in the top quarter. Based on the 23% whose school ranks.
Early applicants often include recruited athletes and students who knew this was their first choice, so a higher early rate doesn't mean applying early raises any one student's odds by that much.
What the admissions office says it weighs
Very important
- How challenging your classes were
- GPA
- Essay
- Recommendations
- Character and personal qualities
Important
- Class rank
- Activities
- A talent or ability
- Volunteer work
- Work experience
Considered
- Test scores
- Being first in your family to go to college
- Family who went there (legacy)
- Where you live
- Living in the state
Not considered
- Interview
- Religious affiliation
- Showing interest in the school
Where you'd stand
Enter your numbers to see where they'd fall among University of Pennsylvania's first-year students. This isn't a prediction: it shows how you compare with students who enrolled, using the sources linked below.
Leave out anything you don't have. Your numbers stay in this browser and fill in on other school pages. See my list
Sources: University of Pennsylvania Common Data Set 2025–26; College Scorecard. Test ranges describe enrolled students who sent scores.
What it really costs
Most families pay less than the sticker price. Net price is what's left after grants and scholarships.
- Average net price
- $29,577full-time first-years who got grant aidSource: College Scorecard
- Total cost of attendance
- $92,288sticker price incl. housing, per yearSource: College Scorecard
- Tuition
- $71,236Source: College Scorecard
After you enroll
- Graduation rate
- 97%first-time, full-time students finishing within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Came back for year two
- 99%full-time first-year studentsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $121,68710 years after starting, for students who got federal aidSource: College Scorecard
- Median debt at graduation
- $15,000federal loans, students who finishedSource: College Scorecard
Students
- Undergraduates
- 10,650Source: College Scorecard
- Receive Pell grants
- 20%a sign of economic diversitySource: College Scorecard
- First-generation students
- 19%parents didn't go beyond high schoolSource: College Scorecard
Similar schools
Similar, and easier to get into
- Villanova University Villanova, PA — admits 27%
- Drexel University Philadelphia, PA — admits 79%
- Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA — admits 26%
- Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX — admits 44%
Also worth a look
- Brown University Providence, RI — admits 5%
- Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA — admits 12%
- Northwestern University Evanston, IL — admits 8%
- University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN — admits 11%
- Cornell University Ithaca, NY — admits 9%
- Georgetown University Washington, DC — admits 13%
Where these numbers come from
Every number on this page comes from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard page for University of Pennsylvania, which draws on what the school reports to the federal government and on federal student aid and tax records. We last pulled the data on November 4, 2026. Different measures cover different years; here's how each one works.
Spot something wrong? Report a data error.