American University Data & Information Overview
If you want to know more about American University, such as what majors does it offer, how diverse it is, how well it ranks, and more, this is your one-stop resource. Want to dig deeper into a particular stat? Just click on its tile and you’ll be taked to a more in-depth page on the figure. In addition, you can use the links below to quickly jump to any section on this page.- Rankings
- Admission and Acceptance
- Faculty
- Retention and Graduation Rates
- Diversity
- Cost
- Student Debt
- Average Earnings
- Location
- Majors
- Online Learning
- Related Schools
How Well Is American University Ranked?
2022 Rankings
College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.
American University was awarded 668 badges in the 2022 rankings. The highest ranked major at the school is other statistics.
Overall Quality
The American University landed the #141 spot in College Factual's 2022 ranking of best overall colleges in the United States. The higher ed experts analyzed 2,576 colleges and universities across the nation to determine this ranking. This puts it in the top 10% of all schools in the nation. This is an improvement over the previous year, when The American University held the #164 spot on the Best Overall Colleges list.
The American University is also ranked #3 out of 9 schools in District of Columbia.
See all of the rankings for American University.
Is It Hard to Get Into The American University?
Acceptance Rate
American University has an acceptance rate of 39%, which means the school is serious about who it admits. Take your time in putting together a strong application that highlights why you are a good fit for The American University.
Average Test Scores
About 50% of students accepted to The American University submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 630 and 710. Math scores were between 590 and 680.
Learn more about American University admissions.
American University Faculty
Student to Faculty Ratio
The student to faculty ratio is often used to measure the number of teaching resources that a college or university offers its students. The national average for this metric is 15 to 1, but at The American University it is much better at 11 to 1. That's good news for students who want to interact more on a personal level with their teachers.
Percent of Full-Time Faculty
In addition to the student to faculty ratio, some people look at what percentage of faculty members are full-time as a sign of how much time professors will be able to spend with their students. This is because part-time teachers may not be be on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.
The full-time faculty percentage at American University is 56%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.
Retention and Graduation Rates at American University
Freshmen Retention Rate
American University has a freshmen retention rate of 85%. That's a good sign that full-time students like the school and their professors enough to want to stick around for another year. It's also a sign that the admissions team did a good job in choosing applicants who were a good fit for the school.
Graduation Rate
The on-time graduation rate for someone pursuing a bachelor's degree is typically four years. This rate at The American University for first-time, full-time students is 76%, which is better than the national average of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at American University.
American University Undergraduate Student Diversity
During the 2017-2018 academic year, there were 7,953 undergraduates at The American University with 7,453 being full-time and 500 being part-time.
How Much Does American University Cost?
The overall average net price of The American University is $43,451. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.Net Price by Income Group for The American University
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $28,432 | $22,578 | $33,158 | $37,117 | $54,404 |
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid.Note that the net price is typically less than the published for a school. For more information on the sticker price of The American University, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
Student Loan Debt
Almost 66% of college students who graduated with the class of 2018 took out student loans, but that percentage varies from school to school. At The American University, approximately 42% of students took out student loans averaging $9,489 a year. That adds up to $37,956 over four years for those students.
The student loan default rate at The American University is 2.5%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you'll be able to pay back your student loans.
Get more details about paying for American University.
How Much Money Do The American University Graduates Make?
The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor's degree from The American University make about $61,000 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. That's great news for The American University students since it is 53% more than the average college graduate's salary of $39,802 per year.
See which majors at American University make the most money.
Location of American University
Located in Washington, District of Columbia, American University is a private not-for-profit institution. The location of The American University is great for students who prefer living in an urban area.Get more details about the location of American University.
Contact details for The American University are given below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 4400 Massachusetts Ave Nw, Washington, DC 20016-8001 |
| Phone: | 202-885-1000 |
| Website: | www.american.edu/ |
| Facebook: | http://www.facebook.com/AmericanUniversity |
| Twitter: | http://www.twitter.com/AmericanU |
American University Majors
During the most recent year for which we have data, students from 71 majors graduated from American University. Of these students, 1,979 received undergraduate degrees and 2,383 graduated with a master's or doctor's degree. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.| Most Popular Majors | Bachelor’s Degrees | Average Salary of Graduates |
|---|---|---|
| International Relations & National Security | 434 | $43,039 |
| Business Administration & Management | 205 | $53,202 |
| Political Science & Government | 164 | $47,260 |
| Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies | 116 | $44,055 |
| Public Relations & Advertising | 105 | $48,725 |
| Economics | 90 | $47,650 |
| Public Health | 84 | $36,992 |
| Criminal Justice & Corrections | 79 | $37,748 |
| General Psychology | 66 | $34,704 |
| Finance & Financial Management | 64 | $62,154 |
Online Learning at The American University
Online learning options are becoming more and more popular at American colleges and universities. Online classes are great for students who have busy schedules or for those who just want to study on their own time.
In 2019-2020, 4,609 students took at least one online class at American University. This is an increase from the 2,815 students who took online classes the previous year.
| Year | Took at Least One Online Class | Took All Classes Online |
|---|---|---|
| 2019-2020 | 4,609 | 1,597 |
| 2018-2019 | 2,815 | 1,307 |
| 2017-2018 | 1,027 | 478 |
| 2016-2017 | 1,926 | 1,244 |
| 2015-2016 | 1,602 | 879 |
Learn more about online learning at American University.
Find Out More About American University
Related Schools
If you’re considering American University, here are some more schools you may be interested in knowing more about.
Curious on how these schools stack up against The American University? Pit them head to head with College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare college on the features that matter most to you!
Notes and References
Footnotes
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
References
- National Center for Education Statistics
- College Scorecard
- Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
- Image Credit: By Samschoe under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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