By the Numbers: Southwestern University Welcomes the Class of 2029

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By the Numbers: Southwestern University Welcomes the Class of 2029

With the fall semester underway, Southwestern University is welcoming the Class of 2029, one of the most selective classes in the institution’s 186-year history. SU received nearly 5,900 applications this year, resulting in a 43% acceptance rate, which ranks among the lowest in University history.

The 368 enrolled students that make up the Class of 2029 experienced a wide range of high school environments. First-year students at Southwestern were members of high school graduating classes as small as 22 and as large as 1,800. No matter the size, the Class of 2029 excelled in their high school classrooms.

Three valedictorians and three salutatorians are among the first-year students at Southwestern this fall. In total, 19% of incoming students ranked in the top 10% of their high school graduating class, and 33% ranked in the top 25%. As a whole, Southwestern’s Class of 2029 averaged a 3.49 GPA on an unweighted 4.00 scale. Although SU remains test-optional, the average reported SAT score was 1246 and the average reported ACT score was 26.

These students shined outside of the classroom as well. Members of the Class of 2029 represented the United States at the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Youth Symposium in Greece, served as Secretary General of External Affairs for Model UN San Antonio, earned recognition as a Texas Thespian National Qualifier, launched their own small business, eliminated plastics at their high school, earned their pilot’s license, and studied abroad in Costa Rica, Germany, and Panama.

Now at Southwestern, these students look to continue their successes in the classroom and in the community, under the bright lights of theatre stages, concert floors, and athletic fields. Out of the 368 students that make up the incoming class, 167 will represent the Pirates as student-athletes across Southwestern’s 20 NCAA Division III athletic teams. Nearly one-quarter of all incoming students are first-generation college students and nearly half identify as students of color, with 31% of the Class of 2029 identifying as Hispanic.

Incoming students hail from across the country and around the world. While 87% of the Class of 2029 calls Texas home, the remaining 13% represent 21 other states, with students coming to SU from as far as Alaska. Internationally, incoming students traveled to Southwestern from Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Tanzania, and the United Kingdom.

Southwestern’s increasing selectivity coincides with the University’s historic rise in the U.S. News & World Report’s annual list of Best National Liberal Arts Colleges. In their most recent ranking, Southwestern checked in at #2 in Texas and #83 in the nation. The honor marked SU’s highest ranking since 2014, a six-spot jump from the University’s 2024 ranking, and a 19-spot climb since its lowest-ever rating of #102 in 2021.

U.S. News & World Report also lauded Southwestern for its outstanding return on investment, ranking #3 in Texas and #56 in the nation. In the publication’s fifth-annual Top Performers in Social Mobility list, Southwestern ranked #2 in Texas and #81 in the nation, jumping 43 spots from the University’s national rating in the category a year ago.

As the Class of 2029 begins their collegiate journeys, they do so with the support of Southwestern’s award-winning Center for Career & Professional Development (CCPD) behind them. Recently ranked as the top career center in Texas, and #19 in the nation, by The Princeton Review, the CCPD helps guide students toward professional opportunities and/or graduate studies once their time at Southwestern comes to an end.

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Related:

• Southwestern University Continues Historic Rise in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges List
• The Princeton Review Recognizes Southwestern University as One of the Nation’s Best Colleges for 2026
• Video: Southwestern Welcomes Class of 2029 During Welcome Week