“A residential fundamentalist Christian university where conservative theology, performing arts, and a young-earth-creation worldview shape every classroom.”
Bob Jones University (BJU) is a private residential university in Greenville, South Carolina, founded in 1927 by evangelist Bob Jones Sr. and known for one of the most distinctive religious identities in American higher education. BJU openly self-identifies with historic Christian fundamentalism: chapel attendance is required, every academic discipline is taught from a stated biblical worldview, and the campus operates under a structured residential lifestyle with conservative dress, behavior, and curfew expectations. The university comprises seven colleges and schools offering more than 60 undergraduate majors, from nursing, business, accounting, and engineering to ministry, biblical counseling, and education. Its science programs are taught from a young-earth creationist position — biology, geology, and science-education courses examine origins through that lens — and BJU's School of Religion and Seminary remain central to the institution's identity. BJU is unusual among small Christian colleges in housing a serious performing-arts conservatory and one of the finest collections of European sacred art in the United States. The Division of Fine Arts is the largest faculty on campus, and the university stages full operas (Tosca, The Barber of Seville, Aida), Shakespeare productions, and the long-running Living Gallery — a Holy Week tableau-vivant blending classical paintings, drama, and music — in Rodeheaver Auditorium, one of the best-equipped collegiate stages in the Southeast. The Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery, founded in 1951, holds more than 400 European Old Master paintings, including works by Rubens, Botticelli, Tintoretto, and van Dyck. Athletically, BJU competes as the Bruins, primarily in the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA Division II) with a long history of national championships, while pursuing provisional NCAA Division III membership. Long uninterested in secular accreditation, BJU was granted full SACSCOC regional accreditation in 2017 — a major shift after eighty-plus years of operating outside the regional system, and a development that makes credit transfer, graduate-school admission, and professional licensing significantly easier for today's graduates than for earlier generations.
Visa, OPT, H-1B alumni outcomes, and acceptance rates by country — sourced from FOIA, USCIS H-1B Hub, and DHS SEVIS.
Test Optional — You can submit scores if they help your case, but they're not required.
Official SourceRolling Admission (Fall)
Recommended to apply 4–12 months before intended enrollment; international students should apply at least 6 months ahead to allow visa processing.
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Tuition & Fees (All Students)
$24,470 – $27,347
/yr
Beyond the sticker price — every named scholarship, the financial aid policy, need-aware notes, and a personalized net-cost estimate.
How life on campus actually feels — clubs, sports, traditions, housing realities, and how the school integrates with its city.
Houses BJU's foundational programs in Bible, theology, ministry, biblical counseling, and missions, plus the graduate Seminary. The school anchors the university's fundamentalist Christian identity and prepares pastors, missionaries, and ministry leaders worldwide.
BJU's largest academic division, encompassing music, theatre, cinema, art, and design. Students perform with the 70-piece BJU Symphony Orchestra and the BJU Opera Association, and the division mounts an internationally noted Concert, Opera & Drama Series each year.
Home to BJU's regionally accredited nursing program (BSN) and growing health-sciences offerings, including exercise and sport science. Built out as part of the run-up to SACSCOC accreditation in 2017.
Offers accounting, finance, management, marketing, and entrepreneurship programs grounded in a stated biblical ethic. Business Administration is consistently among BJU's largest undergraduate majors.
Prepares teachers for elementary, secondary, and special-education classrooms in Christian, public, and private school settings, with a strong pipeline into Christian K–12 schools nationally and internationally.
Covers communication, journalism, and the liberal-arts core, plus STEM departments — biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and engineering — taught from a young-earth-creation worldview.
4 years
Conservatory-style training inside a Christian university: students rotate through the BJU Opera Association's full-scale productions (Tosca, Aida, Rigoletto, The Barber of Seville) alongside faculty and guest artists, and perform with the BJU Symphony Orchestra in Rodeheaver Auditorium.
4 years
Pre-licensure BSN with clinical placements across Greenville's healthcare ecosystem (Prisma Health, Bon Secours St. Francis). Built up alongside SACSCOC accreditation; graduates sit for the NCLEX-RN.
4 years
One of BJU's signature programs and a national feeder into biblical-counseling ministry. Combines theology, psychology of personhood, and supervised practicum work; pairs naturally with BJU's graduate counseling tracks.
4 years
Hands-on production training — narrative, documentary, and post-production — with on-campus studio facilities. BJU alumni have shipped feature-length faith-based films and broadcast work.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $24,470
Net-cost estimate is US-resident-only — international applicants are typically excluded from need-based aid at most schools and should treat the sticker price as the planning baseline.
