,·Private (Evangelical Christian)·Est. 1902
“An evangelical residential university in the Twin Cities suburbs where every program is taught from a Christ-centered worldview.”
University of Northwestern - St. Paul (UNW) is a private, nondenominational evangelical Christian university founded in 1902 by W.B. Riley and most famously led, from 1948 to 1952, by Billy Graham as its second president. Today UNW is a residential undergraduate-focused institution of roughly 3,200 students (about 1,800 traditional undergraduates), set on a 107-acre wooded campus on the shores of Lake Johanna in Roseville, Minnesota — a quiet inner-ring suburb fifteen minutes north of downtown Saint Paul and twenty minutes from downtown Minneapolis. The university requires faculty, staff, and students to affirm a Christian statement of faith, and integration of biblical worldview into every academic discipline is the institution's defining characteristic: every traditional undergraduate, regardless of major, completes a substantial Bible and theology core alongside their professional coursework. Academically, UNW is best known for nursing (BSN, accredited by CCNE and approved by the Minnesota Board of Nursing), business (housed in the Stoltz School of Business), elementary and secondary education, an ABET-accredited Bachelor of Science in Engineering, and biblical and theological studies. The Classical Christian Honors College offers a three-year Great Books seminar program that supplements a student's primary major. Class sizes are small and the campus culture is intentionally communal — single rooms are not offered in residence halls, and full-time students under 21 are required to live on campus, producing the dense residential life that defines a UNW education. UNW also operates Northwestern Media, one of the largest Christian radio networks in the United States, anchored by 98.5 KTIS-FM in the Twin Cities, with stations across the Upper Midwest. Athletics compete in NCAA Division III as the Eagles, fielding 20 varsity sports in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC). The Twin Cities setting gives students access to Fortune 500 employers (UnitedHealth, 3M, Target, Medtronic, Best Buy), major hospital systems for nursing clinicals, and a vibrant urban arts and food scene, while the campus itself remains a small, residential, faith-centered community.
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
Top Performers on Social Mobility (Regional Universities Midwest)
US News Best Colleges 2026
Test Optional — You can submit scores if they help your case, but they're not required.
Official SourceSpring 2026
Final deadline for spring entry.
Fall 2026
Final deadline for fall entry; rolling admission, earlier is better for housing and scholarships.
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Tuition & Fees (All Students)
$37,920 – $39,042
/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.
BSN program approved by the Minnesota Board of Nursing and accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Twin Cities clinical placements at major hospital systems.
Named undergraduate business school covering accounting, finance, marketing, management, and sport management, with strong placement at Twin Cities Fortune 500 companies.
Houses the ABET-accredited B.S. in Engineering along with biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, and pre-health programs.
Offers Minnesota-licensure programs in elementary and secondary education along with psychology and social work; consistent producer of K-12 teachers across the Upper Midwest.
Core to UNW's identity; required Bible and theology coursework runs through every undergraduate degree, and the school offers ministry, biblical studies, and youth ministry majors.
Includes the NASM-accredited Music Department, theatre, communication, English, history, and the Media Arts department that ties into Northwestern Media / KTIS broadcasting operations.
A three-year Great Books seminar honors program completed alongside any primary major; Socratic discussion of Western and Christian classical texts.
4 years
CCNE-accredited, Minnesota Board of Nursing-approved BSN with clinical placements across the Twin Cities' major hospital systems. UNW's most-applied-to and most-selective major.
4 years
ABET-accredited general engineering degree with concentrations in mechanical, electrical, and biomedical tracks — uncommon for a small Christian university and a major draw for STEM-oriented faith-based applicants.
4 years
Students train alongside Northwestern Media, the in-house Christian radio network anchored by 98.5 KTIS, working in professional studios on campus and producing student-run station theMEL.fm.
3 years
Three-year secondary major in classical Christian education: small Socratic seminars on Augustine, Aquinas, Dante, Shakespeare, and other foundational texts, alongside any primary major.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $37,920
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.
