Picture Purdue University: a vibrant academic powerhouse where a record-breaking freshman class with a 3.81 average GPA joins over 49,600 students—including scholars from 136 countries—on a campus renowned for its top-ranked engineering programs, groundbreaking research, and a 92.1% first-year retention rate that speaks to its supportive community.
Key Takeaways
- Purdue University's total enrollment for fall 2023 was 49,639 students including 37,498 undergraduates and 12,141 graduates
- Undergraduate enrollment at Purdue University stood at 37,498 students in fall 2023, representing 75.5% of total enrollment
- Purdue University had 12,141 graduate students enrolled in fall 2023, comprising 24.5% of the total student body
- Purdue University is ranked #43 among National Universities by U.S. News & World Report for 2024
- Purdue University's undergraduate engineering program is ranked #4 nationally by U.S. News & World Report 2024
- The computer science program at Purdue University ranks #18 in U.S. News & World Report's 2024 undergraduate rankings
- Purdue has 2,300 full-time instructional faculty members
- In FY2023, Purdue faculty authored or co-authored 12,500 scholarly publications
- Purdue University received $682 million in research expenditures in FY2022
- Purdue University's main campus covers 2,468 acres in West Lafayette, Indiana
- Purdue's FY2023 operating budget was $1.9 billion
- The university has 100+ major buildings on campus including 40 residence halls
- Purdue University competes in NCAA Division I as part of the Big Ten Conference
- Purdue athletics has won 30 Big Ten championships since 2010
- The men's basketball team reached the Final Four in 2024 NCAA tournament
Purdue University boasts a large and academically strong student body with high rankings.
Academic Programs and Rankings
- Purdue University is ranked #43 among National Universities by U.S. News & World Report for 2024
- Purdue University's undergraduate engineering program is ranked #4 nationally by U.S. News & World Report 2024
- The computer science program at Purdue University ranks #18 in U.S. News & World Report's 2024 undergraduate rankings
- Purdue University offers 200 undergraduate majors and 69 master's programs
- Purdue's undergraduate business program (Krannert) ranks #33 in U.S. News & World Report 2024
- Purdue University is ranked #10 for undergraduate aerospace engineering by U.S. News 2024
- The university confers over 15,000 degrees annually across all levels
- Purdue University has 11 academic colleges and schools offering diverse programs
- Purdue's graduate engineering program ranks #3 nationally per U.S. News 2024
- Purdue University ranks #43 overall in Forbes America's Top Colleges 2023
- The veterinary medicine program at Purdue ranks #8 in U.S. News graduate rankings 2024
- Purdue offers 100+ graduate certificate programs alongside degrees
- Purdue University's online bachelor's programs rank #12 nationally by U.S. News 2024
- The pharmacy program (PharmD) at Purdue ranks #22 in U.S. News 2024 graduate rankings
- Purdue is ranked #28 for innovation by U.S. News 2024 National Universities
- Purdue University's undergraduate nursing program ranks #31 in U.S. News 2024
- The university has 18 Division of Online Learning programs ranked top 25 by U.S. News
- Purdue ranks #86 in global universities by U.S. News 2024
- Purdue's undergraduate psychology program ranks #55 nationally per U.S. News 2024
- The agricultural and biological engineering undergrad program ranks #1 by U.S. News 2024
- Purdue University offers a Bachelor of Science in Astronautics, unique among peers
- Purdue ranks #9 for best value schools by U.S. News 2024 National Universities
- The graduate program in audiology ranks #8 at Purdue per U.S. News 2024
- Purdue's undergraduate civil engineering ranks #7 in U.S. News 2024
- Purdue University has QS World University Ranking of #129 in 2024
- The mechanical engineering undergrad program at Purdue ranks #5 by U.S. News 2024
- Purdue offers 30+ interdisciplinary degree programs
- Purdue University ranks #16 in Wall Street Journal/WSJ 2024 Best Colleges
Academic Programs and Rankings Interpretation
Purdue confidently operates as a powerhouse in engineering and applied sciences, achieving remarkable top-five national rankings in several critical fields, while its overall university profile presents a more modest but solid position in the forties, revealing an institution whose specialized excellence far outshines its general reputation.
Athletics and Student Life
- Purdue University competes in NCAA Division I as part of the Big Ten Conference
- Purdue athletics has won 30 Big Ten championships since 2010
- The men's basketball team reached the Final Four in 2024 NCAA tournament
- Purdue has 450+ student-athletes across 20 varsity sports
- Purdue's football program has 31 bowl appearances all-time
- Student organizations at Purdue number over 1,000 registered groups
- Purdue's Boilermaker Special is the oldest running university mascot tradition since 1930
- 35% of Purdue students participate in intramural sports annually
- Purdue volleyball won the 2023 NCAA National Championship
- The Purdue Grand Prix raises $300,000+ yearly for cancer research
- Purdue has 40+ national championships in various sports historically
- 85% of Purdue students live on campus during first year
- Purdue's Greek life includes 90+ chapters with 20% student participation
- The student newspaper, Purdue Exponent, publishes weekly with 10,000 circulation
- Purdue ranks #28 in Niche.com 2024 Best College Campuses
- 98% of Purdue students find internships or jobs within 6 months of graduation
- Purdue's average starting salary for grads is $72,500 per Payscale 2023
- The university has 500+ study abroad programs in 90 countries
- Purdue's student government (PUSA) budget is $2 million annually
- 25,000+ students attend Purdue's home football games yearly average
- Purdue's club sports include 70 teams with 3,000 participants
- The Purdue Pride Marching Band has 380 members
- Purdue ranks #21 in Niche.com 2024 Best Colleges for Athletics
- 15% of students engage in service-learning annually at Purdue
- Purdue's mental health services saw 20,000 visits in 2022-2023
- The campus hosts 300+ concerts and events yearly via Purdue Presents
- Purdue's undergraduate research conference features 1,200 presentations annually
- 42% of Purdue students study abroad before graduation
- Purdue's career fairs attract 500+ employers with 25,000 interviews yearly
Athletics and Student Life Interpretation
From the relentless hustle of the Boilermaker to the triumphant net of a national champion, Purdue proves its might lies not in any single statistic, but in the sheer, overwhelming momentum of its students' ambition, community, and success.
Campus Facilities and Finances
- Purdue University's main campus covers 2,468 acres in West Lafayette, Indiana
- Purdue's FY2023 operating budget was $1.9 billion
- The university has 100+ major buildings on campus including 40 residence halls
- Purdue's endowment stood at $3.45 billion as of June 2023
- Purdue University libraries hold 3.5 million volumes and 50,000 journals
- The Ross-Ade Stadium seats 57,236 for football games
- Purdue invested $500 million in campus infrastructure from 2018-2023
- The Purdue Memorial Union is the largest student union in the U.S. at 430,000 sq ft
- Purdue's FY2023 tuition for in-state undergrads was $9,992
- The university has 18 residence halls housing 12,000 students
- Purdue's research farms total 1,500 acres across Indiana
- Annual fundraising totaled $842 million in FY2023 for Purdue
- Purdue University has 90+ miles of bike paths on campus
- The $100 million Schwarzman Data Analytics Building opened in 2023
- Purdue's net tuition revenue per student was $12,500 in FY2023
- The campus features 50+ sculptures and public art installations
- Purdue has 4 regional campuses totaling 500 acres
- FY2023 auxiliary enterprises generated $300 million including dining and housing
- Purdue's Mackey Arena seats 14,240 for basketball
- The university maintains 200+ research centers and institutes
- Purdue's FY2023 capital spending was $250 million on facilities
- Birck Nanotechnology Center is 400,000 sq ft
- Purdue University has 11,000 parking spaces on campus
- The $97 million Recreation and Wellness Center expansion opened in 2022
- Purdue's debt service for facilities was $120 million in FY2023
- Campus energy use is offset by 10 MW solar array capacity
- Purdue has 50+ dining locations serving 30,000 meals daily
- The $110 million Lilly Hall of Life Sciences renovated in 2021
- Purdue University alumni network exceeds 600,000 worldwide
- FY2023 state appropriations to Purdue were $350 million
- Purdue's Purdue Polytechnic has 300,000 sq ft of labs and makerspaces
Campus Facilities and Finances Interpretation
Purdue University operates as a self-sustaining, research-intensive city-state where every dollar, acre, and square foot is meticulously engineered to educate a small army of students, power a vast research empire, and host a weekend football ritual for a crowd larger than the population of Terre Haute.
Enrollment and Demographics
- Purdue University's total enrollment for fall 2023 was 49,639 students including 37,498 undergraduates and 12,141 graduates
- Undergraduate enrollment at Purdue University stood at 37,498 students in fall 2023, representing 75.5% of total enrollment
- Purdue University had 12,141 graduate students enrolled in fall 2023, comprising 24.5% of the total student body
- In fall 2023, Purdue University's West Lafayette campus hosted 46,341 students
- Purdue University reported 3,298 international students from 136 countries in fall 2023
- Female students made up 44.2% of Purdue University's undergraduate enrollment in fall 2023, totaling 16,582 women
- Purdue University's freshman class in fall 2023 had an average high school GPA of 3.81
- The fall 2023 incoming freshman class at Purdue University numbered 9,059 students
- Purdue University had 5,897 out-of-state undergraduate students in fall 2023, representing 15.7% of undergraduates
- In fall 2023, Purdue University's undergraduate retention rate for first-year students was 92.1%
- Purdue University enrolled 1,456 undergraduate students in the College of Agriculture in fall 2023
- The College of Engineering at Purdue University had 13,246 undergraduate students in fall 2023
- Purdue University's Krannert School of Management enrolled 1,392 undergraduates in fall 2023
- In fall 2023, Purdue University had 9,456 undergraduate students in the College of Liberal Arts
- Purdue University's Polytechnic Institute enrolled 4,512 undergraduates in fall 2023
- Fall 2023 saw Purdue University with 2,390 undergraduate students in the College of Science
- Purdue University reported an average age of 20.3 years for full-time undergraduates in fall 2023
- In fall 2023, 24.1% of Purdue University undergraduates were first-generation college students
- Purdue University's six-year graduation rate for the fall 2017 cohort was 83.5%
- The four-year graduation rate for Purdue University's fall 2019 undergraduate cohort was 55.2%
- Purdue University had 2,648 Pell Grant recipients among undergraduates in fall 2023
- In fall 2023, 19.4% of Purdue University undergraduates received federal grants
- Purdue University's undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio was 14:1 in fall 2023
- Fall 2023 enrollment included 1,234 undergraduate veterans at Purdue University
- Purdue University had 28,456 Indiana resident undergraduates in fall 2023, comprising 75.9% of undergrads
- In fall 2023, Purdue University's graduate enrollment in engineering was 5,672 students
- Purdue University enrolled 1,789 graduate students in the College of Science in fall 2023
- The average ACT score for Purdue University's fall 2023 freshman class was 31
- Purdue University's fall 2023 freshman class had an average SAT score of 1328
- In fall 2023, 65% of Purdue University freshmen ranked in the top 10% of their high school class
Enrollment and Demographics Interpretation
While Purdue impressively fields an entire small town of academically elite undergraduates—three-quarters of whom are homegrown Hoosiers—who are largely sticking around and graduating at high rates, their real secret sauce might be how they've corralled those notoriously independent engineers into making up nearly a third of both the undergraduate and graduate populations.
Faculty and Research
- Purdue has 2,300 full-time instructional faculty members
- In FY2023, Purdue faculty authored or co-authored 12,500 scholarly publications
- Purdue University received $682 million in research expenditures in FY2022
- Purdue ranks #8 among public universities for research expenditures per NSF FY2021 data
- The Purdue faculty includes 50 distinguished professors and named chairs
- Purdue University has over 100 National Academy of Engineering members among faculty/alumni
- In 2023, Purdue faculty secured 1,200 invention disclosures
- Purdue's research portfolio includes 15,000 active projects worth $1 billion+
- Purdue faculty hold 25% of all U.S. patents issued to universities annually on average
- The university has 1,800 postdoctoral researchers and research associates
- Purdue ranks #4 in U.S. for NSF graduate research fellowships won in 2023
- Purdue's Discovery Park research facility spans 350 acres with $500M investment
- In FY2023, Purdue received $265 million in federal research funding
- Purdue faculty have won 14 Nobel Prizes (affiliated)
- The university employs 1,200 research scientists and engineers
- Purdue ranks #1 in the world for Innovation per Reuters 2023
- Purdue has generated 10,500 startups from research since 2000
- In 2022, Purdue researchers filed 450 patent applications
- Purdue's Birck Nanotechnology Center has 200+ faculty affiliates
- The university has 50+ endowed faculty chairs in engineering alone
- Purdue faculty received $50 million in industry-sponsored research in FY2023
- Purdue ranks #7 for utility patents granted to universities (FY2022)
- Over 40 Purdue faculty are members of the National Academy of Sciences
- Purdue's research in AI led to 500+ publications in top conferences in 2023
- The university supports 1,100 tenure-track faculty with research emphasis
- Purdue has $1.2 billion in total sponsored awards pipeline as of 2023
- Faculty-student research collaborations resulted in 3,000 student publications in 2023
- Purdue ranks #3 globally for most valuable university patents (2010-2020)
- In 2023, Purdue faculty won 25 NSF CAREER awards
Faculty and Research Interpretation
Purdue has masterfully weaponized its academic talent into a sprawling, multi-billion dollar innovation juggernaut, proving that in the modern world, publishing papers and filing patents are not mutually exclusive but rather the twin engines of a university that practically invents the future for a living.
Sources & References
- Reference 1PURDUEpurdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 2USNEWSusnews.comVisit source
- Reference 3ENen.wikipedia.orgVisit source
- Reference 4FORBESforbes.comVisit source
- Reference 5ONLINEonline.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 6TOPUNIVERSITIEStopuniversities.comVisit source
- Reference 7WSJwsj.comVisit source
- Reference 8NCSESncses.nsf.govVisit source
- Reference 9ENGINEERINGengineering.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 10NSFGRFPnsfgrfp.orgVisit source
- Reference 11REUTERSreuters.comVisit source
- Reference 12USPTOuspto.govVisit source
- Reference 13NATUREnature.comVisit source
- Reference 14NSFnsf.govVisit source
- Reference 15LIBlib.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 16UNIONunion.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 17HOUSINGhousing.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 18AGag.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 19NCESnces.ed.govVisit source
- Reference 20RECWELLrecwell.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 21INin.govVisit source
- Reference 22POLYTECHNICpolytechnic.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 23PURDUESPORTSpurduesports.comVisit source
- Reference 24PURDUEGPpurduegp.comVisit source
- Reference 25PURDUEGREEKSpurduegreeks.comVisit source
- Reference 26PURDUEEXPONENTpurdueexponent.orgVisit source
- Reference 27NICHEniche.comVisit source
- Reference 28CCOcco.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 29PAYSCALEpayscale.comVisit source
- Reference 30STUDYABROADstudyabroad.purdue.eduVisit source
- Reference 31PUSApusa.orgVisit source
- Reference 32PURDUEBANDSpurduebands.orgVisit source
- Reference 33PURDUEPRESENTSpurduepresents.comVisit source