Skip to content
AlmaSpire

Waco, TX · Private · 14,785 undergraduates · urban

Baylor University

Moderately selective

Add to my college list Review admission

Baylor offers an alternative interdisciplinary core that replaces much of ordinary general education with a cohort-based sequence spanning the humanities and social sciences.

Institutional profile

Regionally focused Solid in academic standing, and steady in student experience.
Academic Solid Affordability Emerging Career Steady Mobility Emerging Experience Steady
Academic standing Solid
Affordability Emerging
Career outcomes Steady
Mobility Emerging
Student experience Steady
Admission
51% admitted

39,735 applicants in the reported year

Price by income
Varies across five income ranges

Compare recent average annual costs by household income

Completion
80.5%

$65,793 median earnings 10 years after enrollment

What sets Baylor University apart

Academic design

The Baylor Interdisciplinary Core uses linked interdisciplinary courses and a shared cohort to satisfy much of a student's general-education curriculum.

Campus pattern

The residential Waco campus borders the Brazos River, with academic, athletic, residential, and recreation areas concentrated around a large traditional campus.

A signature opportunity

The Baylor Interdisciplinary Core creates a multi-year cohort experience inside the larger university rather than adding only isolated honors seminars.

Can I get in?

51% admitted

Students interested in the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core should apply through the Honors College process and enter the sequence during their first semester.

Recent applicant pool

39,735

About 51 in every 100 applicants were admitted.

Admission rate 51%
Entering class

Academic range

SAT middle 50%1210–1400
10801520
ACT middle 50%27–32
2435

Of admitted students, 31% submitted an SAT, and 19% submitted an ACT. Treat the ACT range as a guide to the students who submitted that test, not to everyone admitted.

Academic benchmarkModerately selective

In the season card

Where your GPA sits in the entering class

The full entering-class GPA distribution for Baylor University, in nine bands from 4.0 down, with your own record marked on it.

See where I land

In the season card

What Baylor University weighs when it reads a file

See how this college describes the role of grades, testing, essays, recommendations, activities, and demonstrated interest.

  • Course rigor  
  • GPA  
  • Test scores  
  • Essay  
  • Recommendations  
  • Extracurriculars  
  • Demonstrated interest  
See what counts here

What moves the application

The evidence that separates a strong file

01

Show preparation for this curriculum

The Baylor Interdisciplinary Core uses linked interdisciplinary courses and a shared cohort to satisfy much of a student's general-education curriculum.

02

Make institutional fit specific

Baylor offers an alternative interdisciplinary core that replaces much of ordinary general education with a cohort-based sequence spanning the humanities and social sciences.

03

Use the application route carefully

Students interested in the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core should apply through the Honors College process and enter the sequence during their first semester.

How to apply

Rounds, route, and required materials

Students interested in the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core should apply through the Honors College process and enter the sequence during their first semester.

Early DecisionNov 1
Early ActionNov 1
Regular DecisionFeb 1
Fee and waiverNo application fee

Check eligibility for a fee waiver

Major and program admission

Some fields have their own entry path.

The college admit rate above covers the university as a whole. These requirements apply only to the named program.

BusinessAdmits separately

What this program asks for, and when it closes.

EngineeringAdmits separately

What this program asks for, and when it closes.

NursingAdmits separately

What this program asks for, and when it closes.

Can I afford it?

Compare annual cost by household income.

Start with the average net price for your income range, then set that estimate beside your other realistic options.

Published annual cost$88,986
Average annual cost after aid$41,000
Affordability profileEmerging

College funding

Scholarships and financial aid

Review available aid, application requirements, and renewal terms.

Baylor University publishes five merit awards, the largest reaching $20,000 a year or more. No separate scholarship application is required; the college uses the admission application. All of them renew past the first year.

Automatic consideration An award reaching $20,000 a year or more

Open across the university · Merit · Competitive · Renews

Automatic consideration An award reaching $20,000 a year or more

Open across the university · Merit · Competitive · Renews

Automatic consideration An award reaching $20,000 a year or more

Open across the university · Merit · Competitive · Renews

Automatic consideration An award reaching $20,000 a year or more

Open across the university · Merit · Competitive · Renews

Automatic consideration An award reaching $10,000 to $20,000 a year

Open across the university · Merit · Competitive · Renews

In the season card

These five awards, by name

What each one is called, what it pays, the grades and scores it asks for, and what to send.

  • The name of each award 
  • What it pays 
  • The grades and scores it asks for 
  • How to be considered 
  • What to send, and where 
See the full read
Open financial aid plan

In the season card

Average annual cost by household income at Baylor University

Compare recent average net prices across five federal income ranges and estimate a 4-year cost for yours.

  • $0–30k 
  • $30–48k 
  • $48–75k 
  • $75–110k 
  • $110k+ 
Open the price by income

Is it worth it?

Completion, debt, and earnings

Read completion, borrowing, field mix, and earnings together. One university-wide earnings figure does not describe every student path.

Complete within 8 years80.5%

Degree completion across the reported entering cohort

Return after year one90.8%

First-year students who return for year two

Median federal debtWhat students owe on the way out

And what that comes to against what they earn.

Median earnings$65,793

Reported 10 years after enrollment

Academic portfolio

Largest bachelor’s fields

How many students finish in each field, and median earnings four years after completing the program.

Marketing

Recent graduates253
Median earnings$78,398

Admits separately

Biology, General

Recent graduates236
Median earnings$57,155

What is campus life like?

Baylor University beyond the classroom

The residential Waco campus borders the Brazos River, with academic, athletic, residential, and recreation areas concentrated around a large traditional campus.

Academics

A defining academic feature

The Baylor Interdisciplinary Core uses linked interdisciplinary courses and a shared cohort to satisfy much of a student's general-education curriculum.

Campus setting

What shapes an ordinary week

The residential Waco campus borders the Brazos River, with academic, athletic, residential, and recreation areas concentrated around a large traditional campus.

Signature opportunity

A reason to look closer

The Baylor Interdisciplinary Core creates a multi-year cohort experience inside the larger university rather than adding only isolated honors seminars.

14,785 undergraduatesSouthwesturban setting98% of first-year students live on campus