Pacific Lutheran University: Statistics

Updated:

EduRank

Pacific Lutheran University logo
EduRank.org best universities badge
Position Category
#2289 of 14,131 In the World
#649 of 2,597 In North America
#592 of 2,496 In the United States
#12 of 57 In Washington
#2 of 5 In Tacoma
#811 of 1,030 For Early Childhood Education
Top50% For 20 other topics
Subject rankings

Quick Review

Religion
Evangelical Lutheran Church
Acceptance rate
78%
Average SAT
1150
Average ACT
25
Avg. cost to attend
$22,299 /y
Aid receiving
99%
Undergraduates
2,446
Graduates
351
Male:Female Ratio
35:65
Control
Private
not-for-profit
Highest Degree
Doctor's degree
Website
plu.edu

Pacific Lutheran University Acceptance rate and admissions statistics

Pacific Lutheran University has an acceptance rate of 78% and is in the middle in terms of the difficulty of admission among universities in the United States. The university reports the admission statistics without distinguishing between local and international students.

Total Men Women
Acceptance Rate 78% 74% 81%
Applicants 4,992 1,978 2,885
Admissions 3,895 1,460 2,330
Freshmen enrolled full time 548 192 333
Freshmen enrolled part time 2 1 1

254 students enrolled in some distance education courses.

11 enrolled exclusively in distance education.

SAT scores

Among admitted applicants
81 or 15%
submitted SAT

25% of them
had 1040
or below

75% of them
had 1260
or below

Typical SAT scores of first-years in Pacific Lutheran University are 1040-1260 (middle 50% range).

ACT scores

Among admitted applicants
12 or 2%
submitted ACT

25% of them
had 22
or below

75% of them
had 28
or below

Typical ACT scores of first-years in Pacific Lutheran University are 22-28 (middle 50% range).

Admissions requirements

Secondary school GPA Required
Secondary school record Required
College-preparatory program Considered but not required
Recommendations Considered but not required
SAT/ACT Considered but not required
Secondary school rank Considered but not required
TOEFL Considered but not required
Formal demonstration of competencies Neither required nor recommended
Other Tests Neither required nor recommended

Enrollment demographics by race or ethnicity

White 1285 (46%)
Hispanic 511 (18%)
Two or more races 306 (11%)
Asian 295 (11%)
Black or African American 157 (6%)
Nonresident Alien 118 (4%)
Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander 64 (2%)
Race or Ethnicity unknown 43 (2%)
American Indian or Alaska Native 9 (0.3%)

Costs per year: Tuition, Housing, Fees

The average net cost to attend Pacific Lutheran University is $22,299 per year, calculated as the sum of the average cost of tuition, room and board, books, and supplies, reduced by the amount of average financial aid received.

The final cost of attendance varies for each student based on household income, residency, program, and other factors.

Net average cost to attend
$22,299/year
Average aid awarded
$40,573
Students receiving aid
99%

Average costs by household income

<$30K $13,609
$30-48K $12,948
$48-75K $15,756
$75-110K $22,535
$110K+ $26,915

Tuition and fees

UndergraduatesGraduates
Tuition in-district $50,720$29,950
Tuition in-state $50,720$29,950
Tuition out-of-state $50,720$29,950
Fee in-district $1,534$585
Fee in-state $1,534$585
Fee out-of-state $1,534$585

Room and board costs

Dormitory capacity 1,253
Combined charge for room and board $13,385
Room charge $5,980
Meal charge $7,405

Pacific Lutheran University majors

Pacific Lutheran University has granted 595 bachelor's degrees across 34 programs, 131 master's across 8 programs, and 17 doctorate degrees in Nursing Practice. Below is a table with majors that lead to degrees at Pacific Lutheran University.

Major Bachelor Master Doctoral
Registered Nursing & Registered Nurse 132
Business Administration and Management, General 58 21
Biology & Biological Sciences, General 43
Exercise Science and Kinesiology 40
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods, Other 37
Clinical Nurse Leader 31
Speech Communication and Rhetoric 27
Psychology, General 24
Computer Science 23
Elementary Education and Teaching 22
Fine & Studio Arts, General 21
Marriage and Family Therapy & Counseling 21
Creative Writing 10 9
Social Work 18
Criminology 17
Nursing Practice 17
History, General 14
Music, General 14
Drama and Dramatics & Theatre Arts, General 13
Mathematics, General 13
Music Teacher Education 13
Physics, General 13
Chemistry, General 12
Political Science and Government, General 10
English Language and Literature, General 9
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods, Other 9
Sociology, General 9
Economics, General 7
Environmental Studies 6
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies, Other 5
Geology & Earth Science, General 5
Hispanic and Latin American Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, General 4
Anthropology, General 3
Multi- & Interdisciplinary Studies, Other 3
Management Science 2
Religion & Religious Studies 2
Scandinavian Studies 2
Computational and Applied Mathematics 1
German Language and Literature 1
Philosophy 1
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education & Fitness, General 1
Grand Total 595 131 17

Pacific Lutheran University has a graduation rate of 69%, which is among the 23% highest for universities in the US.

Total Men Women
Graduation rate 69% 67% 69%
  • Full-time retention rate - 82%
  • Part-time retention rate - 100%

Publications & Citations

Pacific Lutheran University has published 2,374 scientific papers with 47,657 citations received. The research profile covers a range of fields, including Liberal Arts & Social Sciences, Political Science, Law, Philosophy, Sociology, Computer Science, Environmental Science, Biology, Psychology, and Medicine.

Publications
2,374
Citations
47,657

Publication / Citation count by topic

Liberal Arts & Social Sciences
1,721 / 30,514
Political Science
1,123 / 18,831
Law
1,045 / 18,250
Philosophy
967 / 16,823
Sociology
946 / 18,532
Computer Science
924 / 19,608
Environmental Science
898 / 19,128
Biology
787 / 20,210
Psychology
765 / 19,061
Medicine
710 / 17,845
Physics
692 / 15,035
Engineering
683 / 13,468
History
654 / 8,083
Geography and Cartography
594 / 9,316
Mathematics
550 / 15,470
Economics
511 / 13,402
Business
508 / 13,868
Chemistry
469 / 13,053
Quantum and Particle physics
448 / 9,678
Archaeology
442 / 6,900
Art & Design
425 / 5,281
Linguistics
409 / 7,523
Geology
391 / 9,302
Ecology
363 / 9,012
Social Psychology
342 / 10,033
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
339 / 6,734
Statistics
311 / 9,777
Development Studies
297 / 7,226
Paleontology
284 / 7,614
Theology / Divinity / Religious studies
274 / 1,896
Education Majors
243 / 4,970
Management
238 / 5,309
Genetics
230 / 7,568
Math Teachers
225 / 5,540
Anthropology
218 / 5,155
Biochemistry
214 / 7,220
Machine Learning
210 / 7,279
Psychiatry
209 / 5,594
Organic Chemistry
204 / 5,687
Materials Science
190 / 3,887

Annual publication & citation counts

Year Publications Citations
1993 31 97
1994 20 116
1995 20 116
1996 36 112
1997 36 157
1998 19 175
1999 27 192
2000 38 229
2001 34 249
2002 28 296
2003 31 380
2004 40 408
2005 45 540
2006 46 609
2007 53 680
2008 50 684
2009 85 1048
2010 58 1087
2011 90 1281
2012 86 1504
2013 63 1622
2014 85 1689
2015 91 1651
2016 91 1773
2017 117 1978
2018 129 2249
2019 121 3168
2020 110 3727
2021 108 3789
2022 96 3812
2023 59 3746
2024 55 3810
2025 47 2887
Academic rankings

Pacific Lutheran University alumni

  1. Connor Trinneer

    Connor Trinneer
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1969-.. (age 57)
    Occupations
    film actortelevision actorstage actor
    Biography

    Connor Wyatt Trinneer is an American film, stage, and television actor. He is best known for his roles as Charles "Trip" Tucker III on Star Trek: Enterprise, Michael on the series Stargate Atlantis, and Professor Moynihan on the web series Guilty Party.

  2. Sean Parnell

    Sean Parnell
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1962-.. (age 64)
    Occupations
    lawyerpolitician
    Biography

    Sean Randall Parnell is an American attorney and politician who was the tenth governor of Alaska from 2009 to 2014. He succeeded Sarah Palin in July 2009 and was elected to a full term as governor in 2010. In 2014, he narrowly lost his bid for re-election and returned to work in the private sector. He is a member of the Republican Party.

  3. Marissa Meyer

    Marissa Meyer
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1984-.. (age 42)
    Occupations
    children's writerscience fiction writerwriter
    Biography

    Marissa Meyer is an American novelist. A large portion of her bibliography is centered on retellings of fairy tales. She is best known for her series The Lunar Chronicles, which includes her 2012 debut novel, Cinder.

  4. Rick Larsen

    Rick Larsen
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1965-.. (age 61)
    Enrolled in Pacific Lutheran University
    In 1987 graduated with Bachelor of Arts
    Occupations
    politician
    Biography

    Richard Ray Larsen is an American politician serving as the United States representative for Washington's 2nd congressional district since 2001. A member of the Democratic Party, Larsen is the ranking member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

All 17 notable alumni

General info

Alternative names PLU
Founded 1890
Motto Educating for Lives of Thoughtful Inquiry, Service, Leadership and Care
Colors black, gold
Academic calendar September to May (September - December; January-May). Also Summer Session (June-August)
Total FTE staff 612
Carnegie classification Master's Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs

Location and contacts

Address 12180 Park Ave South
Tacoma, Washington, 98447-0003
United States
City population 219,000
Phone 2535357411

Pacific Lutheran University in social media