Lehigh University

FOUNDED: 1865 by Asa Packer, an industrial pioneer, entrepreneur and philanthropist

TYPE OF UNIVERSITY: Coeducational, nondenominational, private

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS: 4,856 (59% men; 41% women)

GRADUATE STUDENTS: 2,100 (54% men; 46% women)

GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY: Undergraduates represent 49 states and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 49 other countries.

LOCATION: Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, with easy access to Philadelphia (50 miles south) and New York City (75 miles east).

Lehigh students are engaged and work in a highly collaborative culture, where they are given the opportunity to work closely with faculty and fellow students.

Over 12,940 high school seniors applied for the first-year class entering in fall 2008. View a profile (PDF) of the incoming Class of 2012.

SAT ranges of the middle 50% of admitted students were 620–710 for verbal and 660–740 for math. Though it's not required, the middle 50% of admitted students submitting ACT scores ranged from 28-32.

Our undergraduate students come from 47 states, as well as 44 foreign countries.

Lehigh is among the most selective, highly ranked private research universities in the U.S.

Lehigh offers more than 90 undergraduate programs and majors featuring more than 2,000 courses, many of which easily transfer among Lehigh's 4 colleges.

The average class size at Lehigh is 25-28 students, and 73% of all of our classes have fewer than 30 students. Most large-enrollment courses, including, for example, calculus, economics, and sociology, have small recitation sections in addition to lectures. Enrollment in first-year writing classes is limited to 22. Lehigh's student-to-faculty ratio is 9:1.

Lehigh confers a total of 14 degrees at the undergraduate and advanced degree level. Undergraduates receive either a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree.

Lehigh's four colleges: College of Arts and Sciences, College of Business and Economics, P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science, College of Education

Lehigh faculty members are world-class scholars who are known for their excellence in research

A total of 629 faculty teach at Lehigh University, 443 of whom are full-time faculty. A small student-to-faculty ratio allows faculty to work closely with students spanning Lehigh's 4 colleges—each of which offers advanced degrees.

About 70% of all full-time faculty are tenured, which means they've undergone a rigorous academic review. 99% of full-time faculty hold a doctorate degree or the highest degree in their field.

Watch faculty members speak about their new research projects, and about Lehigh's distinctive teaching and learning culture.

Lehigh offers competitive financial aid packages that are awarded on a need- and merit-based system.

Cost of attendance for the 2009-2010 academic year:
Tuition: $38,330
Room and Board: $10,200
Technology Fee: $300

Students can expect to spend approximately $2,220 a year on books, fees, and miscellaneous expenses. There is a laboratory fee of $430 for engineering and science majors.

Lehigh is committed to providing need-based financial aid. More than 50% of Lehigh students receive financial aid. In 2009-2010, Lehigh will award more than $56 million in university grants and scholarships from a variety of sources (institutional, federal, state, external). Many of our institutional scholarships are supported by our endowment, the value of which was in excess of $1 billion at the end of the 2008 fiscal year. Increasing endowed scholarships, strengthening our already substantial ability to make Lehigh affordable for all families, is one of the principal goals of Lehigh's ongoing capital campaign.

Founded in 1865, Lehigh is a coeducational, non-denominational and private university. Located in Bethlehem, Pa., Lehigh is in close proximity to New York City (75 miles) and Philadelphia (50 miles).

Lehigh is comprised of 1,600 acres on 3 contiguous campuses: The Asa Packer Campus, Mountaintop Campus, and Murray H. Goodman Campus.

Lehigh features more than 153 buildings with 4.3 million-plus square feet of classroom, laboratory, office and living space. It also has 180 acres of playing fields and half of the campus is preserved as open space.

Lehigh's 2 libraries, including the recently renovated Linderman Library, hold more than 1.2 million volumes and 12,000 print and electronic journal subscriptions. There are also 90 scholarly databases available for research.