Kent State University at Kent

In the 2027 US News rankings, Kent State University at Kent placed at 236, down from 176 in 2018. Admission to the university is broad rather than selective. In 2025, the university posted an overall acceptance rate of 86.3%. When evaluated against its peer group of public research universities with similar rankings, this acceptance rate is higher than 43% of peer schools. However, the university sees only a modest fraction of admitted applicants choose to enroll. Its yield rate in 2025 was 20.3%, which is higher than 30% of peer schools in that same group. These trends indicate that while gaining admission to Kent State is relatively straightforward for the majority of degree-seeking applicants, the university continues to compete vigorously against other regional and national options to attract its admitted pool to campus.

Prospective applicants to Kent State University at Kent encounter accessible admissions standards. In 2025, the institutional median SAT score was 1120, which is higher than 42% of peer schools in its comparison group of public universities with similar rankings. Standardized test submission has decreased noticeably over the years, with only a small minority of incoming undergraduates providing test results. According to unofficial applicant cases collected by Forward Pathway rather than official university records, admitted international applicants held a median unweighted GPA of 3.48 and a median SAT of 1170 across recorded offer cases. These figures demonstrate that an applicant presenting secondary school grades in the mid-3.0 range alongside standardized examination results near the institutional median will find themselves on solid footing during the evaluation process. Students with academic profiles in this range can approach the application with confidence.

Academic degrees at Kent State University at Kent show moderate concentration, with the top three undergraduate majors accounting for 24.3% of all bachelor's degrees conferred in 2025. The single largest undergraduate program that year was Registered Nursing, graduating 420 students, followed by General Psychology and General Business Administration. The university's highest-ranked academic programs are primarily at the graduate level rather than among its largest undergraduate fields. According to US News, its graduate rehabilitation counseling program ranked 18th in 2026, while its graduate library and information science program ranked 24th in 2025. Its graduate nursing school placed 45th in 2026, aligning well with strong post-graduation returns in healthcare. According to 2023 earnings data, median earnings one year after graduation reached $74,293 for graduates in registered nursing and related clinical fields, leading all bachelor's areas. For incoming students, Kent State offers robust professional preparation in clinical health disciplines, where student demand, specialized program recognition, and entry-level compensation intersect strongly.

In 2025, student demographics at Kent State University at Kent showed a predominantly domestic undergraduate student body alongside a globally diverse graduate school. Among incoming first-year undergraduates, international students numbered 189, representing 4.4% of the class, while Asian students totaled 98, or 2.3%. The international presence is far more concentrated in graduate education, where 1,344 international students account for 24.3% of the graduate body. Asian students also form a consistent minority in graduate programs, representing nearly three percent of advanced degree seekers. Across undergraduate classrooms, White students constitute roughly seventy percent of enrollment, with African American and Hispanic students comprising the largest domestic minority groups. For prospective applicants, this profile points to a campus atmosphere anchored by regional undergraduate life, balanced by significant global participation in post-baccalaureate scholarship.

The age profile at Kent State University at Kent highlights a distinct separation between undergraduate and graduate populations. In 2025, undergraduates were heavily clustered in traditional college age brackets: students aged 18 to 19 numbered 7,628, making up 36.6% of the undergraduate body, while those aged 20 to 21 accounted for 35.4%. This concentration creates a traditional residential campus experience focused around early-adulthood collegiate activities. In contrast, graduate students exhibit a broader age distribution typical of continuing education. Degree seekers aged 25 to 29 formed the largest graduate bracket at 28.6%, closely followed by those aged 22 to 24 at 28.1%. This divide means undergraduate student life revolves around traditional campus routines, whereas graduate programs engage young working professionals and career changers.

International student enrollment at Kent State University at Kent shows distinct paths across study levels, with foreign students far more prominent in graduate programs than in undergraduate cohorts. Undergraduate international representation has gradually declined over time to 4% in 2025, though that figure is still higher than 87% of peer schools among similarly ranked public universities. In contrast, the graduate international proportion has expanded, climbing to 24.3% in 2025. International graduates also display sharp academic concentration. While international bachelor's recipients are thinly distributed across popular majors like nursing and psychology, master's cohorts in quantitative fields are predominantly international. For instance, international students accounted for 96.1% of master's degree recipients in Business Analytics, with Computer Science showing a similarly heavy share. For incoming students, this means that international peer networks and shared global backgrounds are largely concentrated within advanced technical master's programs rather than broader undergraduate lecture halls.

Families exploring college alternatives in the region around Kent State University at Kent will find several prominent higher education institutions within driving distance. Located 28.5 kilometers away, Case Western Reserve University is a National University ranked 44th in the 2027 rankings. Students interested in undergraduate liberal arts colleges can consider Oberlin College, situated 46.5 kilometers from campus and ranked 59th among national liberal arts colleges, or The College of Wooster, which sits 38.6 kilometers away with a liberal arts ranking of 91st. Slightly farther afield across state lines, Carnegie Mellon University is located 87.9 kilometers away and holds a rank of 14th among national universities. These neighboring institutions provide diverse academic formats, ranging from research universities to focused liberal arts colleges within the surrounding area.

Campus safety at Kent State University at Kent has improved over the past decade. The crime rate per 1,000 students dropped from 11.8 in 2016 to 5.4 in 2025, reflecting a steady overall decline. Over the three-year period from 2023 to 2025, alcohol and substance violations made up the bulk of campus offenses. During these years, campus authorities recorded 152 liquor law arrests, representing the single largest category of infractions, alongside dozens of drug arrests and disciplinary referrals. Interpersonal safety incidents were reported less frequently, including 49 dating violence incidents and 35 stalking reports between 2023 and 2025. For incoming students, these data indicate that safety concerns on campus primarily revolve around substance-related policy enforcement, while the institutional crime rate per capita continues to track downward.