Pepperdine University

Gaining admission to Pepperdine University has become noticeably more accessible as its national standing has slipped. In the 2027 U.S. News Best Colleges rankings, Pepperdine placed 80th, having fallen from 46th in 2018. For the 2025 entering class, the university accepted 62.9% of applicants, an admit rate higher than 67% of the 30 peer private research universities in its comparison group. However, the university encounters difficulty converting offers into enrollments. Its yield rate reached just 11.6% in 2025, which is higher than only 7% of peer institutions. These figures suggest that while securing an offer of admission has grown more achievable, the university must compete aggressively against peer schools to convince accepted candidates to attend.

Undergraduate applicants to Pepperdine University encounter a selective academic review process where solid secondary school preparation is essential. In 2025, enrolled students who reported testing achieved a median SAT score of 1370, matching the median across peer private comprehensive universities with similar rankings. For those submitting the ACT, composite scores between the 25th and 75th percentiles spanned from 29 to 32. High school grades serve as a critical benchmark, with high-achieving students comprising the vast majority of the incoming class. International families evaluating their chances can also reference applicant cases collected by Forward Pathway, which are unofficial figures rather than university statistics. In these unofficial records, admitted international students held a median unweighted GPA of 3.77. For prospective candidates, meeting these academic benchmarks requires consistent performance in rigorous high school coursework throughout secondary education.

Pepperdine University awards the majority of its degrees at the graduate level, though undergraduate degree completions remain concentrated in business and the social sciences. The three largest undergraduate programs accounted for 34.9% of all bachelor's recipients in 2025, led by general business administration and management, followed by general psychology. The school's most recognized academic programs do not completely align with its largest majors; its dispute resolution program at the law school achieved a national ranking of 3rd from U.S. News in 2026. According to 2023 earnings data, early career outcomes are strongest in quantitative business disciplines, where accounting graduates earned median pay of $82,200 one year after leaving campus.

Pepperdine University maintains a student population dominated by graduate programs, alongside a smaller undergraduate college where women form the majority across all levels. White and Hispanic students constitute the largest ethnic groups on campus, while Asian and international learners add meaningful diversity to the academic community. In the 2025 entering undergraduate class, Asian students accounted for 13.6% with 115 individuals, while international students represented 9% with 76 individuals. Graduate divisions also draw significant representation from both Asian and overseas scholars, though White and Hispanic students remain the largest demographics in advanced degree tracks as well. For families evaluating campus life, these figures reflect an institution with an established domestic foundation combined with steady representation from Asian and international students at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Undergraduate and graduate populations at Pepperdine University occupy distinctly separate stages of adulthood. The undergraduate body is predominantly of traditional college age, with students aged 20 to 21 accounting for 47.5% and those aged 18 to 19 comprising 40.3%. This creates a campus life focused primarily on full-time, early-adulthood studies. In contrast, the graduate community reflects older students pursuing advanced careers. The largest graduate group consists of students aged 25 to 29 at 29.0%, followed by those aged 22 to 24 and 30 to 34. This age distribution produces two distinct learning environments on campus.

International student enrollment at Pepperdine University has trended downward over the past decade across both degree levels. In 2025, international students represented 7.8% of the undergraduate student body, a proportion that is nonetheless higher than 73% of peer private comprehensive universities with similar rankings. At the graduate level, the overseas share has similarly declined over time, with international students comprising 6.3% of advanced degree enrollment. Among graduating classes, international undergraduates spread across core disciplines such as business administration, psychology, and public relations. At the graduate level, international degree recipients concentrate heavily in analytical tracks, most notably management science, where overseas students accounted for 61.6% of master's degrees. For international families, these distributions highlight that while the overall international footprint has contracted, specialized professional programs continue to attract meaningful global cohorts.

Applicants evaluating Pepperdine University can consider several other prominent higher education institutions situated across the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area. Located 15.3 kilometers away, University of California-Los Angeles is a public research institution ranked 20th among National Universities in the 2027 U.S. News rankings. Closer down the coastline, Loyola Marymount University sits 17.3 kilometers away and ranks 109th among National Universities. Farther inland, University of Southern California is a large private research university located 24.2 kilometers from Pepperdine, holding the 27th spot on the National Universities list. Students interested in a smaller undergraduate focus can explore Occidental College, situated 29.1 kilometers away, which ranked 38th among National Liberal Arts Colleges in 2027. These neighboring institutions offer distinct academic profiles within easy reach.

Campus safety data at Pepperdine University indicate that incident frequencies have remained relatively even over the past decade, with disciplinary enforcement accounting for most campus reports. In 2025, the weighted crime rate per 1,000 students stood at 3.4, matching the rate recorded in 2016. Across the three-year period from 2023 to 2025, disciplinary referrals for substance policies constituted the highest category counts, led by 108 alcohol violations and 29 drug violations. Over those same years from 2023 to 2025, the most frequent criminal reports included 27 counts of rape, alongside smaller numbers of sexual assault and burglary reports. Prospective students should be aware that while substance policy referrals form the largest share of records, personal and property safety require routine awareness.