I come from a family that learned this process from scratch, without a manual and without anyone to explain the codes to us. I know what it feels like to read an admission letter and not fully understand what it is telling you. So let’s walk together through what Penn State Brandywine really is, according to the data the federal government itself collects from the school, without dressing it up or frightening you.
Where this school stands and what type of institution it is
Penn State Brandywine is in Media, Pennsylvania, in Delaware County, within the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metropolitan area. It is not in the city center: the census code places it in a suburb, within the urbanized area but outside the urban core. If your child plans to live at home and drive every day, do not rely on the map: drive the route yourself on a weekday at the exact time of their classes. The actual travel time is almost never what Google Maps promises.
It is a public four-year institution. IPEDS—the federal system that collects these data—classifies it as a degree-granting school whose highest reported level is the bachelor’s degree. That is an institutional fact, not a list of programs: it does not confirm that the exact major your child wants is offered here or that it leads to that degree. That must be verified program by program, not through the school’s general designation.
One technical detail is worth clarifying right away: in the 2021 Carnegie classification, this institution appears outside the classified universe. That says nothing about its quality. Carnegie simply did not assign it a classification. Before paying for the first semester, ask admissions what accreditation the school has and exactly what degree it awards, and verify that name yourself on the Department of Education’s website. No classification can spare you that call.
It is also helpful to know that Penn State Brandywine has none of three specific designations: it is not a historically Black college or university, a tribal college or university, or a land-grant institution. Of the 3,012 colleges and universities in this directory, 138 have at least one of the three. Not having them says nothing about which students it serves or how your child will feel there. Ask directly which cultural centers and student organizations exist today and, better still, speak with someone who already studies there.
A small community, with few Latino students within it
Penn State Brandywine had 1,223 students enrolled in the official fall count, all of them undergraduates, with no graduate enrollment. It is a medium-sized school according to the official scale, but compared with the 519 selective public four-year schools in this census, it is among the smallest: at least nine out of ten of those schools have more students.
I want to be direct with you here: being small does not guarantee more attention for your child, just as being large does not guarantee more options. The data do not support the argument that “it is small, so they will take better care of my child.” What you can do is ask about your child’s specific major, not the entire school.
Among undergraduates in the fall of 2023, 9 out of every 100 are Hispanic or Latino. This is a small minority, and compared with the 519 selective public four-year schools, the school ranks below the midpoint of that group. There are almost no adult students—only 4 out of every 100 are between 25 and 64 years old—and there are more men than women: out of every 100 students, 37 are women.
Having few Latino students does not make the school bad, nor would having many make it good. It is simply a fact about who is enrolled. If your child will be among the few, ask which student groups and support services exist, and speak with a Latino student there before deciding. This number covers the entire school; your child’s particular experience may look different.
How the academic year works and how broad the offerings are
The academic calendar is organized into semesters: two terms of about 15 weeks each. The institution reported accepting two forms of prior credit: credit from AP exams and what IPEDS calls credit for life experience—independent study, work experience, previous licenses or certifications, as well as credit for military training. It also enrolls high school students in college courses for credit through a formal dual-enrollment program.
Here is a hard truth you should hear plainly: saying that the school accepts AP does not mean it awards credit for every exam. It does not tell you what score is required, how many credits are awarded, or whether those credits count toward your child’s specific major. Request the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget for the savings until you have it in hand.
As for degrees, the school awarded 153 bachelor’s degrees during the year, distributed across 11 fields of study, some of which had no degrees awarded during that period. Business and management accounted for 47 of those 153 degrees—31 out of every 100—making it by far the most prominent field. Compared with the 514 similar schools, Penn State Brandywine falls within the quarter with the fewest fields represented in its bachelor’s-degree detail. With numbers this small, a single year’s count can change considerably: request data from the last three years for the exact program that interests your child instead of relying on a snapshot of a single academic cycle.
The ratio of students to instructional staff, with both measured as full-time equivalents, is 14 to 1. Compared with the 519 similar schools, it falls below the midpoint of that group. This is a low aggregate figure, but by itself it does not demonstrate that more staff are available to each student or tell you the actual size of first-year classes. That information is not included in this report.
The institution also reports structured opportunities: study abroad, cocurricular undergraduate research, and a complete program that can be taken only in the evenings or on weekends.
Admission: the door is almost always open
Here we reach one of the most important facts in this entire story. Penn State Brandywine counted 2,461 first-time applicants and admitted 2,346. That is 95 out of every 100. Compared with the 519 selective public schools, it is on the high side: seven out of ten of those schools, or more, accepted an equal or smaller percentage.
Put simply, this school almost always accepts applicants. Your child’s energy is better spent meeting the deadline and completing the application properly than worrying about competing for a place.
But—and this matters—being easy to enter says nothing about whether it is affordable or whether most students finish. Before deciding, look at the net price and the graduation rate. Those two calculations matter much more than admission, and we will examine them shortly.
Admission is not completely open: three items are required—the high school record, high school GPA, and, when applicable, an English-proficiency exam. If your child studied outside the United States or attended high school in Spanish, ask today whether that exam applies and what would exempt them. This is one of those things families discover late, making everything more complicated. Other items are not required but are considered if submitted: completion of the college-preparatory program the university requests and the personal essay. The application fee is $65.
The SAT and ACT are not required. Among enrolled first-time students, 30 out of every 100 submitted an SAT score; among those students, the middle half scored between 570 and 660 in reading and writing and between 540 and 680 in mathematics. Those ranges describe students who enrolled and submitted scores, not all applicants: that 570 is not a minimum that must be reached, and that 660 does not guarantee anything either.
Now, here is a number that confuses many families: out of every 100 admitted students, only 19 ultimately enrolled at Penn State Brandywine that fall. The other 81 had a place here and did not take it. Compared with similar schools, that proportion is among the most common—neither high nor low. Do not read it as a stain on the school—the federal record does not explain why each person made that decision. What I can tell you is that other people’s decisions do not predict what you will be offered. Wait for your letter showing the actual net price. With that number in hand, you can decide whether this school stays on your list.
Regarding transfers: among the first-time cohort that entered in 2017 seeking a bachelor’s degree, 30 out of every 100 transferred to another school without completing here, within 150% of normal time. Compared with the 395 similar schools, that departure rate is on the high side. Separately, only 48 transfer students from other institutions arrived in the fall of 2023. Something that almost nobody notices carries substantial weight here: a student who transfers is not counted as a graduate of this school, even if that student finishes a degree elsewhere. Keep that in mind when we reach the graduation figures, because it partly explains them.
The real cost: two prices, and the distance between them matters
At Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Brandywine, among 33 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid, paid the in-state or in-district rate, and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $16,792. Among 43 students from the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $21,651; among 56 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $28,700. For dependent students, the band combines their parents’ income with their own.
The difference between the average for the lowest-income band, covering 33 students, and the highest-income band, covering 56 students, is $11,908. Among first-year students who received any grant or scholarship, the average was $21,739.
Among the 519 schools of the same type and control included in this census that reported these data with the same time coverage, this school falls within the most expensive quarter for the lowest-income families. That does not mean you should rule it out. It means you should request the financial-aid letter before deciding.
The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at this public institution, they use the in-state or in-district rate. The overall average for students receiving grants or scholarships, when shown, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional grants or scholarships; it also uses that rate. If your family lives outside the state or district, the calculation is different. Ask about it before applying.
The aid that arrives, and the debt that does too
Two numbers appear together here and should not be confused. 67 out of every 100 degree-seeking students received some type of grant or scholarship that does not have to be repaid, with an average of $9,442 per year among recipients. 35 out of every 100 received a Pell Grant, the federal aid for low-income families. A percentage is not the same as an average, and they should not be multiplied together: one tells you how many received aid, while the other tells you how much the recipients received.
Now for the other side of the coin. In the 2022-23 academic year, 52 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal student loan, and each borrowed an average of $6,019 that year. Compared with the 519 similar schools, this proportion of students with loans is on the high side.
Financing an education with debt is common here, not the exception. If your child borrowed a similar amount each year throughout the plan’s four years, the total would be around $24,076, not including interest. That number is decided before the first signature, not at the end. One important clarification: this average covers only federal loans in the student’s name. It does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes sign for, debt from banks or credit cards, or the total debt someone has upon graduation—which would require adding every year together, and that information is not available in this report.
This percentage describes other families, not yours. The amount your child would need to borrow depends on their own financial-aid letter. Wait for that letter before ruling out the school and before committing to it. The institution also offers an installment tuition-payment plan, if that helps organize the family budget.
Campus life, ROTC, sports, and support
Penn State Brandywine has institution-controlled housing with a maximum capacity of 250 students, and it does not require all first-time students to live there—although that does not mean no specific program has such a requirement. It also offers meal plans, but the number of meals per week varies by plan. The existence of housing does not guarantee an available bed; request the rate, the housing application deadline, and whether your child is guaranteed a place or will be placed on a waiting list in writing.
ROTC opportunities are available in two branches: Army and Air Force. Navy is not marked. A program being marked in the report does not mean it is taught on this specific campus—the data do not clarify that. If your child is interested in this path, ask about the program by name before building a plan around it.
In sports, the school is affiliated with the USCAA (United States Collegiate Athletic Association), not the NCAA or the NAIA. The specific question of whether it competes in intercollegiate sports is not applicable in this record. If sports matter to your child, request the current schedule and contact the coach directly; ask for written confirmation of whether there is a place for your child, which division the team competes in, and whether that sport awards athletic scholarships.
Regarding distance education, only 1 out of every 100 undergraduate students take all their classes at a distance; the other 99 take at least one class in person. The institution reported that it offers no complete undergraduate program that can be taken entirely at a distance. Confirm the exact level and major before assuming any flexibility.
Reported services include combined academic and career counseling, employment services for current students, participation in the Yellow Ribbon Program, a dedicated point of contact for veterans and military members, and a specific webpage for disability services. The fact that these services are reported says nothing about their quality or actual effectiveness; that must be assessed during a visit.
How many stay, and how many finish
We have reached the numbers that carry the most weight when making a decision. Of the full-time, first-time cohort that entered in the fall of 2022, 275 of 380 were still enrolled or had already completed a bachelor’s degree one year later: 72 out of every 100. Compared with the 519 similar schools, it falls slightly below the midpoint of the group.
Now for the figure you truly need to read slowly. Of the 412 first-time, full-time students who began a bachelor’s degree in 2017, only 87 held a degree from this school six years later. That is 21 out of every 100. At the four-year mark, the figure drops to 12 out of every 100. Compared with the 518 similar schools, Penn State Brandywine ranks at the very bottom of that table: nine out of ten similar schools, or more, reported a higher six-year graduation rate.
I want to be honest with you here, without dramatizing or softening it: out of every 100 who entered, 79 did not have a bachelor’s degree from this school six years later. That remainder may include people who earned a shorter credential here or those who transferred and graduated from another college or university—remember what we saw earlier: students who transfer are not counted as graduates from this school, even if they finish their degrees elsewhere. The data do not tell you why each particular person was left out of that count. What you should do with a number like this is ask directly what happened to that cohort, what concrete support exists today, and keep more than one option on your child’s list.
And this percentage covers the entire school, not a particular major. If your child is pursuing a specific program, request that graduation figure directly from the department.
There is a third calculation at eight years, following a different cohort—479 first-time and non-first-time, full-time and part-time students who entered between July 2015 and June 2016. As of August 2023, 31 out of every 100 held some degree or certificate from this school. Among Pell Grant recipients, the figure was 35 out of every 100, six points higher than for the group without Pell Grants. Compared with the 519 similar schools, this proportion also ranks at the very bottom of the table.
This measure is a snapshot taken on a single day, not a bill for eight years of study. It does not measure how much each person paid or how much income each person gave up during that time. Before signing anything, request written information about how long the exact program that interests your child takes to complete, how its required courses are scheduled, and how the total cost changes if the process takes longer.
What you now know, and what you still need to find out
You now know an important part of this college’s story: it is easy to enter, costs more than many similar schools for the lowest-income families, has more than half of its students financing their education with debt, and sees few students complete a bachelor’s degree at this same school within six years, although part of that difference is explained by students who transfer and graduate elsewhere.
None of these numbers tells you what will happen to your child. Their effort, specific major, and decisions on campus belong to them. The family’s money, the deadlines, the questions that must be asked before signing, and supporting your child without carrying alone the burden of a system you probably did not inherit belong to you. Combine what you have learned here with what your child wants to study, what they have already built, and what your family can and is willing to pay. A real plan comes from that combination, not from a single article.
Source note: The information in this article comes from IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) and the United States Department of Education, corresponding primarily to the 2022-23 and 2023-24 academic cycles. Best College Aid does not represent Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Brandywine or any government agency.