School Location:

BOSTON, MA

School Type:

PRIVATE RESEARCH UNIVERSITY

How difficult is it to get into Boston University?

For the Class of 2027, Boston University received 80,490 applications, of which 8,733 were accepted. With a 10.8% acceptance rate, Boston University is particularly competitive, and should be considered a “high reach” school for all applicants. BU places emphasis on the rigor of a student’s transcript, as well as GPA and extracurriculars in their admissions process. Students who enrolled in fall 2023 had average composite ACT scores between 32 and 34, and SAT scores between 1410 and 1500. Eighty-six percent of students ranked in the top 10% of their high school class.

BU admissions states that they seek to “…bring together a diverse student body that is highly motivated, intellectually curious, and contributes to the BU community.” If you want to gain admission to BU, you should demonstrate curiosity and the ways in which you give back to your community in your application!

What is the campus like at Boston University?

BU prides itself on providing a small town-like community in the middle of a city where students feel they are in the middle of everything. Located along the Charles River, BU’s campus offers a mix of a traditional campus and easy access to an urban setting.

BU has over 450 student clubs and organizations that range from Film Society, Society of Women Engineers to Outing Club, Ski & Snowboard Club and the Art History Association. Most of BU’s Schools and Colleges also offer student membership to professional organizations. Examples include the Pre-Law Society and the American Hotel & Lodging Association. Students who are passionate about political activism or leadership have the option to participate in one of the three levels of BU student government, whether through the BU Student Government, School and College Student Governments or Residence Hall Associations. BU is also home to 12 fraternities and 12 sororities.

Service is also an important value of BU. Over 1,500 students volunteer through BU’s Community Service Center, contributing over 75,000 hours of service annually.

BU guarantees housing to students for all four years of undergraduate study and offers many different styles of housing, including traditional-style dorms, apartments, and brownstones. In addition, BU offers shared-interest communities. Living-Learning Communities (LLC) are faculty-led communities in which students earn credits and devote themselves to experiential learning and discovery beyond the classroom. Speciality Community houses and floors are centered around shared interests such as community service, or music.

What is Boston University known for?

Beyond its varied academic opportunities, BU is known for its strong commitment to undergraduate research. BU has the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP), which provides funding for faculty-mentored research for undergraduate students. In 2023, BU published 7,644 publications. BU also offers over 80 study abroad programs in over 20 countries. BU’s famous alumni include Howard Stern, Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, Julianne Moore and many more.

How diverse is Boston University?

BU’s Class of 2027 is made of students from 64 countries, 46 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. 21% are first-generation college students. 24% of students in the class are international, with 5.1% of international students coming from Canada, 9.9% from Europe and 55.5% from Southeast or East Asia. Additionally, 12.8% of the class is Hispanic or Latinx, 18.1% Asian American, 29.2% white, and 9.0% Black or African American.