Private nonprofit · University

Benedictine University

Lisle, Illinois · Large suburb

95.2%
Admit rate
$22,313
Avg net price
50%
Graduation rate
$63,446
Median earnings

Benedictine University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Lisle, Illinois (large suburb setting), enrolling 1,942 undergraduates. It has a Roman Catholic religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 1,942 undergradsLarge suburbAccessible · 95% admitNCAA Division III with football · Northern Athletics Collegiate ConferenceCold winters

About Lisle, Illinois

Lisle is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. In 1830, Bailey Hobson, a Quaker, was the first settler in what would become DuPage County, Illinois, as well as Lisle Township. The town of Lisle was settled in 1832, by brothers James C. Hatch and Luther A. Hatch after the close of the Black Hawk War. Created by the Chicago Bulls and White Sox, the Bulls/Sox Training Academy runs year-round training programs in baseball, fastpitch softball, and basketball for youths. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
25 miles to Chicago, IL
To Great Lakes shore
26 miles
Nearest airport
17 miles to Chicago O'Hare (ORD) · major hub

How Benedictine University compares

Selectivity95.2%

More selective than 13% · #52 most selective of 58 in Illinois

Graduation rate50%

Higher than 41% · #39 of 58 in Illinois

First-year retention66%

Higher than 22%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$63,446

Higher than 75% · #21 of 66 in Illinois

Average net price$22,313

Cheaper than 39% · #40 cheapest of 57 in Illinois

Median debt at graduation$22,500

Lower than 56%

Student–faculty ratio15 : 1

Lower than 35%

Undergraduate enrollment1,942

Larger than 57%

Percentiles compare Benedictine University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Illinois.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

2,887students
  • Undergraduate1,94267%
  • Graduate94533%

Undergraduates by gender

1,942undergrads
  • Women1,11958%
  • Men82342%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White39%
  • Black9.7%
  • Hispanic21%
  • Asian21%
  • Other or multiracial9.0%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,942
Graduate enrollment
945
Student–faculty ratio
15 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
39%
First-generation students
34%
Students over 25
8%
Median family income
$47,021
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$76,644
Endowment
$34,661,849

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 354 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Illinois75%
  • Other U.S. states25%

Most first-years stay in state — Benedictine University draws overwhelmingly from Illinois.

Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Admissions

Admission rate
95.2%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$35,940
Room & board
$10,850
Books & supplies
$1,976
Total cost of attendance
$46,713
Average net price
$22,313

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
50%
Graduated on time (4 years)
39%
First-year retention
66%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$50,222
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$63,446
Median debt at graduation
$22,500
Students with federal loans
46%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
51%

About 12% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
39%
Low-income (Pell)
52%
First-generation
55%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
498
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
26%
Housing charge (year)
$6,753
Meal plan (year)
$3,951
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NCAA Division III with football
Football conference
Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference
Varsity athletes
727 (516 men · 211 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (11)

Football143
Soccer113
Baseball107
Basketball84
Volleyball78
Softball56
Track and Field (Outdoor)40
Track and Field (Indoor)35
Golf33
Lacrosse31
Cross Country7

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
C
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
2.3 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
14
Property offenses (2022–2024)
6

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 2 campuses (2,917 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

6.7reported offenses a year
4.7 violent a year2.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
2.0
Burglary
1.7
Fondling
1.3
Aggravated assault
1.0
Robbery
0.3
Motor vehicle theft
0.3

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$20,168
$30–48k
$17,869
$48–75k
$18,628
$75–110k
$23,517
$110k+
$27,454

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$81,008

$18,628/year × about 4.3 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

94%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$16,568
average award, among those who get one

A meaningful share of freshmen — 94% — get grant money from Benedictine University itself, averaging $16,568, which softens the sticker price.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 415 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$63,446
Typical debt at graduation
$22,500
Debt vs. one year's pay
35%
Out-earn a HS grad
70%

Typical debt would take roughly 3.5 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$59,923
Men
$70,184

Men out-earn women by $10,261 (17%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
84°F
Winter low
15°F
Annual rain
40.2″
Annual snow
24.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.44.8JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Lisle-Morton Arboretum, IL US station (2.7 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Benedictine University

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Benedictine University side by side →

Colleges near Benedictine University

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.