College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

Bucknell University

PAMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #395 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth places Bucknell University in the 73rd percentile overall among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

Bucknell University is a private nonprofit university in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, where the degree mix is led by the social sciences, engineering, and business. Return is among the highest we track.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them, and the typical graduate earns above the median at comparable schools. The model attributes most of that gain to the factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market.

The remainder it cannot explain subtracts a small amount. The price picture is split.

Families at the bottom of the income scale pay well below the published cost, while those at the top pay closer to it. Pell students complete at a rate that is above the overall cohort's, and mobility is above average.

The admission rate is well below the median for comparable schools. A student drawn to the social sciences should know that the largest departments are not the best-paid ones.

An estimated share of graduates continue to graduate study, and the four-year earnings figure counts only graduates who are not enrolled.

Bucknell University at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
28.9%
Six-year completion[2]
86.3%
Four-year earnings[3]
$96,035

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$23,679
Median student debt[4]
$27,000
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$62,750

Bucknell University rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

Bucknell University is a private nonprofit university in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, enrolling 3,876 undergraduates. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, the university sits in the upper third of the ranking (73rd percentile).

At Bucknell University, the admission rate stands at 28.9%, against a peer median of 71.2% for comparable institutions of the same type and size. The first-year retention rate is 93.7%, against a peer median of 83.4%.

The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 86.3%, compared with a peer median of 68.8%. Only an estimated 3.6% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year rate applies to a cohort that almost entirely began here.

Return is the strongest , at the 97th percentile, while affordability is the weakest, at the 2nd percentile. Mobility and access sit between those extremes, at the 72nd and 50th percentiles, leaving the four pillars spread widely across the Azimuth ranking.

Return is the standout in Bucknell University’s Azimuth profile, though affordability points in the opposite direction for families weighing cost. Azimuth places return, the university’s strongest pillar, in the 97th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth places mobility in the 72nd percentile and access in the 50th percentile. It places affordability, the weakest pillar, in the 2nd percentile.

Strong return and mobility sit alongside an affordability result that calls for close attention to actual costs.

12.4% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants. Azimuth ranks Bucknell University #729 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell recipients complete at 91.7%, 5.4 percentage points above the rate for the entering cohort as a whole. Azimuth ranks the university #414 for mobility. Graduates earn about $9,208 more than the model expects for similar students.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

Bucknell University rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#395

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 72
Access & reach
National percentile: 50
Affordability
National percentile: 2
Return on investment
National percentile: 97

Top-ranked majors

  1. Accounting and Related Services#2
  2. Biology, General#10
  3. Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics#11

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / Bucknell University briefing

Bucknell University cost & financial aid[6][7]

Bucknell University carries a high published price, and its average net price remains above that of comparable institutions after aid. The published cost of attendance is $83,756, an average across living arrangements.

On-campus tuition and fees are $67,812, and room and board is $16,924. For aid recipients, the , what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $40,766, with average aid savings of $42,990 against the sticker price.

That net price is $13,395 above the $27,371 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Azimuth ranks the university #1,382 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The published price and above-peer net price point to a costly result even after aid.

At Bucknell University, the published cost of attendance is $83,756 (an average across living arrangements), so the aid offer matters greatly to the amount a family pays. Average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $20,980 for the lowest family-income band, $12,276 for the lower-middle band, $23,679 for the middle band, $28,165 for the upper-middle band, and $55,724 for the highest band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $34,744, a difference between band averages. Azimuth ranks the university #1,382 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 51% of the published cost, or average savings of $42,990 against the sticker price. Across all aid recipients, the average net price is $40,766.

That figure is $13,395 above the peer median net price of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size). Published tuition and fees are $67,812, with room and board at $16,924.

The higher peer comparison and the range across income bands point to a price that depends heavily on the aid package. Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $27,000, and 95.2% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.

The median is $2,801 above the peer median of $24,199 at comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month if repaid over ten years.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing is $62,750.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$23,679

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Bucknell University

Federal borrowing is widespread, with 95.2% of federal aid recipients taking federal loans. For borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $27,000.

The peer median—the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size)—is $24,199, leaving the university $2,801 above it. Parent borrowers are separate from student borrowers, with median Parent PLUS borrowing of $62,750.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 44% of graduates borrowed from any source, averaging $43,060 in cumulative debt per borrower. Federal loans were held by 44% of graduates, averaging $21,371.

Private loans, including graduates who may also hold federal loans, were held by 13% of graduates and averaged $74,776.

The return pillar is the strongest of the four at Bucknell University, and the investment picture rests on it. Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $96,035.

Azimuth places the median in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $9,208 more than the model expects for similar students.

That puts the gap at the 81st percentile. Estimated earnings scenarios from the program mix run from $56,044 on the downside to $127,222 on the upside, with $96,035 as the typical outcome.

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $27,000 in federal loans, $2,801 above the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month.

The earnings and payment figures point the same way, but affordability is the weakest pillar and the overall picture is mixed.

For the separate population of parent borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $62,750. For student borrowers with median federal debt, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month if repaid over ten years.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$27,000
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$62,750

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$307/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$797/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / Bucknell University briefing

Bucknell University career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Bucknell University graduates earn a median of $96,035 four years after completion. That is at the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, and $27,785 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth places the return pillar in the 97th percentile. Graduates earn about $9,208 more than the model expects for similar students.

That puts the gap at the 81st percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,524.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $316. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $4,387.

Four years after completing a degree, Bucknell University graduates earn a median of $96,035. That figure sits in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, drawn from an earnings cohort of 557 completers.

Graduates earn about $9,208 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, show a downside of $56,044 and an upside of $127,222.

An estimated 39.1% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

The return picture at Bucknell University is led by earnings that place well above much of nonprofit four-year institutions. Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled report median earnings of $96,035 four years after completion, in the 96th percentile.

This is $27,785 above the peer median of $68,250, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size). Graduates earn about $9,208 more than the model expects for similar students.

Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is in the 81st percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,524.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $316. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $4,387.

Azimuth ranks Bucknell University #42 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix range from a downside of $56,044 to an upside of $127,222.

Economics is the largest program, with 133 degrees awarded and median earnings of $108,422 four years after completion. Azimuth ranks the field #41 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions, and its earnings are 1.72x the national median for the field.

The earnings picture at Bucknell University varies widely across modeled program-mix scenarios, from $56,044 in the downside scenario to $127,222 in the upside scenario. These are scenarios, not observed groups of graduates.

Bucknell University pairs earnings beyond expectations with borrowing that is higher than the comparable-institution median. Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $27,000.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $24,199, and Bucknell is above it by $2,801. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month if repaid over ten years.

Graduates earn about $9,208 more than the model expects for similar students. Above-peer debt sits alongside higher-than-expected earnings, leaving a return picture with both a borrowing premium and a positive earnings result.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$9,524
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$316
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$9,208

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / Bucknell University briefing

Bucknell University acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

Admission was limited to 28.9% of applicants in the reported entering class. That figure sits below the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 11,561 first-year applicants, 3,723 admitted applicants, and 1,037 enrolled students.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
28.9%
25th percentile
1170
Median
1270
75th percentile
1360

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / Bucknell University briefing

What are the largest majors at Bucknell University?[12]

Computer Engineering sets the high end of the program picture at Bucknell University, with median earnings of $156,885 four years after completion across 32 degrees awarded. Accounting also sits at the higher end, at $130,990 across 74 degrees awarded.

Economics recorded $108,422 four years after completion and 133 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #41 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. At a more moderate earnings level, Psychology had median earnings of $66,206 across 93 degrees awarded.

The contrast between these fields shows that reported earnings vary substantially by program four years after completion.

Social Sciences accounts for 26.3% of bachelor’s degrees awarded, and Bucknell University has 10 ranked bachelor’s field. Azimuth ranks Accounting #2 nationally in its field among nonprofit four-year institutions; it awarded 74 degrees, and its completers had median earnings of $130,990 four years after completion.

Computer Engineering awarded 32 degrees, with its completers earning a median $156,885 four years after completion. The figures show a program mix with markedly different earnings levels.

The degree mix at Bucknell University is anchored in the social sciences, with Social Sciences accounting for 26.3% of bachelor's degrees awarded, ahead of Engineering at 13.8% and Business at 12.1%. Across all fields, 36.5% of degrees are in STEM.

The university has 10 program with an Azimuth national rank and 14 with published four-year earnings data. The largest single program is Economics, at 133 degrees awarded, followed by Political Science at 97 and Psychology at 93.

The highest-ranked program is Accounting, which Azimuth ranks #1 in Pennsylvania within its field, with median earnings of $130,990 four years after completion. The highest-earning program is a smaller one: Computer Engineering graduates earn a median of $156,885 four years after completion, from 32 degrees awarded a year.

Accounting is the second-highest-earning program, at $130,990 four years after completion from 74 degrees awarded, and its graduates' median earnings are 1.72x the national median for the field. The pattern is one of strength concentrated in a few fields.

The largest program is Economics, and the highest-ranked is Accounting. Political Science and Psychology award more degrees than the highest-earning programs.

Four-year earnings for fields where graduate study is common understate later trajectories.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Economics 133 degrees awarded
$108,422
Political Science and Government 97 degrees awarded
$94,028
Psychology, General 93 degrees awarded
$66,206
Accounting and Related Services 74 degrees awarded
$130,990
Biology, General 64 degrees awarded
$85,687
Marketing 36 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / Bucknell University briefing

How does Bucknell University serve students from different backgrounds?

Strong completion sits alongside higher-than-expected modeled earnings at Bucknell University. For the first-time full-time cohort, the six-year graduation rate is 86.3%; Pell recipients complete within six years at 91.7%, above the overall rate by 5.4 percentage points.

Azimuth assigns the mobility pillar to the 72nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $9,208 more than the model expects for similar students.

Azimuth puts that measure in the 81st percentile. Completion and modeled earnings point in the same direction.

Entry to Bucknell University is defined by a 28.9% admission rate. The private nonprofit university has 3,876 undergraduates, and 12.4% receive Pell Grants; an estimated 3.6% arrive as transfers or part-time students.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, its access pillar falls in the 50th percentile. The admission rate, Pell Grant share, and estimated transfer entry describe different parts of who reaches the university.

06 / Bucknell University briefing

What colleges are similar to Bucknell University?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with Bucknell University.

Admissions peerLafayette College31.5% admitted
Comparison with Bucknell University
MeasureBucknell UniversityLafayette College
Peer earnings · 4 years$96,035$91,758-$4,277 vs Bucknell University
Average annual net price$40,766$34,433-$6,333 vs Bucknell University · lower cost
Admission rate28.9%31.5%
Explore Lafayette College →
Higher-admission alternativeGeorge Washington University47.1% admitted
Comparison with Bucknell University
MeasureBucknell UniversityGeorge Washington University
Peer earnings · 4 years$96,035$95,967-$68 vs Bucknell University
Average annual net price$40,766$36,586-$4,180 vs Bucknell University · lower cost
Admission rate28.9%47.1%
Explore George Washington University →
Nearby alternativeLafayette CollegeNearby option · PA
Comparison with Bucknell University
MeasureBucknell UniversityLafayette College
Peer earnings · 4 years$96,035$91,758-$4,277 vs Bucknell University
Average annual net price$40,766$34,433-$6,333 vs Bucknell University · lower cost
Admission rate28.9%31.5%
Explore Lafayette College →
Lower-cost alternativeLafayette College$34,433 average net price
Comparison with Bucknell University
MeasureBucknell UniversityLafayette College
Peer earnings · 4 years$96,035$91,758-$4,277 vs Bucknell University
Average annual net price$40,766$34,433-$6,333 vs Bucknell University · lower cost
Admission rate28.9%31.5%
Explore Lafayette College →
Similar profileWentworth Institute of TechnologyMatched across several measures
Comparison with Bucknell University
MeasureBucknell UniversityWentworth Institute of Technology
Peer earnings · 4 years$96,035$95,027-$1,008 vs Bucknell University
Average annual net price$40,766$34,170-$6,596 vs Bucknell University · lower cost
Admission rate28.9%91.2%
Explore Wentworth Institute of Technology →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings