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Point Loma Nazarene University Comprehensive Profile

133 awards Ranking Badges
Fair Price Value for Your Money
84% Acceptance Rate

If you want to know more about Point Loma Nazarene University, such as what majors does it offer, how diverse it is, how well it ranks, and more, this is your one-stop resource.

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* Rankings

How Well Is Point Loma Nazarene University Ranked?

#165 Best Colleges in Nation
#34 Best Colleges in CA
Point Loma Nazarene University ranking badge

2026 Rankings

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.

Point Loma Nazarene University was awarded 133 badges in the 2026 rankings.

National Standing

College Factual ranked PLNU as #165 out of 3,449 colleges and universities in the country on its 2026 Best Colleges list. This puts it in the top 20% of all schools in the nation.

Within the state, PLNU holds the #34 spot on the Best Colleges in California ranking.

See all of the rankings for Point Loma Nazarene University.

What Are the Admission Requirements for Point Loma Nazarene University?

84% Acceptance Rate
81% Of Accepted Are Women
8% Submit SAT Scores

Acceptance Rate

The acceptance rate at Point Loma Nazarene University is 84%. That’s higher than the rate at many schools, but still low enough to be considered somewhat selective. If you want to get in, you’ll need good grades and to be able to show that PLNU is a good fit for you.

SAT and ACT Scores

About 8% of students accepted to PLNU submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 610 and 695. Math scores were between 565 and 670.

SAT Reading and Writing Scores for Point Loma Nazarene University  ( 610 to 695 )
200
800
SAT Math Scores for Point Loma Nazarene University  ( 565 to 670 )
200
800

PLNU received ACT scores from 6% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 25 and 32.

ACT Composite Scores for Point Loma Nazarene University  ( 25 to 32 )
1
36

Learn more about Point Loma Nazarene University admissions.

Faculty at Point Loma Nazarene University

13 to 1 Student to Faculty
100% Full Time Teachers

Student to Faculty Ratio

The student to faculty ratio at Point Loma Nazarene University is about average at 13 to 1. This ratio is often used to gauge how many students might be in an average class and how much time professors will have to spend with their students on an individual level. The national average for this metric is 15 to 1.

Full-Time Faculty Share

Another measure that is often used to estimate how much access students will have to their professors is how many faculty members are full-time. The idea here is that part-time faculty tend to spend less time on campus, so they may not be as available to students as full-timers.

The full-time faculty percentage at Point Loma Nazarene University is 100%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.

Full-Time Faculty Percent  100 out of 100
0
100

Academic Performance at Point Loma Nazarene University

86% Freshmen Retention
74% On-Time Graduation Rate

Freshman Success

The freshmen retention rate of 86% tells us that most first-year, full-time students like Point Loma Nazarene University enough to come back for another year. This is a fair bit higher than the national average of 68%. That’s certainly something to check off in the good column about the school.

Freshmen Retention Rate  86 out of 100
0
100

Time to Degree

The on-time graduation rate for someone pursuing a bachelor’s degree is typically four years. This rate at PLNU for first-time, full-time students is 74%, which is better than the national average of 33.3%.

On-Time Graduation Rate  74 out of 100
0
100

Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Point Loma Nazarene University.

Undergraduate Diversity at Point Loma Nazarene University

3,132 Undergraduate Students
44.4% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
66.4% Percent Women

During the most recent academic year, there were 3,132 undergraduates at PLNU.

Get more detailed information on the diversity at Point Loma Nazarene University.

What Does Point Loma Nazarene University Cost?

$16,772 Net Price
50% Take Out Loans
$29,360 Total Student Loans

The overall average net price of PLNU is $16,772. 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 PLNU

$0-30 K $30K-48K $48-75 $75-110K $110K +
$44,837 $47,378 $49,500 $51,106 $51,154

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 PLNU, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.

Student Loan Debt

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 PLNU, approximately 50% of students took out student loans averaging $7,340 a year. That adds up to $29,360 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 1.8%. 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 Point Loma Nazarene University.

Post-Graduation Earnings for Point Loma Nazarene University

$63,998 Avg Salary of Grads
High Earnings Boost

The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Point Loma Nazarene University make about $63,998 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. This is good news for future Point Loma Nazarene University graduates since it is 30% more than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year.

See which majors at Point Loma Nazarene University make the most money.

Location of Point Loma Nazarene University

California State
3,132 Undergraduate Students
Large City Campus Setting

Point Loma Nazarene University is a private not-for-profit institution situated in San Diego, California. The surrounding area of the school is a good match for students who enjoy city life. Get more details about the location of Point Loma Nazarene University.

Location of Point Loma Nazarene University

Contact information for Point Loma Nazarene University are given below.

Contact Details
Address: 3900 Lomaland Dr, San Diego, CA 92106-2899
Phone: 6198492200
Website: www.pointloma.edu
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/San-Diego-CA/Point-Loma-Nazarene-University/26060837166
Twitter: twitter.com/plnu

Point Loma Nazarene University Majors

24 Majors With Completions
2,476 Undergraduate Degrees

In the latest year of available data, students from 24 majors graduated from Point Loma Nazarene University. 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 1,238 NA
Business Administration & Management 196 $48,959
General Education 126 $59,649
Nursing 121 $88,805
Allied Health Professions 87 $24,669
Health & Physical Education 74 $45,822
Child Development & Family Studies 65 $26,260
General Psychology 57 $25,647
Clinical & Counseling Psychology 53 NA
Teacher Education Grade Specific 51 NA

Learn more about the majors offered at Point Loma Nazarene University along with which ones have the highest average starting salaries.

Online Study Options at PLNU

33% Take At Least One Class Online
14% Take All Classes Online

Online learning is becoming popular at even the oldest colleges and universities in the United States. Not only are online classes great for returning adults with busy schedules, they are also frequented by a growing number of traditional students.

1,039 students took at least one online class at Point Loma Nazarene University.

Learn more about online learning at Point Loma Nazarene University.

Comparable CollegesWant to see how other colleges compare to PLNU? 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.

References and Footnotes

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

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