Bradley University

Bradley University maintains relatively accessible admissions while recovering ground in national evaluations. In the 2027 U.S. News rankings, the university stood at 169 among national universities, moving up after touching 189 in 2025. Gaining admission is generally manageable for qualified candidates. In 2025, the university admitted 76.8% of its applicants, an acceptance rate that was higher than 53% of peer private comprehensive universities. However, the university encounters clear hesitation from accepted students when deciding to enroll. Bradley recorded an undergraduate yield rate of 11.2% in 2025, which was higher than 47% of its peer group. This means that fewer than one in eight admitted applicants opted to matriculate, demonstrating that prospective students frequently weigh Bradley against competing choices. For applicants, these dynamics indicate an accessible admission pathway where strong academic credentials readily earn acceptance, though candidates should assess how well the university's academic offerings and financial costs fit their plans.

Bradley University operates under a test-blind policy, meaning standardized test scores are not considered even if submitted. As a result, recent years have no published SAT or ACT score ranges. Although testing is not factored into reviews, submission records from 2024 indicate that 28% of enrolled students submitted SAT scores. With testing entirely excluded from admissions evaluation, high school classroom achievement serves as the central measure of student preparation. Grade point averages among incoming students are notably high: for the 2023–2024 academic year, 39.3% of students entered with a 4.0 high school GPA, and an additional 20.4% posted grades in the bracket directly below that mark. Prospective applicants should focus their preparation on maintaining strong grades throughout secondary school and pursuing a rigorous curriculum, as transcript performance carries decisive weight when standardized tests play no role in Bradley's admissions process.

Academic choices at Bradley University are fairly distributed, with the three largest bachelor's programs accounting for 19.8% of all undergraduate degrees awarded in 2025. Rather than concentrating narrowly, undergraduate enrollment is spread across healthcare, engineering, and the liberal arts. The most popular undergraduate programs include Registered Nursing, Mechanical Engineering, and General Psychology. Although these programs are not positioned at the top of national department rankings, career outcomes remain lucrative for technical graduates. In 2023 earnings data, median pay one year after graduation reached $84,017 for industrial engineering majors and $77,642 for nursing graduates. At the master's level, degree conferrals are heavily focused on practical fields such as data science and mental health counseling.

Bradley University maintains an enrollment centered predominantly on domestic students, with both international and Asian students representing modest shares of the undergraduate population. In 2025, the incoming first-year class included 46 Asian students, comprising 5.7% of freshmen, alongside an international contingent that accounted for 2.3% of entering students. Asian representation remains at similarly low single-digit proportions among continuing undergraduates and graduate cohorts. In contrast, international enrollment is heavily concentrated at the advanced level, where 266 international students make up 22.5% of the graduate student body. Across the institution, white students form the majority in both undergraduate and graduate divisions. For families and prospective applicants evaluating campus demographics, these figures demonstrate an undergraduate learning environment rooted primarily in domestic attendance, while broader global representation is found mainly within graduate programs.

Undergraduate education at Bradley University is centered almost entirely around traditional college-age students. In 2025, students ages 20 to 21 formed the single largest undergraduate cohort at 47.5%, followed closely by students ages 18 to 19 at 40.4%. With nearly nine in ten undergraduates under age 22, student life, campus activities, and housing remain focused on the four-year undergraduate experience. Graduate education brings older learners to campus, with students aged 22 to 24 representing 30.3% of graduate enrollment alongside older cohorts balancing advanced studies with professional careers.

International student enrollment at Bradley University differs sharply between undergraduate and graduate divisions. In 2025, undergraduate international students represented 2.4% of the undergraduate student body, a share higher than 33% of its 30 peer private comprehensive universities. In contrast, international students made up 22.5% of graduate enrollment, though this represents a decline from 52.2% in 2016. Among 2025 degree recipients, international students earned just 2.4% of bachelor's degrees but accounted for 55.9% of all master's degrees. These graduate international students are heavily concentrated in technical degree tracks, representing all graduates in data science and business analytics.

Applicants evaluating Bradley University can consider a variety of higher education options within the surrounding region. Just 35 kilometers away in Normal, Illinois State University is a public national university ranked 219 in the 2027 U.S. News rankings. Those interested in private liberal arts education can look 43 kilometers northwest to Knox College, ranked 85, or 74 kilometers to Augustana College, ranked 91. Additionally, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a prominent national university ranked 34, is situated 84 kilometers southeast, giving families alternative regional paths spanning both research universities and undergraduate colleges.

Campus safety metrics at Bradley University have trended downward over the past decade. The crime rate per 1,000 students stood at 9.1 in 2025, down from 15.9 in 2016. Disciplinary actions for university policy violations accounted for the majority of campus security reports. Across the three-year period from 2023 through 2025, records show 198 liquor law disciplinary referrals and 42 drug abuse disciplinary referrals. Criminal incidents reported over that same timeframe included stalking, motor vehicle theft, and sexual assault offenses, though alcohol-related conduct policy referrals continue to represent the primary safety reports for the campus community.