Radford University Acceptance Rate, Admissions & Graduation

This article does that work for you with one specific university: Radford University, in Radford, Virginia. I am not going to tell you whether it is the right school for your child. I do not know that, and no one who does not know you can know it. What I can do is show you what the official data—the data that the United States government requires every university to report—say about it, and translate those data into something you can use at home this week.

What Kind of School It Is, and Where It Stands

Let us start with the map, both literally and figuratively.

Radford University is a public four-year university. The federal system that classifies institutions in this country—the Carnegie system—places it among doctoral and professional universities, and the institution's own report confirms that a doctorate is the highest level it offers. That does not mean that every field your child might study extends through the doctoral level, or that the program that interests them offers a direct path from undergraduate to graduate study. It means that the institution as a whole has that capacity. If your child dreams of something beyond a bachelor's degree, that is a question worth asking early, one program at a time.

The same classification describes Radford as a “highly residential” school: during the period used in that analysis, at least half of its degree-seeking students lived in institution-owned housing, and eight out of ten studied full time. Living on campus, however, is neither free nor automatic. Room and board are charged separately from tuition, something we return to later with exact figures.

There is something else in this classification that deserves your attention if your child arrives here after taking classes at another institution: Carnegie places Radford among schools that receive many transfer students. That does not tell you how many of your child's credits will be accepted or which ones will be lost along the way. If transferring is part of the plan, the task is simple and nonnegotiable: before enrolling, ask in writing which courses count and which do not.

Where exactly is it? In Radford, Virginia, a town near an urban area but outside it. If your family does not live nearby, this has a practical consequence that no institutional data can resolve for you: you will have to calculate separately where your child would live, how they would get to campus, and how often they would return home.

One last piece of its identity, brief but useful: Radford University does not have any of these three special designations that other universities in the country do have: it is not a historically Black university, it is not a tribal university, and it is not a land-grant institution. Of the 3,012 universities in this federal census, 138 have at least one of the three. Radford's having none of them says nothing about which communities it serves today or how your child would feel there. You find that out directly, by speaking with current students and the appropriate offices.

The Community's Actual Size

When someone tells you, “Radford has 7,531 students,” they are correct, but they are also giving you an inflated number for what probably interests you. That total is divided between 5,704 undergraduate students and 1,827 graduate students. If your child is entering a bachelor's degree program, the number that will shape their experience is the undergraduate number: 5,704. A substantial part of the total enrollment, then, consists of people who have already completed one degree and returned for another credential.

Placed alongside the other 519 selective public four-year schools in this same census, Radford falls right in the middle of the table: neither among the giants nor among the tiny ones. In plain language, it is a medium-sized school.

Within that community, some composition data are worth keeping in mind:

Eight out of every hundred is a small minority, and it falls below the midpoint of the similar schools compared in this census. That neither removes Radford from your list nor puts it on the list. If your child would be part of that small group, the task is concrete: during your visit, ask which student group, cultural center, or person in the admissions office speaks Spanish, and try to speak with a Latino student who is already there. The institutional number describes the school as a whole; your child's experience may look different.

And the vast majority of entering students already lived in Virginia. If your family lives out of state, that does not disqualify you—we will look at that in the cost section—but it does tell you something about the kind of community your child would be joining: one that is predominantly local.

How the Academic Year Works and What the School Does With What Your Child Already Knows

Radford organizes its year into semesters: two long terms of about 15 weeks each, with a common calendar for everyone. Nothing unusual there.

What does matter is this: the institution reported that it accepts credit for AP exams, as well as what the federal system calls “credit for life experience”—learning acquired through independent study, adult courses, work experience, a portfolio, or prior licenses or certifications, including military or government opportunities. It also enrolls high school students in college courses for credit through a formal dual-enrollment program, and it reports accepting credit for military training.

Here is the fine print that does matter: reporting that it accepts AP does not mean it awards credit for every exam at every score. This report does not tell us what scores are required or whether those credits apply to your child's specific field of study. Ask for the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget for savings in time or money until you have that document in hand.

As for the range of fields of study: between July 2022 and June 2023, Radford awarded 1,543 bachelor's degrees across 20 program families. The largest family was health professions, with 26 out of every 100 degrees awarded that year—no other area exceeded it, but it did not account for a majority either. This is a broad, distributed offering, not a school built around one dominant field of study. Twenty active families do not mean exactly twenty majors, nor do they guarantee that the specific program your child wants is still active today; confirm that directly.

Regarding class size, the official ratio is 12 students per full-time-equivalent faculty member, a low figure compared with similar schools—it falls in the lowest quartile among 519 similar institutions. It is an aggregate number for the entire university. It does not measure the actual size of the first-year classes your child will take, and by itself it does not demonstrate that more individual attention will be available to them.

In addition to the standard academic path, Radford reports structured opportunities: study abroad and several pathways related to teacher certification, including state approval of its program for initial teacher certification. If your child's interests point toward teaching, this is a concrete sign worth following up on closely.

Getting In: How Difficult It Is, and How Far That Accessibility Goes

Here is one of the most important facts in this entire article, and I want to give it to you directly: in the 2023 cycle, Radford received 11,072 first-time applications and offered admission to 10,036 applicants. That is 91 out of every 100 applicants. It is very much a university that admits applicants: compared with 519 similar selective public schools, it falls on the more accessible side, with seven out of ten of those schools admitting an equal or lower percentage.

Even so, the number of applicants who did not receive an offer was 1,036. A high acceptance rate does not mean admission is automatic. The application must be complete and submitted on time.

The university does not require the SAT or ACT—it is “test optional.” If your child submits scores, they are considered; if not, the application continues through the normal process. Among those who did enroll, only 19 out of every 100 submitted SAT scores, and among those students, the middle half scored between 490 and 610 in reading and writing and between 460 and 560 in mathematics. That range is neither a minimum nor a guarantee: it is what other students achieved during one specific cycle.

As for the requirements that are mandatory: the high school transcript, the high school grade point average, and an English-proficiency exam for applicants to whom it applies. If your child studied outside the United States, or completed high school in Spanish, ask now whether that exam applies and what would exempt them. It is one of those things people discover late if they do not ask in time. The personal essay and letters of recommendation are not mandatory, but if you submit them, they will be considered—the report does not say how much weight they carry in the final decision.

One practical fact that eases the financial burden: the published application fee is $0.

Now comes the part almost no one tells you, and it changes how you read everything above: out of every 100 admitted students, only 11 enrolled. Put another way, out of every nine young people who receive a yes from Radford, about one ultimately attends. It is one of the lowest enrollment rates among comparable schools—nine out of ten similar institutions have a higher percentage.

Do not read this as a stain on the school. The federal record does not explain why each admitted student chose another path, and what others decided does not predict what your family will be offered. What I will tell you is this: wait for your net-price letter—what the year would actually cost—before deciding whether Radford stays on the list. That letter, not the behavior of other families, is your real information.

Transfers: Those Who Arrive and Those Who Leave

Radford sees substantial transfer movement in both directions. In the fall of 2023, 577 students arrived for the first time after previously studying at another institution.

But there is also substantial movement out. Among the cohort that entered in 2017 as full-time bachelor's-degree-seeking students, 33 out of every 100 transferred to another school without completing their degree at Radford, within one and a half times the normal completion period. Compared with 395 similar schools, that transfer-out share is on the high side.

Here is something almost no family keeps in mind when comparing graduation rates across universities: a student who transfers to another school and completes a degree there does not count as a Radford graduate, even if that student succeeded. The report counts the change, not each person's eventual outcome. Remember this when you read the graduation section later.

The Published Price: Two Numbers, Not One

This is where many families get lost, so let us take it slowly.

For the 2023–24 school year, Radford reported a total cost of attendance of $29,171 for a Virginia student living on campus and $42,070 for an out-of-state student. That difference—nearly $13,000 per year—comes entirely from tuition: $12,286 if you are a resident and $25,185 if you are not.

The rest of the budget consists of $11,973 for on-campus housing and food and $1,260 for books and supplies, plus an estimate for other expenses such as transportation and laundry.

It is worth stating clearly what this number is and is not. It is an annual budget used to calculate financial aid, not a bill that will arrive in the mail. Compared with the other 483 similar public and private schools in this census, Radford's cost at the resident rate falls above the group's midpoint.

Whether your child would apply as a Virginia resident or as an out-of-state student is not a minor detail—it is the difference between two entirely different budgets. Ask the institution which exact requirements it uses for that classification, because they are not the same at every university.

The Price That Actually Matters: Net Price

At Radford University, among 172 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 $11,289. Among 142 students from the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $14,533; among 214 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $22,537. For dependent students, the band combines their parents' income with their own.

The difference between the average for the lowest-income band (172 students) and the average for the highest-income band (214 students) is $11,248. Among first-year students who received any grant or scholarship, the average was $18,282.

$11,289 was the average net price for families in the lowest-income band in the 2022-23 academic year. That does not mean it is what your family will pay. It helps you determine whether it is worth requesting the financial-aid letter.

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 grant or scholarship recipients, 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 for it before applying.

Financial Aid: What Is Common, and What Borrowing Costs

At Radford, receiving some form of grant, scholarship, or other aid that does not have to be repaid is the norm, not the exception: 93 out of every 100 students receive it. Compared with similar schools, Radford falls in the quartile where grants and scholarships reach the most students, with an average of $8,605 among recipients. In addition, 36 out of every 100 students receive Pell, the federal aid for low-income families.

A high number is not a personal promise. It is what happened to other students in a specific year. Ask in writing which applications must be completed, what the deadlines are, and what happens to the grant or scholarship if your child's grades decline.

Now for the hard truth in this section: 55 out of every 100 Radford undergraduate students received a federal student loan in the 2022–23 year. That is a high share compared with similar schools. Those who borrowed took out an average of $6,315 that year. If your child borrowed a similar amount in each of the program's four years, the total would be around $25,260, excluding interest—and that calculation should be made before the first signature, not afterward.

This average covers only federal loans in the student's name during one year. It does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes sign for, bank debt, or credit cards, and it is not the total debt someone has upon graduating. That number is not in this report. What you can do is this: wait for your own child's financial-aid letter before ruling out or committing to this school. The percentage for other families is not your number.

The institution also offers a tuition installment plan if you prefer to spread the cost across the year instead of paying it all at once.

Campus Life, ROTC, Sports, and Study Format

Radford has its own housing and meal plans, with a fixed number of weekly meals in the largest plan. The institution responded that it does not require all first-year students to live on campus—that rules out a universal requirement, but does not confirm that no individual program has one. IPEDS reports institutional housing capacity for 3,229 students. The existence of capacity does not guarantee a place: ask in writing for the current year's rate, the deadline for requesting a room, and whether you are guaranteed a place or placed on a waiting list.

Army ROTC is confirmed in the report. Navy and Air Force ROTC are not marked—that does not mean they are impossible; it means you need to ask directly and confirm whether the program is completed on this campus or another one.

Radford competes in intercollegiate sports and is affiliated with the NCAA, with confirmed membership in basketball, baseball, and cross-country or track and field. This does not say which division each sport competes in or whether an athletic scholarship is available. If sports are part of your child's plan, write directly to the coach and ask for the answer in writing.

As for distance education, Radford offers it at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. In the most recent count, 10 out of every 100 undergraduate students took their entire course load online, while the other 90 took at least one class in person. The institution also reports at least one program in which all required courses can be completed at a distance, although the data do not confirm whether that specific program is undergraduate—confirm the exact level before assuming anything.

The library has contracted staff, physical and digital materials, and interlibrary lending, with annual spending that exceeds the $100,000 threshold required by the federal report. The support services the institution formally reports also include combined academic and career counseling, employment services, placement services for graduates, specific support for veterans and military service members—including participation in the Yellow Ribbon program—and a webpage dedicated to services for students with disabilities.

Retention and Graduation: The Question That Really Matters

We have reached the heart of what every family wants to know: if my child enrolls here, how likely are they to finish?

Let us start with the first year. Among the cohort that entered in the fall of 2022 as full-time bachelor's-degree-seeking students, 73 out of every 100 were still enrolled at Radford—or had already graduated—one year later. That figure is slightly below the midpoint among similar schools in this census. The data do not distinguish between those who are still studying and those who have already graduated, nor do they explain what happened to the rest. And something important: not returning to Radford is not the same as leaving higher education. Someone who transferred and is continuing to study elsewhere counts the same in this figure as someone who left college altogether.

Now, graduation. Among the students who entered in 2017 as full-time bachelor's-degree-seeking students, 50 out of every 100 graduated from Radford within six years. It is, literally, half and half. At four years—the timeframe most families have budgeted for—the figure falls to 34 out of every 100, sixteen percentage points lower. Compared with similar schools, Radford falls below the group's midpoint on this measure.

I want to be direct with you here, without softening or exaggerating it: this is the hardest figure in this entire article, and it deserves to be faced squarely. Fifty out of every hundred is not a verdict on your child, but neither is it an outcome you can ignore. Before deciding, ask directly what concrete support exists to help a student finish on time and how long the specific bachelor's degree your child wants usually takes to complete. Also remember what we saw earlier: part of the 50 who “did not graduate from here” may have transferred and graduated elsewhere. The data count outcomes at Radford, not each person's complete story.

If we extend the window to eight years, also counting part-time students and students with prior experience, the figure rises: 60 out of every 100 members of that cohort had earned a degree or certificate from Radford. Among Pell grant recipients, the figure was 56 out of every 100, six percentage points below the group without Pell. Compared with similar schools, Radford is on the favorable side here: at least half of the group reported an equal or lower share of students earning a credential within eight years.

That gap between four, six, and eight years is not abstract. Every additional year at the university means tuition, housing, and, often, another year without full-time income. Before signing anything, ask in writing how long the program that interests your child actually tends to take, how its required courses are scheduled, and how the total cost would change if the plan takes longer.

What This Article Cannot Tell You

This report does not include—because the source that authorizes it does not cover—any data about what happens after graduation: salaries, employment, or debt upon leaving school. That belongs to another investigation, using other sources, and it is not included here.

Putting the Pieces Together

You now know, based on real numbers rather than impressions, one of the pieces you need in order to decide: what Radford University is, how difficult it is to enter, how much it costs in its two forms—the listed price and the net price—how much aid is available, and how likely a student is to complete a degree there, based on what happened to earlier cohorts.

That piece is yours. The other two belong to your child and your family: what your child wants to study and what they have built so far, and what you are able and willing to pay. None of the three decides anything alone. Together, the three form a plan.

If your child is just beginning to build a college list, this is information to put on the table and discuss together, not information to use to decide for them. If they are further along in the process, these are the kinds of questions worth taking directly to the admissions or financial-aid office, with this document in hand.

I do not know what your family will decide. But I do know that deciding with this level of clarity is different from deciding based on scattered impressions, and that this step—understanding before acting—is already progress that no one can take away from you.

Source note: The information in this article comes from official data reported by Radford University to the U.S. Department of Education's IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System), corresponding to the different years and academic cycles identified throughout the text. Best College Aid does not represent Radford University or the United States government, and this article does not constitute personalized admissions advice.