“A top-ranked liberal arts college where students turn theory into practice through the signature OWU Connection.”
Ohio Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1842 in Delaware, Ohio, just 20 miles north of Columbus. With fewer than 1,600 undergraduates and a student-faculty ratio of roughly 11:1, OWU offers an intimate, mentorship-driven academic experience across more than 80 majors, minors, and interdisciplinary programs in the arts, sciences, humanities, and professional fields. The university is a member of the Colleges That Change Lives consortium and is consistently recognized by U.S. News as one of the country's Most Innovative Schools among National Liberal Arts Colleges. OWU's signature program, the OWU Connection, combines coursework with hands-on research, domestic and international travel-learning experiences, and career-focused apprenticeships. Students regularly collaborate with faculty on original research, present at national conferences, and pursue paid Theory-to-Practice Grants that fund self-designed projects anywhere in the world. Popular programs include Zoology and Biological Sciences, Psychology, Business Administration, Economics (home to the selective Woltemade Center Fellows), Politics and Government, Journalism, and a distinctive Conrades School of Engineering that blends engineering with a liberal arts core. The wooded 200-acre campus is known for its mix of historic 19th-century buildings and modern science and athletic facilities, and for a welcoming, globally minded student body in which roughly one-third of students identify as international or U.S. multicultural. Traditions like Convocation, Day on the JAY, Culture Fest, the Mock Presidential Convention, and President's Ball anchor a tight-knit campus community, while the Battling Bishops compete in the NCAA Division III North Coast Athletic Conference.
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 SourceEarly Decision
Binding
Early Action
Non-binding; notification by mid-December
Regular Decision
Rolling admission continues after this date as space allows
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Tuition & Fees (All Students)
$52,000 – $54,000
/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.
Home to nationally recognized programs in Biological Sciences, Zoology, Chemistry, Neuroscience, Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science. Undergraduates co-author publications with faculty and use modern research labs, a greenhouse, and the Perkins Observatory.
Includes Psychology, Economics, Politics and Government, Sociology/Anthropology, and Geography. The Woltemade Center supports selective fellowships in Economics Management, while the Mock Presidential Convention anchors a strong politics tradition.
Offers English, History, Philosophy, Religion, Modern Foreign Languages, Classics, and Creative Writing, along with performing and visual arts in Music, Theatre & Dance, and Fine Arts with competitive departmental scholarships.
Launched to pair ABET-track engineering with a liberal arts core, preparing students to work across disciplines and cultures on real-world design problems.
Distinctive programs include Journalism, Education, Health & Human Kinetics, Environment & Sustainability, and Business Administration, often paired with OWU Connection travel-learning projects and Theory-to-Practice Grants.
4 years
One of OWU's most popular and distinctive majors, with hands-on field work, access to a living marine aquarium, and longstanding placement into top veterinary, medical, and ecology graduate programs.
4 years
A selective fellows program pairing Economics and Business majors with funded internships, research stipends, and mentoring by Woltemade Center faculty — a major feeder to finance, consulting, and MBA programs.
4 years
One of the few U.S. liberal arts colleges with a dedicated Journalism department, producing award-winning student media (The Transcript) and alumni working at national news organizations.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $53,888
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.
