Acceptance Rate
11%
Avg. SAT
1560
75th percentile
“Golden-domed Catholic powerhouse where Fighting Irish spirit fuses faith, football, and fierce undergraduate loyalty in snowy South Bend.”
Notre Dame, IN
Location
Large Suburb
Campus Setting
You'll step onto a campus founded in 1842 by French priest Edward Sorin, who built Notre Dame from swampy Indiana wilderness into a beacon for Catholic higher education amid anti-immigrant backlash—twice rebuilding the Main Building after devastating fires in 1850 and 1879. This legacy shapes a school that thrives on resilience and community, drawing students who embrace ritual, service, and a touch of rah-rah pride; picture earnest overachievers who cheer as loudly for midterms as they do for touchdowns. The personality pulses with earnest wholesomeness and unapologetic tradition, but tradeoffs loom in its insular bubble—South Bend's quiet suburbs offer few urban thrills, and brutal Midwest winters (subzero temps, lake-effect snow) test your fortitude if you crave palm trees or nightlife.
Photo Gallery
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Admissions
Acceptance Rate
Test Policy
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Average GPA
Application Fee
Academics
Student-Faculty Ratio
Programs Offered
Full-Time Faculty
Women Faculty
Research Spending
Degree Levels Offered
In classrooms capped at 25 students thanks to that enviable 9:1 ratio, you'll debate ethics in seminar-style honors courses or tinker in Mendoza College of Business labs simulating Wall Street trades—Mendoza consistently outpaces peers like Georgetown in undergrad rankings, while architecture students draft blueprints in a program predating most rivals by decades. Research beckons early, from engineering undergrads prototyping drones to biology majors sequencing DNA in Hesburgh Library's high-tech nooks, all threaded by a core curriculum wrestling faith with reason. Yet the intellectual culture tilts conservative, with mandatory theology/philosophy credits that energize believers but chafe skeptics; more selective than 98% of U.S. colleges, it demands top SATs (1450-1550) but skimps on grade inflation.
Student Body
Total Enrollment
8,880 undergrad • 4,162 grad
Undergraduate
Graduate
International
White
58%
Black / African American
4%
Hispanic / Latino
12%
Asian
5%
Other / Multi-racial
21%
Campus Life
Campus Setting
Notre Dame, IN
Varsity Athletics
NCAA Athletics
All 9,000 undergrads live on campus four years straight in fiercely loyal, single-sex dorms where you befriend hallmates over midnight pancakes and interhall scream contests—think lifelong bonds forged in pajama parades and dorm masses. A typical week blends 9 a.m. lectures, club meetings from the 400-plus options (debate to Irish dancing), and Friday night pep rallies exploding into game-day euphoria when football packs 77,000 into Notre Dame Stadium. Traditions like the massive Bookstore Basketball tournament or Senior Assassins (dorm-wide hide-and-seek with water guns) knit the vibe tight, wholesome yet spirited—no Greek life, just organic crushes and service trips. Challenges hit hard: social scene skews straight-laced (dry campus policy), football hype overwhelms quieter souls, and South Bend's strip malls pale against Big Ten party towns, amplified by endless gray winters.
Housing
On-Campus Housing
Housing Capacity
Meal Plan Available
Average Room & Board
Athletics
Athletic Association
Atlantic Coast Conference
ROTC & Veteran Support
Army
Yes
Navy
Yes
Air Force
Yes
Veteran’s Programs Available
Yellow Ribbon Program (Post-9/11 GI Bill)
Yes
Dedicated point of contact for veteran support services
Yes
Recognized student veteran organization
Yes
Member of DoD Voluntary Educational Partnership MOU
Yes
Cost & Aid
In-State Tuition
Out-of-State Tuition
Room & Board
Estimated Cost
Financial Aid
Students Receiving Aid
Receiving Pell Grants
Average Grant
Average Federal Loan
Net Annual Cost by Household Income
Household Income
Avg. Net Cost
$0 – $30K
$10,918
$30K – $48K
$8,482
$48K – $75K
$14,582
$75K – $110K
$22,568
$110K+
$46,178
Apply for Financial Aid
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Costs shown are before financial aid. Most students receive some form of aid. Complete the FAFSA to see what you qualify for.
Outcomes & Earnings
Retention Rate
99%
4 Years Graduation Rate
90%
6 Years Graduation Rate
96%
Median 10-Year Earnings
$99,980
99% of first-time, full-time students complete their freshman year at University of Notre Dame and return in the fall. 90% of first-time, full-time students graduate in 4 years, and 96% graduate within 6 years.
Graduation Rate
4-year grads
90%
4-6 years
6%
Non-grad
4%
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Key Statistics
Type
Private
Tuition
$59,794
Acceptance
11%
Undergrads
8,880
4-Year Grad Rate
90%
Endowment
$10.9B
Notre Dame, IN 46556
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