University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Public · Moderately Selective · NE

Photo: Hanyou23 (CC BY-SA 4.0)

School data & stats

TypePublic

LocationNE · Midwest

SettingUrban

Undergrads19,178

Student:faculty17:1

Outcomes

4-yr grad rate49.7%

6-yr grad rate67%

Drop-out rate14%

Study abroad—

Cost

In-state tuition$10k

Out-of-state tuition$29k

Application fee—

Community

Racial diversity24.5%

Gender diversity49.8%

International2.8%

Identity—

Overview

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is the state's flagship and land-grant university, anchoring the capital city and serving as Nebraska's primary research institution. Nebraska moved from the Big 12 to the Big Ten in 2011, a conference shift that says as much about the university's ambitions as any single academic metric. It combines a broad comprehensive curriculum with deep agricultural and applied-science roots through its Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and campus life is inseparable from the rhythms of Husker football and the surrounding Haymarket district.

Academics

Agricultural sciences, actuarial science, engineering, and journalism stand out among UNL's programs, with the land-grant mission still visible in strong extension and applied-research ties across the state. The Raikes School layers a selective, project-based computer science and entrepreneurship track on top of the regular CS curriculum for students who want a smaller, more intensive cohort experience within a large university. Class sizes otherwise scale with a big flagship, but honors college seminars and undergraduate research opportunities let motivated students find smaller settings.

Campus & student life

Lincoln is a genuine college town built around the university, and the connection to the redeveloped Haymarket district, a historic warehouse quarter turned restaurant and nightlife strip, gives students an easy walk from campus into the city's social life. Husker football is a defining cultural institution: Memorial Stadium has sold out every home game for decades, effectively becoming the state's third-largest city on Saturdays, and the program's championship history still shapes campus identity as much as any club or organization.

Getting in

Admission is largely credentials-based, weighing GPA and coursework rigor more heavily than an elaborate essay-driven process, which makes UNL a relatively predictable target for well-prepared students. Nebraska residents make up a large share of the class, though the university actively recruits out of state and offers substantial merit scholarships to draw students from beyond the region, particularly into selective programs like the Raikes School and the honors college.

After graduation

Graduates find strong regional pipelines into Nebraska and Midwest agribusiness, insurance, engineering firms, and media organizations, aided by a loyal, football-bound alumni network that keeps many graduates engaged with the university long after graduation. Raikes School graduates in particular have a track record of landing at national technology employers well beyond the Midwest.

Worth knowing

The actuarial science program has an outsized national reputation relative to the university's general profile, and its ties to Nebraska's insurance industry, Berkshire Hathaway subsidiaries among them, make it a genuine draw for students in that field. The Raikes School is a similarly under-the-radar strength worth knowing about for computer-science-minded applicants.

unl.edu ↗

Admissions

Acceptance rate87.5%

Enrolled mid-50%SAT 1098–1330 · ACT 22–28

Test policyoptional

Rec letters0

Deadlines (2026–27 cycle)

AdmissionRolling

Applying