Saint Ambrose University

Admission to St. Ambrose University is relatively accessible, though the institution has slipped in national standing in recent years. In the U.S. News rankings, the university dropped from rank 263 in 2023 to rank 352 in 2026. For the class entering in 2025, the university accepted 77.3% of applicants, an admit rate higher than 63% of peer schools among all private comprehensive universities. While receiving an acceptance offer is fairly straightforward, the university experiences modest pull when drawing admitted candidates to enroll. The yield rate stood at 16.7% in 2025, indicating that only about one in six admitted applicants chose to matriculate. The school enrolled several hundred students while turning away a larger group. For prospective students, these admissions trends suggest favorable odds of acceptance, though most admitted applicants ultimately weigh and select other options.

Under St. Ambrose University's admission test policy, standardized tests are optional, considered if submitted. For 2025, score ranges reflect accessible academic benchmarks for incoming students. Among enrolled freshmen who reported scores, the middle 50% ACT composite score spanned from 20 to 25. Across all private comprehensive universities in 2025, the university's median SAT score of 1050 was higher than 3% of peer schools. Standardized test submission rates in 2025 were low, with only a small fraction of applicants sending either test. For high school grades, the GPA distribution for 2023-2024 indicates that a majority of admitted students earned grades in the B to A range, with top-bracket marks representing a small share. For prospective applicants, these figures mean that gaining admission is realistic with solid, moderate high school coursework and mid-range standardized testing.

Academic offerings at St. Ambrose University demonstrate concentrated career preparation, especially in healthcare disciplines. Undergraduate degrees show moderate concentration, with the three largest programs making up 30.1% of all bachelor's degrees conferred in 2025. Registered Nursing stands as the single largest undergraduate major, followed by general psychology and marketing. However, the largest undergraduate fields are not the school's highest-ranked offerings. The university's standout academic reputations belong to graduate healthcare programs: U.S. News ranked Occupational Therapy at 59th and Physical Therapy at 87th in 2026. In terms of compensation, 2023 earnings data show strong returns for technical and clinical graduates, with Mechanical Engineering bachelor's degree recipients leading all fields at a median first-year salary of $78,171. Across all bachelor's degree recipients in 2025, international students represented only 3.5%, reflecting a largely domestic student profile across major programs.

The student body at St. Ambrose University totaled 2,498 students in 2025, consisting mostly of undergraduates alongside a smaller graduate cohort. White students constitute the majority of learners across all divisions. Both international and Asian students account for very small shares of enrollment. For instance, among first-year freshmen, international students numbered 6, representing 1.6% of the class, while Asian students held that identical share. Across continuing undergraduate and transfer cohorts, both groups remain in the single-digit percentages, and the graduate division included just 5 international students. Female students outnumber male students campus-wide, particularly in graduate programs where women form a substantial majority.

The age distribution at St. Ambrose University highlights a traditional undergraduate campus environment paired with young professional graduate study. In 2025, undergraduates were overwhelmingly of traditional college age, with those aged 20 to 21 making up 42.5% of enrollment and those aged 18 to 19 accounting for 35%. This high concentration of young adults shapes an active, standard undergraduate collegiate setting. In contrast, graduate programs are dominated by students in their early twenties transitioning directly from bachelor's degrees. Students aged 22 to 24 formed 59.5% of all graduate students, while older working adults represented smaller cohorts. This age structure keeps campus life focused predominantly on early-career adults.

International enrollment at St. Ambrose University is modest and has trended downward over the past decade. At the undergraduate level, international students comprised 3.2% of the student body in 2025, falling slightly from earlier years. The decline has been sharper in graduate programs, where international representation dropped to just 0.9% in 2025. Among degree recipients in 2025, international students made up 3.5% of bachelor's graduates and 1.3% of master's graduates, with no international doctoral recipients. At the undergraduate level, international graduates were concentrated in fields such as Exercise Science and Kinesiology, Biology, and Elementary Education, while the largest major, Registered Nursing, had none. At the graduate level, international master's degree earners appeared primarily in Organizational Leadership and Business Administration, rather than the university's large healthcare tracks. Prospective international applicants should note that they will join a small global cohort primarily distributed across business, science, and education tracks.

Families exploring St. Ambrose University in eastern Iowa have several alternative college choices within driving distance. Located just 3 kilometers away across the Mississippi River in Illinois is Augustana College, ranked 91st among National Liberal Arts Colleges. Further west in Galesburg, Illinois, Knox College is situated 42.7 kilometers away and holds a rank of 85th among National Liberal Arts Colleges. For students seeking a major public research institution, University of Iowa is located 50.1 kilometers to the west in Iowa City, holding the 100th spot among National Universities. Additionally, Bradley University, positioned 76.9 kilometers away in Peoria, Illinois, is ranked 169th among National Universities. These institutions offer varied campus formats ranging from intimate residential colleges to large flagship universities.

Campus safety metrics at St. Ambrose University show an overall downward trend in incident density over recent years. The university's crime rate per 1,000 students decreased to 22.4 in 2025, down from higher levels recorded a decade earlier. The vast majority of logged infractions involve substance-related conduct rather than violent offenses. From 2023 to 2025, the largest cumulative categories were disciplinary actions, led by 169 drug disciplinary referrals and 116 alcohol disciplinary referrals. Property offenses occurred in smaller quantities across that three-year window, including burglary and motor vehicle theft, alongside occasional drug arrests. Prospective students and families reviewing campus security can observe that disciplinary enforcement accounts for the bulk of safety records, while serious violent incidents remain comparatively infrequent on campus grounds.