What Kind of School It Is and Where It Stands
Brandeis University is a private, nonprofit, four-year university located in Waltham, Massachusetts, within Middlesex County and the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metropolitan area. That does not mean the campus is in the heart of Boston: it means it is within that region. If your child is considering living at home, do not rely on the map. Drive the route yourself on a weekday, at the time your child would have class. The actual travel time is almost never what Google Maps promises.
The Carnegie system, which classifies the nation's colleges and universities by what they do, places Brandeis among the doctoral institutions with the highest level of research activity in that system. It also identifies it as a medium-sized, highly residential school—where at least half of undergraduates live in institution-owned housing—and places it in its most selective admissions group. That "most selective" label does not tell you how many out of every hundred applicants get in; that figure exists separately, and we will examine it later.
IPEDS, the federal system to which every college and university in the United States reports its data, records it as an institution that awards degrees from the bachelor's through the doctoral level. That is an institutional fact: it does not tell you whether the exact major your child is interested in connects to a graduate program or whether it exists in the current catalog. Ask the program directly.
One fact worth clarifying right away: Brandeis is not recorded as a historically Black college or university, a tribal college or university, or a land-grant institution. Of the 3,012 universities in this federal directory, 138 do have at least one of those three designations. The fact that Brandeis does not have them says nothing about which communities it serves or how your child would feel there. Investigate that by asking which cultural centers and student organizations exist today and by talking with someone who already attends that campus.
And do not rule it out or choose it based on the list price, which, as you will see later, is high. Ask in writing how much your family would pay after scholarships and aid. That is the number that truly matters when comparing schools.
How Many Students There Are and Who They Are
In the official fall count, Brandeis had 5,302 enrolled students: 3,675 undergraduates and 1,627 graduate students. It is neither a small school nor a huge one; it falls within the range of 5,000 to 9,999 students, and compared with the other 941 selective private four-year schools, it is on the larger side: only between one and three out of every ten have more students.
Here is something important if your child is just starting a bachelor's degree: the number that matters is 3,675, not the total of 5,302. That total is enlarged by the graduate population, which consists of people who have already completed a degree and returned for another one.
Of the undergraduates reported in the fall of 2023, 8 out of every 100 are Hispanic or Latino. It is a small minority, and compared with the 941 selective private schools in this census, Brandeis falls below the group midpoint. Having few Latino students does not make the school bad, nor would having many make it good—this number only counts who is enrolled. If your child will be one of the few, ask what student groups and support services exist, and talk with a Latino student there before deciding. The figure covers the entire school; your child's experience in a specific major may look different.
There are more women than men among undergraduates: 57 out of every 100. And there is something worth knowing if your child is considering living at home to save money: fewer than 25 out of every 100 first-time students reported permanent residence in Massachusetts. The great majority come from outside the state or the country.
How Academics Work
The year at Brandeis is organized into two semesters of about 15 weeks each, the standard calendar. In its official report, the university indicated that it accepts credit for AP exams, but it did not indicate that it accepts credit for life experience. Here is a warning that can save you from a costly miscalculation: saying that it accepts AP does not mean it awards credit for every exam. The report does not say what scores are required, how many credits are awarded, or whether those credits count toward your child's exact major. Ask for the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget for the savings until you have it in hand.
In a recent year, Brandeis awarded 884 bachelor's degrees across 17 fields of study. No single field accounts for the majority: the largest, biological and biomedical sciences, represented only 19 out of every 100 degrees awarded that year. Compared with the other 942 selective private schools, Brandeis ranks in the top quarter for the number of degrees awarded annually. This measures degrees awarded, not quality or employment afterward. Before deciding, ask about the exact major your child is interested in: how many students graduated in it, how long they took, and what the complete curriculum looks like.
The official student-to-instructional-staff ratio is 11 to 1, a low figure compared with similar schools. But be careful: this number does not tell you the size of first-year classes. It is an aggregate average, not a promise of personalized attention.
The institution also reports structured pathways such as study abroad and teacher-certification preparation tracks.
How Admission Works
This is where many families feel the most pressure, so let us take it slowly and look at the numbers.
Brandeis does not have open admission. Of the nine admission considerations reviewed in this report, five are required: the high school record, completion of the college-preparatory course sequence required by the university, the personal essay, letters of recommendation, and an English-proficiency exam for applicants to whom it applies. At this school, gathering documents is not enough: the essay is required, so your child has to write. The published application fee is $80.
There is something the university does consider that your child cannot change: whether a family member attended. If that does not apply, do not spend energy worrying about it. Spend it on what is within your control.
In the 2023 cycle, Brandeis received 11,282 first-time applications and offered admission to 3,984. That is 35 out of every 100. Compared with 942 selective private schools, it is on the low side: seven out of ten of those schools, or more, accepted a higher percentage of their applicants. It is fine for Brandeis to be on your child's list. It should not be the only school on it.
Now comes a fact that surprises many families: out of every 100 admitted students, only 22 ultimately enrolled. The other 78 had an acceptance in hand and did not take it. Do not read that as a mark against the school—the federal record does not say why each person made that decision. What it does tell you is this: receiving an acceptance letter is not the same as deciding to attend. And what others decided does not tell you what the school will offer your child. Wait for your child's letter with the net price—what the year would actually cost you—before ruling out or confirming this school.
The SAT and ACT are not required at Brandeis. Of those who did enroll, 31 out of every 100 submitted an SAT score—a high share compared with similar schools. Among those who submitted one, the middle half scored between 690 and 750 in reading and writing and between 700 and 780 in mathematics. But these ranges come from students who enrolled, not from all applicants: that 690 is not a minimum for admission, and that 750 does not guarantee anything either.
Regarding transfers: of the cohort that entered in 2017 seeking a full-time bachelor's degree, only 7 out of every 100 are recorded as having transferred to another school within the expected period—a low share compared with similar schools. Separately, in the fall of 2023, 58 transfer students arrived from other institutions. If your child enters through this route, ask in writing, with the course list in hand, how many credits will be accepted before your child makes the move.
The List Price and What It May Actually Cost
At Brandeis University, among 58 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $12,366. Among 59 students from the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $17,974; among 176 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $53,720. For dependent students, the band combines their parents' income with their own.
There is a difference of $41,354 between the average for the lowest-income band (58 students) and the average for the highest-income band (176 students). These are group averages, not a prediction of your family's price. Among first-year students who received any scholarship or grant aid, the average was $44,668.
Among the 937 schools of the same level and control included in this census that reported this figure with the same period of coverage, Brandeis falls within the least expensive quarter for the lowest-income families after scholarships and grants are subtracted. That does not mean it will be inexpensive for your family. It is a factor to weigh when you build the list of schools to which your child will apply.
Because the price changes so much from one income band to another, correctly identifying yours comes first. The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at public institutions, they use the in-state or in-district rate. The overall average with scholarship or grant aid, when shown, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional scholarships or grants. The aid letter you receive is what matters.
How to Pay: Scholarships, Loans, and Options
Of the degree-seeking students, 64 out of every 100 received some form of aid that does not have to be repaid—more than half, though not all. Compared with similar schools, Brandeis falls in the quarter where scholarship and grant aid reaches fewer students. Among those who received it, the annual average was $38,096.
The federal Pell Grant, reserved for low-income families, reached only 14 out of every 100 students. That means most of the aid Brandeis distributes does not come from the federal government based on financial need, but from other sources, probably institutional ones.
An average scholarship or grant of $38,096 is real money, but it is not a price: what determines the price is what remains after aid, and that number comes from your own letter, not from this average.
Regarding loans: 28 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal loan in the 2022-23 year—more than two out of ten, but fewer than half. The average amount among those who borrowed was $4,993 for the year. Compared with similar schools, this share of students with loans is on the low side.
I want to be direct with you here: this percentage describes other families, not yours. And that average of $4,993 covers a single year and only federal loans in the student's name—it does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes take out, bank debt, or credit-card debt. Nor is it the total debt someone has upon graduation, because that would require adding several years together, and that figure is not in this report. The amount your child would have to borrow is determined by your child's own financial-aid letter, not by this institutional average.
Brandeis also reports a prepaid tuition plan and an installment payment plan, in case those options help your family manage the timing of payments.
Campus Life, Athletics, and Support
Brandeis has institution-controlled housing, with a reported capacity for 2,950 students on or off campus. Not all first-time, full-time students are required to live there, according to what the university reported—although that does not rule out the possibility that a specific program requires it. It also offers meal plans, but the number of meals per week varies by plan. Before removing room and board from your budget because you expect your child to live at home, ask in writing for the exact rule that applies to your child's program and year, the current rate, and whether there is a waiting list for housing.
If your child is interested in ROTC, Brandeis reported two available branches: Army and Air Force. Navy is not indicated. The fact that a program is reported does not mean it is physically offered on this campus—confirm that directly before building a plan around the option.
The university competes in intercollegiate athletics and is affiliated with the NCAA, with reported membership in basketball, baseball, and cross-country or track and field. If your child is an athlete, this is only the starting point: contact the coach of the sport your child is interested in directly, ask whether there is a place on the team, which division that sport competes in, and whether it offers athletic scholarships.
Regarding distance education: Brandeis offers it at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, but in the fall count, fewer than 1 out of every 100 undergraduate students took their entire course load remotely. Virtually no one studies there completely remotely. The university did report offering at least one complete distance-education program, but that does not confirm at which level or in which field—confirm it directly if it is something your family needs.
The library operates with paid staff, and its annual expenditures exceed the $100,000 threshold recorded by the federal government. It has physical and digital collections and participates in interlibrary lending. Exceeding that threshold does not guarantee that it has specific databases for your child's major—ask about that by the name of the major.
Reported services include combined academic and career counseling, employment assistance for current students, placement services after completion of the program, participation in the Yellow Ribbon program for veterans, and a published address for services for students with disabilities.
How Likely Your Child Is to Finish
For many families, this is the most important question of all: if your child gets in, will your child finish?
Of the cohort that entered in the fall of 2022, 90 out of every 100 were still enrolled or had already graduated one year later—a strong result compared with similar schools. That figure combines two different groups without separating them: those who were still there and those who had already finished. It does not tell you what happened to the other 10 out of every 100.
Of the cohort that entered in 2017 seeking a full-time bachelor's degree, 86 out of every 100 graduated within six years. At the four-year mark, the figure falls to 78 out of every 100. Compared with 920 selective private schools, Brandeis is among those with the highest graduation rates: nine out of ten of those schools, or more, have an equal or lower share.
Here is the hard truth that I do not want to soften for you: a high percentage does not mean your child will have the same outcome. It is what happened to the cohort that entered that school in 2017. What you and your child can control is making sure your child starts the first semester with all credits in order, knows who the academic advisor is, and learns early when registration opens for the courses required for the major.
Here is a related figure that looks at eight years instead of six: of the cohort that entered between July 2015 and June 2016, 88 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate from this school by the August 2023 reporting date. The exact same figure, 88 out of every 100, appears among students who received a Pell Grant—although the matching figures do not mean the path was the same for both groups. Compared with similar schools, Brandeis is again among those that graduate the largest shares of their students within that longer period.
Again, this describes a specific cohort that entered years ago; it does not predict the outcome of any particular person. What you can do is ask about the current support available in the program your child is interested in and about the outcomes of more recent cohorts that the university may be able to share directly.
How to Bring This into the Conversation at Home
You now know one important part of what you need to decide: what Brandeis University really is, what it costs under different scenarios, how selective its admission is, and what happened to the cohorts that attended before.
But this piece alone does not make a complete plan. You still need to consider what your child wants to study and what your child has accomplished so far in high school. And you need to consider what your family can and is willing to pay, something you will know with certainty only when the financial-aid letter arrives with real numbers, not averages from other families.
It is your child's job to write the essay, maintain good grades, and decide what to study and why. It is your job to understand the family's finances, complete the FAFSA on time, and request in writing what this article cannot give you—the AP equivalencies, the exact housing rate, and transfer-credit recognition if your child transfers. It is not your life that is at stake in this decision, but it is your responsibility to come informed to the table where the decision is made.
Source note: The information in this article comes from data reported by Brandeis University to the U.S. Department of Education's IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System), corresponding primarily to the 2023 cycle and the 2023-24 academic year, as indicated in each section. Best College Aid does not represent Brandeis University or the United States government, and this article is not a substitute for official information the university may provide directly.