Middletown, CT · Private · 3,067 undergraduates · urban
Wesleyan University
Highly selective
Wesleyan’s open curriculum encourages unconventional combinations while preserving softer breadth expectations rather than mandatory distribution requirements.
Institutional profile
Top tier Exceptional in student experience, and exceptional in academic standing.- Admission
- 17.1% admitted
- Price by income
- Varies across five income ranges
- Completion
- 92.6%
14,500 applicants in the reported year
Compare recent average annual costs by household income
$73,897 median earnings 10 years after enrollment
What sets Wesleyan apart
Academic design
There are no core requirements; General Education Expectations encourage breadth across humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences.
Campus pattern
The Center for the Arts concentrates performance, music, dance, theater, and visual-arts activity.
A signature opportunity
Open Curriculum with General Education Expectations
Can I get in?
17.1% admitted
The strongest case shows why this structure fits a student who wants curricular experimentation and serious arts or interdisciplinary work without a rigid distribution framework.
Recent applicant pool
14,500About 17 in every 100 applicants were admitted.
Academic range
Of admitted students, 28% submitted an SAT, and 14% submitted an ACT. Treat the ACT range as a guide to the students who submitted that test, not to everyone admitted.
In the season card
Where your GPA sits in the entering class
The full entering-class GPA distribution for Wesleyan, in nine bands from 4.0 down, with your own record marked on it.
See where I landIn the season card
What Wesleyan 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
What moves the application
The evidence that separates a strong file
Show preparation for this curriculum
There are no core requirements; General Education Expectations encourage breadth across humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences.
Make institutional fit specific
A student who wants curricular experimentation and serious arts or interdisciplinary work without a rigid distribution framework.
Use the application route carefully
Keep the academic direction and school-specific choices coherent across the application.
Give commitments a clear through-line
Activities and recommendations should show sustained contribution, not a collection of disconnected credentials.
How to apply
Rounds, route, and required materials
Use the application to show a clear academic direction and a specific reason this institutional structure fits.
Fee waiver: accepted
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.
In the season card
Average annual cost by household income at Wesleyan
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+
Is it worth it?
Completion, debt, and earnings
Read the outcomes panel as a whole: completion, borrowing, field mix, and earnings together matter more than one headline number.
Degree completion across the reported entering cohort
First-year students who return for year two
And what that comes to against what they earn.
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.
Economics
Psychology, General
Political Science and Government
Area Studies
Computer Science
What is campus life like?
Wesleyan beyond the classroom
The Center for the Arts concentrates performance, music, dance, theater, and visual-arts activity. Film culture extends through the College of Film and the Moving Image, screening spaces, archives, and student production.
The academic structure
There are no core requirements; General Education Expectations encourage breadth across humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences.
How the community is organized
The Center for the Arts concentrates performance, music, dance, theater, and visual-arts activity.
Daily campus life
Film culture extends through the College of Film and the Moving Image, screening spaces, archives, and student production.
What shapes an ordinary week
The Center for the Arts concentrates performance, music, dance, theater, and visual-arts activity. Film culture extends through the College of Film and the Moving Image, screening spaces, archives, and student production.
Use the campus beyond class
A student who wants curricular experimentation and serious arts or interdisciplinary work without a rigid distribution framework.
Fit the community in practice
Students carry more responsibility for designing a coherent education.