by our College Data Analytics TeamJohnson & Wales University-Providence is a private not-for-profit institution in Providence, Rhode Island enrolling 3,868 undergraduates. It accepts 88% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 55%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,210 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 23%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.
Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.
Johnson & Wales University-Providence ranks #1,210 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 23%.
In its yearly rankings, College Factual analyzes over 2,000 colleges and universities to determine which ones are the best in a variety of categories, such as overall value, quality, diversity, which schools are the best for each major, and much more.
Johnson & Wales University-Providence was awarded 12 badges in the 2027 rankings.
According to College Factual’s 2027 analysis, JWU Providence is ranked #1,210 out of 5,159 schools in the nation that were analyzed for overall quality.
JWU Providence is also ranked #10 on the Best Colleges in Rhode Island list.
See all of the rankings for Johnson & Wales University-Providence.
With an acceptance rate of 88%, Johnson & Wales University-Providence is easier to get into than many other schools. But that doesn’t mean you can slack off on your application. Make sure to treat this school like any other when submitting requested materials and documents.
About 14% of students accepted to JWU Providence submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 460 and 590. Math scores were between 430 and 570.
JWU Providence received ACT scores from 2% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 22 and 27.
Learn more about Johnson & Wales University-Providence admissions.
With a student to faculty ratio of 14 to 1, Johnson & Wales University-Providence is about average in this regard as the nationwide rate is 15 to 1. While this does not translate directly to class size, it’s a good indicator of how much time professors will have to spend with their students on a one-on-one basis.
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 on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.
The full-time faculty percentage at Johnson & Wales University-Providence is 100%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.
Johnson & Wales University-Providence has a freshmen retention rate of 82%. 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.
The on-time graduation rate for someone pursuing a bachelor’s degree is typically four years. This rate at JWU Providence for first-time, full-time students is 55%, which is better than the national average of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Johnson & Wales University-Providence.
In the current academic year, there are 3,868 undergraduates at JWU Providence.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at Johnson & Wales University-Providence.
The overall average net price of JWU Providence is $17,140. 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.
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $25,530 | $25,443 | $28,088 | $31,803 | $35,464 |
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 price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of JWU Providence, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
While almost two-thirds of students nationwide take out loans to pay for college, the percentage may be quite different for the school you plan on attending. At JWU Providence, approximately 72% of students took out student loans averaging $6,763 a year. That adds up to $27,052 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 7.7%. Although this is lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, you’ll still want to keep this in mind when taking out student loans. Get more details about paying for Johnson & Wales University-Providence.
Yearly salaries vary depending on what you major in, but on average, bachelor’s degree recipients from Johnson & Wales University-Providence make around $43,418 per year during the early years of their employment. This is about 12% less than the average pay for college graduates overall. However, graduates with your major may make more.
See which majors at Johnson & Wales University-Providence make the most money.
Johnson & Wales University-Providence is a private not-for-profit institution situated in Providence, Rhode Island. Providence is a great location for students who prefer city over country life. Get more details about the location of Johnson & Wales University-Providence.
Contact details for Johnson & Wales University-Providence can be found below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 8 Abbott Park Place, Providence, RI 02903-3703 |
| Phone: | 4015981000 |
| Website: | www.jwu.edu/campuses/providence/index.html |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/johnsonandwales |
In the latest year of available data, students from 19 majors graduated from Johnson & Wales University-Providence. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.
| Most Popular Majors | Completions | Average Salary of Graduates |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-Disciplinary Studies | 1,166 | NA |
| Culinary Arts | 350 | $28,201 |
| Food, Nutrition & Related Services | 83 | $32,511 |
| Business Administration & Management | 61 | $39,272 |
| Entrepreneurial Studies | 55 | $33,237 |
| Criminal Justice & Corrections | 55 | $34,100 |
| Hospitality Management | 48 | $35,901 |
| General Psychology | 45 | NA |
| Recreation Administration | 37 | $32,446 |
| Allied Health Professions | 35 | $97,155 |
1,183 students took at least one online class at Johnson & Wales University-Providence.
Online courses are a great option for busy, working students as well as for those who have scheduling conflicts and want to study on their own time. As time goes by, expect to see more and more online learning options become available.
Learn more about online learning at Johnson & Wales University-Providence.
Want to see how other colleges compare to JWU Providence? Compare them side by side using College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.
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.
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