Bryn Mawr College
About
Bryn Mawr College is a private women's liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a Quaker institution in 1885, Bryn Mawr is one of the Seven Sister colleges, a group of historically women's colleges in the United States. The college has an enrollment of about 1,350 undergraduate students and 450 graduate students. It was one of the first women's colleges in the United States to offer graduate education through a PhD.
Admissions & acceptance rate
First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.
Graduation rate & outcomes
Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.
Pell equity
Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.
Program outcomes
Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.
Of 58 Title IV programs, 4 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 54 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing4 · 6.9%
- No Data54 · 93.1%
- Failing0 · 0.0%
Severity spectrum
Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.
Earnings premium gap
Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.
Debt vs earnings
Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.
Accreditation status & history
Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.
Middle States Commission on Higher Education
Action history · 2
- Apr 2021Approved for Distance EducationMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
- Mar 2021Renewal of AccreditationMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
Tuition & cost
What families actually pay, broken down by family income.
Net price by family income
Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.
Federal aid volume & trends
Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.
In AY 2024–25, 252 students received $1.5M in Pell grants, alongside $6.7M in federal Direct Loans.
Pell recipients · 5-year trend
Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25
Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.
Student loan default rate
The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.
Of 276 borrowers who entered repayment, 3 (1.0%) defaulted within three years — below the 2.3% national rate.
Default rate vs national, by cohort
* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.
Academic programs at Bryn Mawr College
Top program areas ranked by completions.
Top program families by completions
Enrollment trends & demographics
Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.
Gender split
Race / ethnicity composition
Campus safety & crime statistics
Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.
3-year trend
Criminal offenses by type
By location
- On campus5
Includes 5 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
No hate crimes reported.
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Bryn Mawr College vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Bryn Mawr College selected for federal comparison reporting.
A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.
| Carnegie | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectBryn Mawr College | 82% | — | 1,679 | $40,690 | Baccalaureate |
Swarthmore College | 92% | 7.5% | 1,623 | $18,686 | Baccalaureate |
Albright College | 51% | 76.3% | 1,380 | $21,664 | Baccalaureate |
Muhlenberg College | 82% | 72.0% | 1,788 | $30,314 | Baccalaureate |
Franklin and Marshall College | 84% | 28.2% | 1,808 | $39,061 | Baccalaureate |
Saint Vincent College | 69% | 61.7% | 1,440 | $23,331 | Baccalaureate |
| Peer group median | 82% | 61.7% | 1,651 | $26,823 |
Bryn Mawr College Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
We collect and analyze campus data to inform the public and College policymakers in accordance with the Association for Institutional Research’s Statement of Ethical Principles.
Visit IR office page- Richard BarryDirector of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment
Common Data Set (1)
The institution's official annual Common Data Set publications — the most detailed reference for enrollment, admissions, and outcomes.
Reports & documents (4)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
- DFR reportIPEDS Data Feedback Report 20242024nces.ed.gov
- FactbookInstitutional Research, Planning, and Assessment Facts2025The Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment page at Bryn Mawr College provides comprehensive data and reports spanning from 2000 to present. It includes undergraduate and graduate enrollment data, graduation and retention rates, faculty and staff numbers, and trends over ten years. For data requests beyond the readily available information, contact can be made to the Director of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment.brynmawr.edu
- GlossaryGlossaryThe page from Bryn Mawr College provides a glossary of key terms related to 'Workday', a new system that will be implemented in January 2026. It includes definitions and explanations for various functional elements and applications within the Workday system, such as Absence, Benefits, Business Objects, and more. This glossary is designed to help users become familiar with the Workday terminology and processes.brynmawr.edu
- Strategic plan2022-2024 Strategic Planning2022Bryn Mawr College's 2022-2024 strategic planning initiative focuses on nurturing a vibrant academic community and exploring the optimal size for its undergraduate body. It emphasizes interdisciplinary approaches and leveraging the college’s unique strengths for new revenue streams. Through comprehensive curriculum enhancement and a focus on graduate education, the plan seeks to expand the college's influence and ensure an inclusive and supportive community for students and faculty.brynmawr.edu
Notable alumni of Bryn Mawr College (9)
A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.
- Emily Greene BalchPeace Activism
- Marianne MooreLiterature
- Katharine HepburnFilm and Theatre
- Grace Lee BoggsActivism
- Hanna Holborn GrayEducation Administration
- Dorothy Meserve KunhardtLiterature
- Elaine ShowalterLiterary Criticism
- Bruce ColeHumanities
- Dorothy Burr ThompsonArchaeology
Frequently asked questions about Bryn Mawr College
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Bryn Mawr College.
What is the graduation rate at Bryn Mawr College?
How many students attend Bryn Mawr College?
What is the average net price at Bryn Mawr College?
What is the yield rate at Bryn Mawr College?
Where is Bryn Mawr College located?
Who runs Institutional Research at Bryn Mawr College?
Have a question this page can’t answer?
Ask Clema anything about Bryn Mawr College and its peers — plain language in, cited answers out, in minutes instead of days.
Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card