Bucknell University
Lewisburg, Pennsylvania · Private · 3,876 undergraduates · bucknell.edu
Test policy (fall 2027)
Test optional
Sending scores is your choice
Admit rate
32%
of 11,561 applicants
SAT (middle 50%)
1170 to 1360
of enrolled freshmen
Annual cost (2027-28)
$99,410Est.Estimate
before aid
Your chances and merit aid at Bucknell University
See where you stand for admission, how much merit aid you could get, and what you'd pay after it.
We started you at a typical enrolled freshman here. Move the sliders to match you.
Your admission chances
32% of applicants admitted
Target
Your SAT is inside the range where the middle half of enrolled freshmen scored, and your GPA is in the middle half of freshmen's.
Estimated merit aid
a year
Your cost after merit aid
$99,410
a year in 2027-28, from a $99,410 sticker price
What to do with your 1270
Send your score
About 18% of freshmen here didn't send a score. We estimate their typical SAT at about 1180, and yours is above it.
Reach, target and likely are a rough guide from your test score and how selective the college is. Admissions also weigh your courses, grades, essays and activities. Merit aid figures are estimates, before any need-based aid.
Admissions
Test policy for fall 2027
Test optional
You choose whether to send an SAT or ACT score. If you send one, it's considered.
- You can type your scores into the application; official reports come later.
Source: Standardized Tests < Bucknell University Catalog (2026-2027) · Checked October 17, 2026
Application deadlines
- Nov1Early Decision · November 1, 2026Binding: if admitted, you commit to enroll.
- Jan10Early Decision II · January 10, 2027A second binding round, after Early Decision.
- Jan10Regular Decision · January 10, 2027The standard deadline.
Who gets in
32%
of applicants were admitted: 3,723 of 11,561 for fall 2025.
Early Decision
Binding. 55% of early applicants were admitted.
Wait list
2,908 students were offered a spot; 150 were later admitted.
Test scores of enrolled freshmen (fall 2025)
The shaded part shows the middle half of enrolled freshmen who sent scores: a quarter scored below it and a quarter above. 68% of them sent SAT scores and 18% sent ACT scores.
SAT total 1170 to 1360
Reading and Writing 590 to 690
Math 570 to 680
ACT composite 25 to 32
How enrolled freshmen scored on the SAT
- 1400 to 160018%
- 1200 to 139951%
- 1000 to 119926%
- 800 to 9994.2%
- 600 to 7990%
- 400 to 5990%
Source: Common Data Set 2025-26
High school GPA of enrolled freshmen
Average GPA: 3.58
- 4.08%
- 3.75 to 3.9927%
- 3.50 to 3.7427%
- 3.25 to 3.4922%
- 3.00 to 3.2411%
- 2.50 to 2.993.5%
- Below 2.500.4%
Cost and financial aid
The sticker price is what a year costs before any aid. Most students pay less after grants and scholarships.
Sticker price for 2027-28Estimate
$99,410
a year
- Tuition$75,500
- Fees$940
- Food and housing$19,120
- Books and supplies$940
- Transportation and other$2,910
Bucknell University published $95,580 for 2026-27. Its 2027-28 prices aren't out yet.
Source: Common Data Set 2025-26
What families actually pay
What a year cost on average after grants and scholarships, for freshmen who got federal aid in 2023-24, by family income.
- $0 to $30,000$17,578
- $30,001 to $48,000$24,370
- $48,001 to $75,000$27,496
- $75,001 to $110,000$34,392
- Over $110,000$67,428
Financial aid
93%
of a student's financial need is covered, on average
$51,981
average need-based grant to freshmen, money you don't repay
12%
of freshmen got merit aid without financial need, $20,060 on average
- FAFSA
- Required for need-based aid. It's the free federal aid form.
- CSS Profile
- Required. It's a second, more detailed aid form some colleges use for their own grants.
- Aid priority date: 15-Jan
- Send your aid forms by this date to be first in line for the college's grant money.
- Aid deadline: 15-Jan
- The last day to send aid forms.
Source: Common Data Set 2025-26
Merit scholarships
Awards for grades and scores, on top of need-based aid. You don't repay them.
National Merit Scholarship (Bucknell-sponsored)
$2,000 a year
National Merit
Deadline: Name this college your first choice with NMSC before May 31.
Details
Compare awards across colleges with the merit aid calculator.
AP credit
AP exams that earn credit can replace college courses, so you pay for fewer of them and may graduate sooner.
AP exams that earn credit
38 of 38
Earn credit with a score of 3
8 exams
A 3-credit course is worth
about $7,550Est.Estimate
at 2027-28 tuition
Credit for each AP exam
| Exam | Score needed | Credits | Counts as |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-D Art and Design | 3 | 1 | 100 level Art & Design Elective |
| 3-D Art and Design | 3 | 1 | 100 level Art & Design Elective |
| African American Studies | 3 | 1 | 100 level Critical Black Studies Elective |
| Art History | 3 | 1 | 100 level Art History Elective |
| Biology | 4 | 1 | 100 level Biology Elective / No lab credit. |
| Calculus AB | 4 | 1 | MATH 201 |
| Calculus BC | 3 | 1 | MATH 201 |
| Calculus BC | 4 | 2 | MATH 201 and MATH 202 |
| Calculus BC: AB Subscore | 4 | 1 | MATH 201 |
| Chemistry | 4 | 1 | 100 level Chemistry Elective / No lab credit |
| Comparative Government and Politics | 4 | 1 | 100 level Political Science Elective |
| Computer Science A | 4 | 1 | CSCI 203 |
| Computer Science Principles | 4 | 1 | 100 level elective, not counted toward CSCI major |
| Drawing | 3 | 1 | 100 level Art & Design Elective |
| English Language and Composition | 4 | 1 | 100 level English Elective |
| English Literature and Composition | 4 | 1 | 100 level English Elective |
| Environmental Science | 4 | 1 | 100 level Environmental Studies Elective |
| European History | 4 | 1 | 100 level History Elective |
| French Language and Culture | 4 | 1 | 100 level French Elective |
| German Language and Culture | 4 | 1 | 100 level German Elective |
| Human Geography | 4 | 1 | 100 level Geography Elective |
| Italian Language and Culture | 4 | 1 | 100 level Italian Elective |
| Latin | 3 | 1 | 100 level Latin Elective |
| Macroeconomics | 4 | 1 | Credit granted for ECON 101 with qualifying scores on BOTH exams; otherwise one 100 level Economics Elective |
| Microeconomics | 4 | 1 | Credit granted for ECON 101 with qualifying scores on BOTH exams; otherwise one 100 level Economics Elective |
| Music Theory | 3 | 1 | 100 level Music Elective |
| Physics 1 | 4 | 1 | 100 level Physics Elective/One credit, awarded only with qualifying scores on BOTH exams. No lab credit. |
| Physics 2 | 4 | 1 | 100 level Physics Elective/One credit, awarded only with qualifying scores on BOTH exams. No lab credit. |
| Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism | 4 | 1 | 100 level Physics Elective / No lab credit |
| Physics C: Mechanics | 4 | 1 | 100 level Physics Elective / No lab credit |
| Psychology | 4 | 1 | PSYC 100 |
| Research | 4 | 1 | 100 level University Elective One credit, awarded only with qualifying scores on BOTH Capstone Research and Seminar exams. |
| Seminar | 4 | 1 | 100 level University Elective One credit, awarded only with qualifying scores on BOTH Capstone Research and Seminar exams. |
| Spanish Language and Culture | 4 | 1 | 100 level Spanish Elective |
| Spanish Literature and Culture | 4 | 1 | 100 level Spanish Elective |
| Statistics | 4 | 1 | MATH 216 |
| United States Government and Politics | 4 | 1 | 100 level Political Science Elective |
| United States History | 4 | 1 | 100 level History Elective |
| World History: Modern | 4 | 1 | 100 level History Elective |
Source: AP credit policy
After college
Graduate within 6 years
85%
Come back for a second year
94%
Typical earnings
$109,954
a year, 10 years after starting here
- Bucknell University$122,327
- All colleges$89,628
Median yearly earnings of graduates five years after finishing a bachelor's in this major. 14 majors here have earnings data.
Keep exploring
Figures marked Estimate are our estimates, not numbers the college published. Check each college's own site before you apply. SAT is a trademark of College Board, and ACT is a trademark of ACT, Inc. Sharp is not affiliated with either, or with Bucknell University. The Bucknell University logo is a trademark of the college.