Ohio Wesleyan University

Private · Moderately Selective · OH

Photo: Phillip M Kukelhan (CC BY-SA 3.0)

School data & stats

TypePrivate

LocationOH · Midwest

SettingSuburban

Undergrads1,516

Student:faculty12:1

Outcomes

4-yr grad rate51%

6-yr grad rate58.6%

Drop-out rate15.3%

Study abroad—

Cost

In-state tuition$54k

Out-of-state tuition$54k

Application fee—

Community

Racial diversity28.8%

Gender diversity56.4%

International5.4%

IdentityUnited Methodist

Overview

Ohio Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio, just north of Columbus, with historic Methodist roots and a long record of sending graduates into medicine, science, law, and public service — including a number of U.S. senators and business leaders among its alumni.

Academics

The defining feature of the curriculum is the OWU Connection, a university-wide push to pair classroom theory with experiential learning — funded travel-learning courses, undergraduate research, and applied projects that connect coursework to something concrete outside it. Sciences and pre-health tracks are traditional strengths, supported by a research-active faculty accessible to undergraduates from the start.

Campus & student life

The campus sits in a small college town north of Columbus, close enough for city access without the college being subsumed by it. Greek life has historically been a significant part of social life, alongside Division III athletics and a residential campus culture typical of a small Midwestern liberal arts college.

Getting in

Admission is holistic, and the essay and application process rewards students who can speak to specific interests — the OWU Connection funding process itself asks students to propose projects, which shapes the kind of applicant the university tends to attract and admit.

After graduation

Ohio Wesleyan's alumni network is unusually well-represented in medicine, law, and politics relative to the college's size, and pre-health advising with strong medical school placement is a long-standing point of pride.

owu.edu ↗

Admissions

Acceptance rate55.6%

Enrolled mid-50%1240

Test policynot used

Rec letters—

Deadlines (2026–27 cycle)

Early actionDec 1

Early decisionNov 15

Regular decisionMar 1

AdmissionRolling

Applying