Saint Joseph's University (also called SJU or St. Joe's) is a nationally recognized, private, coeducational Roman Catholic university located partially in the Wynnefield section of Philadelphia and partially in Lower Merion Township and is located in the Pennsylvania Main Line, Pennsylvania, United States.
The school was founded in 1851 as Saint Joseph's College by the Society of Jesus. As of 2007, Saint Joseph's University is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. Saint Joseph's University educates over 7,500 students each year in over 50 undergraduate majors, 10 special-study options, 28 study abroad programs, 53 graduate study areas, and an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership while also boasting 17 centers and institutes. The school is one of 142 nationwide with a Phi Beta Kappa chapter and AACSB business school accreditation.
Saint Joseph's has grown in physical size and national scope in the new millennium. This has culminated in the University being ranked 8th among Best Universities-Master’s (North) in U.S. News and World Report's "America's Best Colleges 2008" edition.
On the morning of September 15, 1851, some thirty young men gathered in the courtyard outside Old St. Joseph's Church, located in Willing's Alley off Walnut and Fourth Street, one block from Independence Hall. After attending High Mass and reciting the Veni Creator in the church, these young men were assigned to their classes in a building adjacent to the church. That September morning marked the beginning of a rich and exciting history for Saint Joseph's University.
As far back as 1741, a Jesuit College in Philadelphia had been proposed and planned by Rev. Joseph Greaton, S.J., the first resident pastor of Saint Joseph's Church. The suppression of the Jesuits (1773-1814) and lack of human and financial resources delayed for over a hundred years the realization of Fr. Greaton's plans for a college. Credit for founding the college is given to Rev. Felix Barbelin, S.J., who served as its first president. He, along with four other Jesuits, formed the first faculty of Saint Joseph's College. Before the end of the first academic year, the enrollment rose from fewer than forty to ninety-seven students. In the following year (1852), when the college received its charter of incorporation from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the enrollment grew to 126 students. The fledgling college soon outgrew an increasingly noisy and commercialized location on Willing’s Alley, near Fourth and Walnut Streets. From there the college moved in 1856 to a building at Juniper and Filbert Streets, then in a prosperous residential neighborhood near the future site of City Hall.In 1889 Saint Joseph’s inaugurated its third site at Seventeenth and Stiles Streets in North Philadelphia, in the heart of Philadelphia’s booming industrial zone. In 1922, Saint Joseph's opened the first college radio station on AM radio. In 1927, in recognition of population shifts toward the western part of the city and into the western suburbs, the college moved to 54th and City Avenue, at the very entrance to Philadelphia’s fashionable Main Line and the location where the school currently resides. In the post-World War II period, Saint Joseph’s began to acquire properties across City Avenue on the Main Line itself, propelling the institution physically as well as culturally into the suburbs proper.
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| Percent of Students International: | 2% |
| On-Campus Housing Available: | Yes |
| Percent of Students Living On-Campus: | 42% |
| Freshman Students Required to Live on Campus: | Yes |
| Member of: | NAA, NCAA |
| Sports Include: |
Basketball (Atlantic 10 Conference) Baseball (Atlantic 10 Conference) Track (Atlantic 10 Conference) |
| Tuition & Fees (undergraduate) | Expenses | ||
Published Tuition and Fees: |
$ 27,455 | ||
Average Tuition for Full-Time Undergrads: |
$ 27,320 | ||
Required Fees for Full-Time Undergrads: |
$ 135 | ||
| Financial Aid | Avg. Amount Received | % of Students Receiving Aid | |
Federal Grants: |
$ 1,914 | 23% | |
State and Local Grants: |
$ 3,134 | 11% | |
Institutional Grants: |
$ 8,185 | 85% | |
Student Loans: |
$ 3,125 | 78% | |
Any Aid: |
86% |
| Acceptance Rate: | 47% (Highly Selective) |
| Test Scores | |
| SAT Scores: | |
| % of Students Submitting SAT Scores: | 99% |
| Bottom 25th Percentile: | Verbal: 520, Math: 530 |
| Top 75th Percentile: | Verbal: 620, Math: 630 |
| Application Fee: | $ 55.00 |
| Formal Demonstration of Competencies: | Not Required |
| High School Diploma or Equivalent: | Required |
| High School GPA: | Required |
| High School Rank: | Not Required |
| High School Record: | Required |
| Recommendations: | Required |
| TOEFL: | Required |
| Test Scores: | Required |
