Wheaton College
Wheaton College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois, about 25 miles west of Chicago, known for pairing academic rigor with an evangelical Protestant mission — its motto is "For Christ and His Kingdom," and its alumni include Billy Graham. The campus centers on the limestone Blanchard Hall and includes a respected Conservatory of Music. With roughly 2,150 undergraduates, Wheaton admits about 87% of applicants, and enrolled first-years post an average high school GPA near 3.79 with middle-50% SAT scores of 1260–1470. The social sciences, business, the biological sciences, and theology are among the most-conferred fields, and the college has no Greek system. Wheaton is test-optional, retains 93% of first-years, and graduates 85% within six years.
See how Wheaton compares
Pick up to two rivals — or search any school.
Wheaton admissions statistics
Acceptance rate
Total applicants, admitted students, and enrolled students for the most recent admission cycle.
Early action
Wheaton offers non-binding Early Action — an earlier decision with no commitment to enroll.
Standardized tests
Wheaton is currently test-optional — you may apply without submitting scores.
SAT Accepted?
ACT Accepted?
Test Optional?
SAT Scores
ACT Scores
Wheaton supplemental essays — 2026-2027 cycle
Please share more about your faith journey. Provide one specific example or story of how the Lord has been working in your life in this past year.
Writing your Wheaton application essay?
Paste your draft and get specific, line-by-line feedback on what is and isn't landing — scored against the rubrics admissions readers use.
Admissions factors
How Wheaton weighs each part of your application.
Rigor of High School Record
Academic GPA
Standardized Test Scores
Application Essay
Recommendations
Extracurricular Activities
Character / Personal Qualities
Talent / Ability
First Generation
Level of Applicant's Interest
Class Rank
Volunteer Work
Work Experience
Geographical Residence
State Residency
Alumni Relation
Racial / Ethnic Status
Religious Affiliation
Cost of attendance
Estimated full-time annual cost from Wheaton's Common Data Set.
Private universities charge the same tuition regardless of state residency.
Financial aid
Need-based aid statistics for full-time first-year students.
Frequently asked questions about Wheaton admissions
No — Wheaton is not highly selective by the numbers, admitting about 87.4% of applicants in the most recent cycle (roughly 1,783 of 2,040). That said, Wheaton is a Christian liberal arts college that weighs an applicant's religious affiliation and commitment as a very important factor alongside academics, so 'fit' matters as much as the headline rate.
Enrolled first-years at Wheaton College (IL) report an average high school GPA of about 3.79. There is no hard cutoff — both the rigor of your secondary school record and your academic GPA are weighed as very important factors, along with your essay, recommendations, and personal character.
No. Wheaton is test-optional, so you can apply without submitting scores. Among enrolled first-years who did submit, the middle 50% scored 1260–1470 on the SAT and 28–32 on the ACT; standardized test scores themselves are only 'considered' in Wheaton's review, ranking below grades, essay, and character.
Faith is central to Wheaton's admissions review — religious affiliation and commitment are listed as a very important factor, on par with your GPA, course rigor, essay, and recommendations. Wheaton is an evangelical Protestant liberal arts college whose mission ('For Christ and His Kingdom') shapes who it admits, so your faith background is weighed alongside, not instead of, your academic record.
Wheaton offers a non-binding, non-restrictive Early Action plan and does not offer Early Decision. Because Early Action is non-binding, you can apply early to get a decision sooner without committing to enroll. Overall, Wheaton admitted about 87.4% of applicants and enrolled roughly 533 first-years in the most recent cycle.
Tuition and required fees run about $47,390 per year, with food and housing adding roughly $13,660 on top. About 59% of first-years receive need-based scholarship or grant aid, the average aid package is around $41,967, and Wheaton meets about 76% of demonstrated financial need on average.
The social sciences are the most-conferred area at about 16% of bachelor's degrees, followed by business and marketing and the biological sciences (each near 10%) and theology and philosophy (also about 10%). English, psychology, and the visual and performing arts round out the most popular fields, reflecting Wheaton's liberal arts core and its Conservatory of Music.
Yes. Wheaton rates the application essay as a very important factor — on the same tier as GPA, course rigor, recommendations, and personal character, and well above test scores, which are only 'considered.' Because Wheaton's review is so holistic and faith-aware, a thoughtful, well-revised essay is a real chance to show who you are beyond your transcript.
Esslo gives free line-by-line feedback on your draft. Try it now
Popular majors
Bachelor's degrees awarded in the past year by academic major.
Student-faculty ratio
The number of students for every one faculty member, indicating the average level of access students have to instructional staff.
Campus life
On-campus housing and Greek life participation rates.
Enrollment by gender
Student diversity
Racial and ethnic breakdown of enrolled undergraduate students.
Source: Wheaton College Common Data Set 2024-2025. Figures transcribed 2026-06-08. Esslo aggregates publicly reported data and is not affiliated with Wheaton. Banner photo by Owenecasserole, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). Cite this page as: Esslo College Explorer, “Wheaton College admissions statistics, transcribed from the 2024-2025 Common Data Set,” https://www.esslo.org/colleges/wheaton-il (retrieved 2026-06-08).