History and Mission
Chartered in 1783, (the first college chartered in the newly recognized United States), Dickinson is a highly selective, private liberal-arts college known for its innovative curriculum. Founded by Benjamin Rush and named for John Dickinson, the college offers students a useful education in the arts and sciences that will prepare them for lives as engaged citizens and leaders.
Degrees Granted
Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science
Campus, Facilities and Services
180-acre campus; 58 general and special-interest housing facilities; three LEED gold-certified buildings; variety of dining options including gluten-free, kosher, organic, vegan, vegetarian, local fruit and vegetables from the USDA certified-organic College Farm. Learn about enhancements at go.dickinson.edu/facilities.
Enrollment
2,341 full-time students representing 41 states and territories and 48 foreign countries; 14 percent students of color and 7 percent international. See Class Profile for additional details.
Academic Features
42 majors plus minors and certificate programs, self-developed majors, independent research, internships and Army ROTC.
Faculty
253 faculty members, 93 percent of whom hold Ph.D.s or the highest degree in their field.
Student-Faculty Ratio
10:1
Average Class Size
17
Extracurriculars
More than 100 student-run clubs and activities, including music and drama, publications, fraternities and sororities and religious, political, special-interest and community-service organizations.
Athletics
Member of the Centennial Conference (NCAA Division III); 11 men’s and 12 women’s varsity sports, plus club and intramural sports. Varsity men's and women's squash will be introduced in 2014-15. To date, 170 student-athletes have been named All-American.
Sustainability
Dickinson is recognized as a leader among educational institutions committed to sustainability and green initiatives. The Center for Sustainability Education provides assistance as Dickinson integrates sustainability into its academics, facilities, operations and campus culture. Dickinson has received the highest awards from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, Sierra Club, Sustainable Endowments Institute, Princeton Review and Second Nature.
Global Education
Dickinson offers one of the most respected off-campus study programs, and more than half of the students study in more than 40 programs on six continents in 24 countries. Dickinson also is one of the nation's top institutions for foreign-language study with 13 languages offered.
Recent Initiatives
Sharing its Carlisle location with other educational institutions, Dickinson has parternships with the U.S. Army War College and Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute and the world-renowned Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet.
Admission
Applicants are expected to have pursued a college-preparatory course of study, including substantial sequences in math, foreign languages and science. Interviews and campus visits are strongly recommended.
Tuition and Financial Aid
Tuition for 2012-13 is $44,101. Room and board is $11,178 and a $450 student-activities fee also is required. Dickinson awarded more than $38 million in grants in the 2011-12 academic year, and 63 percent of students received merit or need-based aid.
Academic Scholarships
Dickinson offers scholarships not based on need to about 12 percent of its entering class. Consideration is based on classroom performance, testing and significant commitment and leadership in school or community activities.
Awards
Awards for postgraduate study include Fulbright, George J. Mitchell, Rotary Ambassadorial, Kathryn Wasserman Davis Projects for Peace, the Carnegie Junior Fellowship, Udall and Goldwater. Dickinson is a leader of Fulbright scholars.
Postgraduate Plans
95 percent of Dickinsonians are either employed or accepted into a graduate program five years after graduation. Graduate school acceptance rates are strong: 80 percent for law school and 88 percent (of those recommended) for medical school.
Graduate School Partners
Top business, law, engineering and medical schools offer programs to accelerate admission for Dickinson graduates or give graduates credit for undergraduate courses. The college has agreements with internationally renowned institutions such as Columbia and Johns Hopkins universities. Learn about additional graduate school agreements.
Graduate School Admissions
Recent alumni have been admitted to prestigious graduate and professional schools at universities such as Boston, Columbia, Duke, Emory, George Washington, Georgetown, Harvard, New York, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford and Yale as well as Boston and Dartmouth colleges and the University of California-Berkeley, University of Pennsylvania and University of Virginia.
Prominent Alumni
U.S. president, Supreme Court justice, second secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, retired chairman and CEO of Wyeth, first editor of USA Today and chairman and CEO of Gannett Co. Inc., chief executive of wealth and investment management & executive chairman of Barclays Americas, assistance manager of the New York Jets, agents for professional athletes, Tony and Jeff award winners, Lemelson-MIT Prize winner, several U.S. representatives and other elected officials, award-winning poets, novelists and photographers, three elected members of the National Academy of Sciences, member of the Time magazine's 2006 list of 100 most influential people and several college presidents.
Admissions Data
Applications received: 5,844
Applications accepted: 2,340
Acceptance rate: 40%
First-year class size: 602
Class Rank of Admitted Students
Top 5%: 28%
Top 10%: 48%
Top 25%: 78%
Top 50%: 96%
Mid-50% SAT (M+CR) Scores of Enrolled Students
1228-1360 (M 600-690, CR 590-690)
Mid-50% Range of ACT (Composite) Scores of Enrolled Students
27-30
Geographical Distribution
In-state 21% / Out-of-state 79%
Foreign countries: 8%
States and U.S. territories: 35
Countries: 21
Racial/Ethnic Background
White: 77%
Students of color: 13%
African American: 3%
Asian American: 2%
Hispanic American: 5%
Multi-ethnic: 3%
Internationals: 8%
Other Characteristics
Male/female ratio: 46%/54%
Received grant or scholarship aid: 65%
Average grant: $24,701
Received non-need merit award: 12%
Demonstrated financial need: 57%
Citizenship of Internationals
Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guyana, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Lithuania, Mexico, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Phillipines, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, and Vietnam.
U.S. Citizens with Dual Citizenship
Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Poland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago and the United Kingdom.
Graduates of the Class of 2011 Profile
Total number of graduates: 548
Graduating with Latin honors: 34%
Most popular majors: international business & management & political science (tied), economics, psychology, biology, international studies, English, history, sociology, neuroscience, Spanish (tied)
Majored in international areas: 29%
Studied off campus during their under-graduate years: 58%
Studied abroad during their under-graduate years: 52%
Delve deeper into the numbers on the Institutional Research page, which provides breakdowns of admissions statistics over the last several years, as well as a wealth of other information.
last updated: Sept. 2012