What Kind of University Is Fontbonne?
Fontbonne University is in Saint Louis, Missouri, within St. Louis County, in the city’s metropolitan area. Its census code places it in a suburb: inside the urbanized area but outside the principal city’s downtown area. If your child plans to live at home while studying, do not rely on the map: drive the route on a weekday at the exact time of their classes. The actual travel time is almost never what Google Maps says.
It is a private, nonprofit, four-year institution. The federal system that classifies universities (Carnegie) describes it as a master’s university with medium-sized programs, a very small student body, and a primarily residential setting. It also reports that the university offers doctoral degrees as its highest declared level, although that is general institutional information: it does not tell you whether the specific program your child is interested in reaches that level. That must be verified case by case.
Carnegie also places it among institutions that receive many transfer students. If your child plans to attend Fontbonne after studying elsewhere, this matters: before enrolling, ask in writing which courses will count and which will not. The label says that many transfer students arrive; it does not say how many credits they bring or how many are lost along the way.
One point worth clarifying right away: Fontbonne has none of the three special federal designations—it is not a historically Black college or university, a tribal college or university, or a land-grant institution. That says nothing about which communities it serves or how your child will feel there. Ask about that directly by speaking with current students and visiting the campus.
A Small Community, with Few Latino Students
Here is one of the numbers that will matter most if your family is Latino: among Fontbonne undergraduates, 1 out of every 100 students were reported as Hispanic or Latino. That is a low figure. Compared with nearly a thousand similar selective private universities, Fontbonne is among those reporting the lowest shares: nine out of ten of those schools have a higher proportion.
I am not telling you that this makes the school bad, or that having many Latino students would automatically make it good. I am telling you that this is a fact you should have on the table. If your child will be one of the few, the question is not whether they should attend—the question is what exists there for them: Is there a Latino student group? A cultural center? Someone in the office who speaks Spanish? You find that out during a visit, by speaking with a student who is already there, not from a spreadsheet.
As for the rest of the composition: the numbers of men and women are nearly even (51 out of every 100 are women). Adults ages 25 to 64 are a minority, at 10 out of every 100. And just over half of first-time students, 73 out of every 100, already lived in Missouri before enrolling.
As for size: Fontbonne had 874 students enrolled in the most recent official count, a small figure compared with its peers—seven out of ten similar universities have more people. Of those 874, 650 are undergraduates and 224 are graduate students. If your child is starting an undergraduate degree, the number that matters is 650, not the total. Graduate enrollment inflates the total.
How the Academic Year Works
Fontbonne organizes its calendar into semesters: two long terms of approximately 15 weeks each, with the same dates for everyone. The university reported that it accepts credit from AP exams and also what the government calls “credit for life experience”—learning from independent study, work, portfolios, previous licenses or certifications, including military training. It also enrolls high school students in college-credit courses, both within and outside a formal dual-enrollment program.
Here is the hard truth: saying that they accept AP does not mean they will award credit for every exam. We do not know what score they require, how many credits they award, or whether those credits will count toward your child’s specific degree. Request the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget for the savings until you have it in hand.
Academic Offerings: Broad but Spread Out
In the most recent year reported, Fontbonne awarded 137 bachelor’s degrees across 17 different fields of study. No field accounts for a majority: the largest was business and management, and even that represented only 20 out of every 100 degrees awarded that year. Compared with nearly a thousand similar universities, Fontbonne falls within the quarter awarding the fewest bachelor’s degrees per year.
With numbers this small, the count can change considerably from one year to the next. If you are interested in a specific major, ask for the last three years of data for that particular major rather than relying on a snapshot of a single year.
One fact that often catches families’ attention: the student-to-faculty ratio is 9 to 1, one of the lowest among its peers—three out of four similar universities have a higher ratio. That sounds good, and it probably is, but this figure alone does not measure actual class size or how much individual attention your child receives. It is an institutional average. Ask directly how many students are in first-year classes.
Reported Academic Pathways and Opportunities
Fontbonne reports offering study abroad; a complete program that can be taken exclusively during evenings or weekends; teacher-certification preparation below the undergraduate level; the opportunity to complete preparation there in certain teacher-specialization areas; and state approval of its initial teacher-certification program. These are opportunities the institution reports having; confirm their exact availability for your child’s degree by asking directly.
Getting In: A Door That Almost Always Opens
Let’s get to the heart of admissions. Fontbonne does not have open admission—there are materials it reviews before saying yes. Of nine possible considerations, it marked three as required: the high school transcript, the high school GPA, and the English-proficiency exam for applicants to whom it applies. Other materials are not required but are considered if you submit them: the recommended course plan, a personal essay, letters of recommendation, a portfolio or competency exam, and work experience.
If your child studied outside the United States or attended high school in Spanish, ask now whether they must take the English-proficiency exam and what would exempt them. This is the kind of issue people discover late, when there is no longer time to resolve it calmly.
And here is the number that will probably surprise you most: of 1,067 first-time applicants, Fontbonne accepted 1,014. That is 95 out of every 100. Compared with nearly a thousand selective private universities, it is among those accepting the most applicants—nine out of ten schools in that group are more restrictive.
Put plainly: almost everyone gets in here. Your child’s energy is better spent meeting deadlines and completing the application carefully than worrying about competing for a place.
But—and this matters—being easy to get into says nothing about cost or how many students graduate. Before deciding, look at the net price and the graduation rate. Those two calculations carry more weight than admission.
An interesting fact: out of every 100 admitted students, only 16 ultimately enrolled. The others received their acceptance letters and chose another path. Do not read this as a mark against the school—the federal record does not explain why each person made their decision. What it does tell you is useful: what others decided does not predict what you will be offered. Wait for your own letter with your own net price before drawing conclusions.
Regarding standardized tests: Fontbonne reported that it does not consider SAT or ACT scores in the admission decision, even if you submit them. This field does not cover scholarships or course placement—ask about those separately.
Regarding transfers: in the most recent count, 56 students enrolled for the first time after previously studying at another institution. The school did not report what proportion of its own students transfer elsewhere, so this figure cannot tell us that side of the story.
The undergraduate application fee, by the way, is $0.
The Real Cost: What the Sticker Price Says and What the Income Bands Say
At Fontbonne University, among 48 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 $13,464. Among 21 students from the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $20,742; among 29 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $25,373. For dependent students, the band combines their parents’ income with their own.
The difference between the average for the lowest-income band (48 students) and the average for the highest-income band (29 students) is $11,909. Among first-year students who received any scholarship or grant, the average was $19,519.
Among the 937 schools of the same type and control included in this census that reported this figure for the same period, Fontbonne falls within the least expensive quarter for lower-income families after scholarships and grants are subtracted. That does not mean it will be inexpensive for your family. It is a fact that carries weight when you build the list of schools to which you will apply.
None of these figures is a quote for your child. 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 scholarships and grants, when shown, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional scholarships or grants. The figure that matters is the financial-aid letter you receive. In the meantime, use the net price calculator on the school’s website.
Scholarships, Aid, and Loans: The Real Picture of How Students Pay Here
At Fontbonne, 96 out of every 100 students receive some form of scholarship or grant aid that does not have to be repaid. Receiving something is the norm, not the exception. Among recipients, the annual average is $21,107—an average that hides those who received much more and those who received much less.
Nearly half of students, 49 out of every 100, receive a Pell Grant, the federal aid for low-income families.
Now for the part that matters most when it comes to debt: 65 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal student loan in the most recent year reported. That is a majority, and compared with similar universities, Fontbonne is on the high side—seven out of ten of its peers have a lower proportion of students taking on debt. Among borrowers, the annual average is $7,015. If your child borrows a similar amount each year over the four years of an undergraduate degree, the total comes to around $28,060, not including interest.
Financing with debt is common here. Calculate the full amount before signing anything, and do it before the first signature, not at the end. That average, moreover, covers only federal loans in the student’s name: it does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes end up signing for, bank debt, or credit-card debt. Nor is it the total debt someone has upon graduation—to calculate that, you would have to add all four years, and that figure is not in this report.
Fontbonne also reports offering an installment tuition-payment plan for those who prefer to spread the cost across the year instead of paying it all at once.
Campus Life, Athletics, and Support
Fontbonne has its own housing, with a reported capacity of 322 students. Living there is not required for all full-time, first-time students, although that does not mean no individual program has such a requirement. It also offers meal plans, with a fixed number of meals per week under its largest plan. Ask in writing for this year’s price, the deadline for requesting a room, and whether housing is guaranteed or you will be placed on a waiting list.
Regarding ROTC: Fontbonne did not mark any opportunity in its most recent report, unlike 926 of the 1,786 four-year universities that did. That does not prove there is no nearby option—it only says that none was marked in this specific field. If that scholarship matters to your family, ask admissions about it directly before ruling it out.
It does compete in athletics: it is affiliated with the NCAA and reports membership specifically in basketball, baseball, and cross-country or track and field. The membership belongs to the school, not to your child. If your child is interested, contact the coach directly and ask whether there is space, which division they compete in, and whether that sport awards athletic scholarships.
Regarding distance education: Fontbonne does offer it at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Only 8 out of every 100 undergraduate students take all their classes remotely; the other 92 take at least one class in person. The university reports having at least one complete program that can be completed remotely, although the data does not specify whether that program is undergraduate or graduate. Confirm the exact level and program if this matters to your family.
The library operates with paid staff, has both physical and digital materials, and participates in interlibrary lending. That is what the report confirms; ask directly about its hours, who provides assistance, and whether specialized guidance is available for your child’s field of study.
Reported services include combined academic and career counseling, employment support for current students, job-placement services after graduation, participation in the Yellow Ribbon Program for veterans, a dedicated point of contact for military families, and a services page for students with disabilities.
What Happens After Enrollment: Retention and Graduation
This is perhaps the section where it is most worthwhile to slow down.
Of the cohort of first-time, full-time, bachelor’s-degree-seeking students who entered in the fall of 2022, 64 out of every 100 were still enrolled or had already graduated one year later. Compared with nearly a thousand similar universities, Fontbonne ranks toward the bottom—seven out of ten of its peers retain a higher proportion.
The data does not tell you what happened to the other 36 percent. We do not know whether they transferred, paused their studies, began working, or left for any other reason. The figure reports the outcome, not the cause.
Regarding graduation: of 139 first-time, full-time students who began a bachelor’s degree in 2017, 79 had earned a degree there six years later. That is 57 out of every 100. At the four-year mark, the figure falls to 44 out of every 100—a difference of 13 points between the two time frames. Compared with its peers, Fontbonne ranks below the group’s midpoint.
Be clear about whom this measure follows: only students who entered for the first time and attended full time. It does not include transfer students or those who began part time. If your child belongs to another group, the applicable rate is different and must be requested specifically.
There is a third, longer-term view: of a cohort of 367 students who entered between July 2015 and June 2016—including first-time students and those with previous college experience—64 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate from Fontbonne eight years later. Among Pell Grant recipients, the figure was 62 out of every 100, just 3 points below the rest. Another 24 out of every 100 appear in the indicator for those who had not received a credential from this institution, although the data has an inconsistency in its definition that makes it impossible to state precisely how many were still enrolled on the reporting date. And 12 out of every 100 had an unknown enrollment status—that means the report could not determine what happened to them, not that they stopped studying.
These last two figures—64 and 24—do not add up to one hundred, and that is exactly what must be understood: there are parts of a student’s path that the federal report simply cannot capture precisely.
What This Article Cannot Tell You
There is no information here about what a Fontbonne graduate earns, employment after graduation, or total accumulated debt upon leaving. Those matters fall outside what the government reports in this profile, and we will not invent them.
Putting the Pieces Together
Fontbonne University is a small university that is easy to enter, with a high sticker price but a net price that, for lower-income families, is comparatively affordable relative to its peers. It is a place where almost everyone who applies is accepted, where most students finance their education with loans, and where just over half of those who enter graduate within six years. It has few Latino students, a low student-to-faculty ratio on paper, and broad academic offerings spread across a small number of degrees in each field.
None of these facts, by itself, tells you whether Fontbonne is the right university for your child. That depends on the other two pieces that only your family has: what your child wants to study and what they have built so far, and what your family can pay and is willing to take on. You now have a deep understanding of one of the map’s three pieces. Combine it with the other two, request the actual financial-aid letter, visit if you can, and talk with your child about what they see in this place. From that combination comes a plan that no federal report can create for you.
Note on sources: The information in this article comes from official data reported by Fontbonne University to the U.S. Department of Education’s IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System), primarily covering the 2022-23 and 2023-24 academic years. Best College Aid does not represent Fontbonne University or the United States government; this article organizes and explains existing public information.