,·Private (Church of the Nazarene, non-profit)·Est. 1968
“A Christ-centered residential university in central Ohio shaping students for service through nursing, education, business, and ministry.”
Mount Vernon Nazarene University (MVNU) is a private Christian university affiliated with the Church of the Nazarene, founded in 1968 and rooted in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition. Set on a 327-acre campus on the wooded edge of Mount Vernon, Ohio — a small county-seat town about 50 miles northeast of Columbus — MVNU offers a distinctly residential undergraduate experience for roughly 1,600 traditional students. The university's motto, "To Seek to Learn is to Seek to Serve," frames an academic culture in which faith integration, character formation, and professional preparation are pursued together. Twice-weekly chapel services in the R.R. Hodges Chapel/Auditorium are part of a required Spiritual Formation Program, and lifestyle expectations follow the standards of the sponsoring denomination. Academically, MVNU is organized into six schools — Arts and Humanities; Business; Education and Professional Studies; Theology and Philosophy; Nursing and Health Sciences; and Natural and Social Sciences — and offers around 48 traditional undergraduate majors plus graduate and online programs through its Graduate and Professional Studies (GPS) division. The university is best known for its pre-licensure Bachelor of Science in Nursing, its teacher-licensure programs in Education, undergraduate Business and Accounting, and its Ministry/Theology programs that prepare pastors and missionaries for the global Nazarene church. STEM offerings include Computer Science, Computer Systems and Network Engineering, and Engineering, with Choose Ohio First state scholarships supporting Ohio residents in those fields. Residential life is central to the experience: nearly all traditional undergraduates live on campus in hall-style dormitories, with annual traditions including the Luau, Block Party, Oaktoberfest, and the SonFest outdoor Christian music festival. The MVNU Cougars compete in the NAIA's Crossroads League across more than 20 men's and women's varsity sports, anchoring an active intramural and club-sport scene. The setting is decidedly rural, the community small and tight-knit, and the audience primarily Christian students from Ohio and surrounding states — a profile that shapes both the strengths and the trade-offs an international applicant should weigh carefully.
Visa, OPT, H-1B alumni outcomes, and acceptance rates by country — sourced from FOIA, USCIS H-1B Hub, and DHS SEVIS.
Regional Universities Midwest
US News Best Colleges 2026
Varies by School — Testing policy varies by college or program within the university.
Official SourceInternational — Fall enrollment
International student application deadline for the following Fall term per MVNU international admissions page
International — Spring enrollment
International student application deadline for the following Spring term
Domestic — Regular Application
MVNU operates rolling admissions for domestic students; no Early Action/Decision program
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Tuition & Fees (All Students)
$25,309 – $25,559
/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 MVNU's flagship pre-licensure BSN program along with health-related sciences. The nursing curriculum integrates clinical rotations at central Ohio hospitals with a Christian framework for whole-person care; nursing is consistently among the university's most popular and selective majors.
Prepares teachers for licensure in Ohio across early-childhood, middle-childhood, and adolescent/young-adult content areas, with an emphasis on field experience in local school districts. Also home to several professional studies programs.
Offers undergraduate degrees in Business Administration, Accounting, Management, Marketing, Sport Management, and related fields, with graduate options in management. Coursework emphasizes ethical, faith-integrated leadership.
MVNU's historic core, training pastors, missionaries, worship leaders, and lay ministers within the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition. A primary feeder for vocational ministry roles in the Church of the Nazarene's East Central Region.
Hosts Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, Computer Science, Engineering, Psychology, Criminal Justice, History, and related programs. The Computer Science and Engineering tracks are eligible for Ohio's Choose Ohio First STEM scholarship.
Includes English, Communication, Music, Worship Arts, Art and Design, and related fields. Strong tie-in with chapel and performing arts via the R.R. Hodges Chapel/Auditorium.
4 years
Pre-licensure four-year nursing program preparing students for the NCLEX-RN. Integrates clinical placements at central Ohio hospitals with MVNU's faith-based approach to holistic patient care; consistently the university's most prominent professional program.
4 years
Ohio teacher-licensure programs across early-childhood, middle-childhood, intervention specialist, and adolescent/young-adult content areas, with extensive field placements in local school districts. A long-standing pipeline into K-12 teaching across Ohio.
4 years
Small-cohort STEM tracks emphasizing software development, networking, and systems engineering. MVNU reports its CS graduates score in the 80th percentile on the Major Field Test, and Ohio residents in CS, engineering, and nursing may qualify for state-funded Choose Ohio First scholarships.
4 years
Wesleyan-Holiness ministry preparation for pastors, missionaries, worship leaders, and lay ministers. A primary undergraduate feeder for vocational ministry within the Church of the Nazarene.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $37,158
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.
