About Lesley University

Founded in 1909, Lesley University. is a Private college. Located in Massachusetts, which is a city setting in Massachusetts, the campus itself is Urban. The campus is home to 1,968 full time undergraduate students, and 2,897 full time graduate students.

The Lesley University Academic calendar runs on a Semester basis. In the school year the student to faculty ratio was 12:1. There are 151 full time instructional teachers. Degrees awarded at Lesley University include: Bachelor's Degree, Masters Degree, Post-master's certificate, Doctor's degree.

Quick Facts

Acceptance Rate63%
Application Deadline
Application Fee0
SAT Range960-1160
ACT Range21-26

Admissions at are considered Selective, with ,9% of all applicants being admitted.

In the school year, of the students who applied to the school, only 11 of those who were admitted eventually ended up enrolling.

82% of incoming freshmen are in the top half of their high school class. 45% were in the top quarter, and 12% were in the top tenth. You can apply online.

STUDENT LIFE

We asked, and students answered these important questions about student life at Lesley University.

8%
“We”re apathetic”
8%
“We know about current events and vote”
23%
“We participate and encourage others to get involved”
62%
“There”s nothing we won”t protest”
0%
“We save it for the classroom”
8%
“Sometimes, but not often”
54%
“There”s usually intelligent conversation to be found”
38%
“All the time, including weekends”
0%
“I”m always terrified”
15%
“I only go out in groups”
46%
“I usually let someone know where I”m going”
38%
“I feel extremely safe”
30%
“We don”t play sports”
0%
“We play recreationally”
70%
“We bought the gear”
0%
“We live for the big game”
0%
“It”s not really our thing”
0%
“Occasinally we gallery crawl”
23%
“There are a variety of opportunities”
77%
“We”re a very artistic group”
0%
“Haven”t met them”
8%
“Available in class”
38%
“They keep regular office hours”
54%
“They”re always available”
85%
“No greek life, but other groups to join”
8%
“There is some involvement, but not a lot”
8%
“Plenty of people join a sorority or fraternity”
0%
“It”s everything. If you”re not greek, you”re a geek”
0%
“We”re not into drinking at all”
62%
“Maybe a little, but it”s not a big thing”
31%
“We only party on weekends”
8%
“There”s some drinking happening every night”
0%
“Never, we”re here to learn”
54%
“There might be people who do”
46%
“People are known to partake on weekends”
0%
“There”s a huge drug scene”
8%
“We”re apathetic”
8%
“We know about current events and vote”
23%
“We participate and encourage others to get involved”
62%
“There”s nothing we won”t protest”
0%
“We save it for the classroom”
8%
“Sometimes, but not often”
54%
“There”s usually intelligent conversation to be found”
38%
“All the time, including weekends”
0%
“I”m always terrified”
15%
“I only go out in groups”
46%
“I usually let someone know where I”m going”
38%
“I feel extremely safe”
30%
“We don”t play sports”
0%
“We play recreationally”
70%
“We bought the gear”
0%
“We live for the big game”
0%
“It”s not really our thing”
0%
“Occasinally we gallery crawl”
23%
“There are a variety of opportunities”
77%
“We”re a very artistic group”
0%
“Haven”t met them”
8%
“Available in class”
38%
“They keep regular office hours”
54%
“They”re always available”
85%
“No greek life, but other groups to join”
8%
“There is some involvement, but not a lot”
8%
“Plenty of people join a sorority or fraternity”
0%
“It”s everything. If you”re not greek, you”re a geek”
0%
“We”re not into drinking at all”
62%
“Maybe a little, but it”s not a big thing”
31%
“We only party on weekends”
8%
“There”s some drinking happening every night”
0%
“Never, we”re here to learn”
54%
“There might be people who do”
46%
“People are known to partake on weekends”
0%
“There”s a huge drug scene”

Lesley University REVIEWS

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  • How would you rate on-campus housing?

    48 Students rated on-campus housing 3.8 stars. 13 % gave the school a 5.0.

  • How would you rate off-campus housing?

    44 Students rated off-campus housing 2.4 stars. 0 % gave the school a 5.0.

  • How would you rate campus food?

    53 Students rated campus food 2.8 stars. 2 % gave the school a 5.0.

  • How would you rate campus facilities?

    56 Students rated campus facilities 3.8 stars. 23 % gave the school a 5.0.

  • How would you rate class size?

    56 Students rated class size 4.6 stars. 66 % gave the school a 5.0.

  • How would you rate school activities?

    56 Students rated school activities 3.5 stars. 16 % gave the school a 5.0.

  • How would you rate local services?

    56 Students rated local services 4.5 stars. 66 % gave the school a 5.0.

  • How would you rate academics?

    56 Students rated academics 3.7 stars. 23 % gave the school a 5.0.

What's your overall opinion of Lesley University?

21 Students rated Lesley University

Sophie - 06/04/2022

Honestly, as a non-White identifying individual, I did not feel as welcomed as the university preached. It wasn't very reassuring to see what staff told me about their views on diversity during Open House and not see it on campus. The student body culture was not what I expected. In terms of professors and classes, I had an excellent experience, and I highly recommend their therapy and counseling departments. My professors have responded to my emails quickly and provided good feedback on my work. I strongly believe that if you live on campus and do not commute (like I did) you would have a more enjoyable experience. Overall, Lesley University is a great school for anyone who is interested in specialized therapies, counseling, and social work.

Morgan - 05/20/2022

Lesley University is an overall amazing school that is very liberal and accepting to students of all backgrounds and identities. The professors are very knowledgeable on the subjects that they teach, and the smaller class sizes ensure you will have the ability for one on one experiences with them. However, in recent years administration has been extremely unavailable, and the dorms and dining halls have significantly dropped in quality.

Elyse - 04/08/2022

As an LCAL student I've been quite fortunate to have had excellent assistance from several of the school's professors and faculty; they are what really make Lesley accessible and for that, I am grateful. I wish some of the supports I received at this school and the majority of supports I received from the community were accessible to all - this is a social injustice I plan to help change in my future work. However, in general, LCAL students are least supported and represented in whole. My last few weeks at this school will be hard, but when I graduate, I won't look back. I'm sadly looking forward to closing this chapter of my life and embracing better, more inclusive opportunities. In terms of any type of justice, education, integration, and emotional well-being, the school, in my opinion, has a long way to go before it can claim to be truly inclusive. It's still a long way from realizing its full potential to reflect social justice, but it won't have accomplished that goal of full social justice and inclusivity until it can truly include ALL types of Lesley students in making decisions about safety and emergency preparedness, Covid-19 guidelines, health and safety in dorm rooms, cafeterias, and other Lesley spaces, commencement, campus restructuring, and other critical systems in place. Lesley has also failed to bridge the social, economic, and educational divides in order for students to feel really represented and involved and secure. Before it can expect others to wake up to the world, Lesley must wake itself up to it.

Lauren - 07/31/2020

To start with the pros, this school offers some very interesting majors, courses, and extracurricular clubs and activities. In fact, some of my favorite classes I have taken were at this school (although they transferred over to my other schools as electives and did not fulfill most of the requirements). In addition, it is relatively cheap compared to other art schools and has a good amount of resources and the campus is fairly easy to navigate once you get accustomed to the layout. There are also shuttle vans available to transport students to/from a few different campus locations. Most of the teachers are friendly and pretty accommodating to student's needs and situations as long as you communicate with them. If you're lucky, you'll manage to make a few friends that are open-minded. However, they do not offer any scholarships or grants for minority students or out-of-state students and are not willing to allocate additional funds for students facing financial hardship. For me, this is a major con because this is a school that speaks about how diversity and inclusion are very important and something to be valued, but they do not have systems in place to support these students. I found myself always having to go to the financial aid office and calling them, and asking my parents to contact them because they would provide very round-about answers for simple questions. There are also still a lot of issues regarding racism on campus that have not been properly addressed and have been swept under the rug, but I am not surprised that they have not been addressed either considering the history of the school and its location. Another issue is student housing and facilities. Although they provide the bare necessities, the dorms are typically very dirty and falling apart. As a person with allergies, my sinuses were constantly bothering me due to dust (and possible mold and mildew issues) at the school. Sometimes, toilets and showers would be clogged for days on end. The size of the rooms are also very small, especially considering how much students have to pay for room and board, and living on-campus is required for most students for the first 2 years. Most of the time, you can find mice and rats in some of the dorms and food halls, so that gives you an idea about how well the school is being maintained. Overall, I would not recommend attending this school. As a person of color and out-of state student, it was not the best experience and I found it fairly difficult to transition since there was not much assistance from the faculty. Most of the help that I did receive came from my friends who happened to live in state. If you decide to attend this school and something happens to you while you are campus, it would be better to make an official police report and then notify the school and file a report with campus security, and to keep following up with them.

Lesley University FAQS

  1. What is the Acceptance Rate at Lesley University?

    The fall 2020 acceptance rate for Lesley University is 63%. That means, out of _____ applications received in 2020 , _____ students were offered admission. The number of males who applied was _____ vs the number of females which was _____.

  2. What should every freshman at your school know before they start?

    I would advise students to apply to and visit lots of schools. Take advatage of being able to spend a night on campus, tours, and programs where you can ask current students questions. Don't be afraid to start at a state school and transfer to a private college - you'll save money that way. Work hard while in college, because you're responsible for your own education. If there are opportunities to travel abroad, look into it. Traveling abroad helps broaden your perspective of the world and immerses you in a different culture. Enjoy college - take classes that interest you, in addition to your requirements, so you can explore what you want to do in your life. Networking is key - make friends at other universities and don't be afraid to ask professionals for their business cards - you never know when it will come in handy. Get involved in clubs and have fun while living on campus.

    Read all  67 answers
  3. What kind of person should not attend this school?

    someone who doesn't want to be in an environment that is very artistic, liberal, and urban.

    Read all  17 answers
  4. Describe the students at your school.

    My classmates are diverse and passionate about what they want to do.

    Read all  13 answers
  5. What's the one thing you wish someone had told you about freshman year?

    I wish I had known how little financial aid I would get considering how expensive my school was.

    Read all  12 answers
  6. What kind of person should attend this school?

    open-minded, hardworking, works well with other people, outgoing, driven, responsible

    Read all  12 answers
  7. Describe how your school looks to someone who's never seen it.

    Lesley is a very expensive school for a mediocre education of useless majors

    Read all  10 answers
  8. Here's your chance: Say anything about your college!

    I appreciate the opportunity that Lesley has provided me. Despite a less than stellar high school career the college allowed me to demonstrate my full potential. By accepting me based on a strong essay and interview Lesley restored some of the confidence in my academic ability that I lacked in high school. Throughout my freshman year I built on the feeling of accomplishment that my acceptance to Lesley stirred in me. The fact that Lesley will go out on a limb to accept students who have strong potential but have not proved themselves is something that many other schools lack.

    Read all  10 answers
  9. What's unique about your campus?

    The best thing about my school is definitely that no one judges each other. It is so diverse, having people from everywhere, not only America, but other places around the world as well, like the Bahamas. Everyone is allowed to act the way they want, imbracing their own culture, and still get along with everyone else and not even get look upon weird.

    Read all  10 answers
  10. What do you consider the worst thing about your school? Why?

    Personally communication is the worst thing about my school. I have had quite a few problems communicating with the business office at my school specifically. They did not finalize my financial aid package until the week before I was suppose to move in. Also it takes them forever to return your calls.

    Read all  9 answers
  11. What do you brag about most when you tell your friends about your school?

    Minutes from harvard square. Great professors that are easily reachable and friendly.

    Read all  9 answers
  12. What's the most frustrating thing about your school?

    The most frustrating thing about my school is that being a commuter student, the school does not seem to aid in bringing everyone together as a community. Making friends in college is hard enough as it is, but being a commuter student makes it inifinitely more difficult, and I think that there are plenty of ways to make this situation better, especially because the number of commuter students is fairly high.

    Read all  5 answers
  13. Describe your favorite campus traditions.

    My school is best known for producing great teachersand its teaching program.

    Read all  4 answers
  14. Is the stereotype of students at your school accurate?

    Nope!

    Read all  1 answers
  15. What are the academics like at your school?

    The professors are amazing. I have never known so many caring adults in my young life.

    Read all  1 answers
  16. What is the stereotype of students at your school?

    That it's all women. Lesley used to be an all girls school but that was quite a few years ago. We do have a male population!

    Read all  1 answers

Student Body

Students

77%

female

23%

male

1,968

Total Undergrad Enrollment

2,897

Total Grad Students

43%

Out-Of-State

55%

In-State

2%

International

Organizations

25

Student Organizations

N/A

Fraternities

N/A

Sororities

Housing

Yes

On-Campus Housing

14%

of students living on campus

Student Diversity

% American Indian/Alaskan Native
N/A
% Asian/Pacific Islander
4%
% Black or African-American
7%
% Hispanic/Latino
12%
% White or Caucasian
64%

TUITION & AID

All students must apply yearly for financial aid. This process starts with the FAFSA. Though financial aid deadlines vary by school, it is a good idea to apply as soon as possible. For the upcoming school year, you can apply as early as October 1 for the FAFSA. Additional school aid will be dependent on the FAFSA results.

96% of students attending Lesley University receive some sort of financial aid. 24% were awarded federal grants. While 68% received federal loans. Many students do also need to apply for additional private student loans.

Cost Out of State

$25,875

Tuition and fees(Out of state)

$1,500

Books and Supplies

$15,300

Room and Board

42,675

Total On Campus

Actual Cost By Income Level(W/Financial Aid)

Family Income
Cost
$0 - $30K
$24,494
$30 - $48K
$24,407
$48 - $75K
$29,603
$75 - $110K
$30,665
$110K & UP
$31,153

We use student reviews and the most current publicly available data on our school pages. As such, we don't typically remove or edit college information. Sources for school statistics and data include the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics and the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. Portions of college data include copyrighted material, which is reproduced on this website by permission of Wintergreen Orchard House, a division of Carnegie Communications. © 2009-2016 by Wintergreen Orchard House. All rights reserved.

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