What is Fordham University Known for?

What’s Covered:

• Overview of Fordham University Admissions
• Unique Aspects of Fordham University
• What Are Your Chances of Acceptance at Fordham University?

“New York is my campus. Fordham is my school,” is a common proclamation of Fordham students, staff, and alumni. One of the greatest cities in the world, New York provides an incredible compliment to Fordham’s rigorous academics and offers unrivaled access to the fields of finance, real estate, arts, and entertainment. The city is diverse, historic, and culturally rich—not all that different from Fordham itself. 

Overview of Fordham University Admissions

Location: Bronx, NY

Undergrad Enrollment: 9,600

Acceptance Rate: 46%

Middle 50% SAT: 1300–1450

Middle 50% ACT: 29-33

Fordham University is a Catholic institution and has the distinction of being the only Jesuit university in New York City as well as the third-oldest university in New York City. Some students may feel like they don’t meet the ideal image of a Jesuit university student, however, Fordham is committed to advancing equity-focused admission practices along with reaching and serving the needs of historically excluded students. 

One of the main tenets of a Jesuit education is cura personalis, which means caring for the whole person—from intellect and imagination to emotions and conscience. The Jesuits believe that a high-quality education is the path to a meaningful life and have historically adopted what they perceived as the best educational models while developing their own. As a result, it has appealed to learners from all cultures, backgrounds, religions, and identities. 

Wondering what goes into getting admitted to Fordham University? Check out our article, What Does it Take to Get into Fordham University?

Unique Aspects of Fordham University 

Academics

Fordham is home to four undergraduate colleges: Fordham College at Lincoln Center, Fordham College at Rose Hill, Gabelli School of Business, and the School of Professional and Continuing Studies. Through those four colleges, Fordham offers over 70 majors, minors, and pre-professional programs ranging from fields in the Arts and Humanities to those in Theology and Religious Studies. 

Fordham’s Gabelli School of Business is recognized as one of the top business schools in the nation—CollegeVine ranks it 33rd and in 2019, Poets&Quants ranked it as the 27th best undergraduate business school in the nation. Thanks to the stellar reputation of the Gabelli School of Business, the most popular majors at Fordham are Business Administration, Finance, and Public Accounting. 

No matter what field an undergraduate chooses to pursue at Fordham, they will need to complete the university’s core curriculum which includes courses in nine academic fields:

• English
• Philosophy
• Theology
• Mathematics
• History
• Natural Sciences
• Social Sciences
• Fine and Performing Arts
• Modern and Classical Languages

Fordham’s core curriculum culminates with two capstone projects, in which students integrate what they’ve learned across disciplines and apply their knowledge to a broad social and personal framework of values.

Fordham has produced 192 Fullbright Scholars. The 2014-15 academic year was particularly notable, with 11 Fordham students winning Fulbright scholarships. 

Extracurriculars

Fordham is better known for its academics than athletics, however, the school does compete in NCAA Division I and fields 22 varsity teams. Opened in 1925, Fordham’s Rose Hill Gym is the oldest Division I gym in the nation and was used as an army barracks during World War II. Fordham sports are also noteworthy for playing in both the first-ever televised football game in 1939 and the first televised basketball game a year later in 1940.   

Students will find a variety of student-run clubs and organizations at Fordham, covering interests ranging from academics to athletics. Roughly 60 student organizations are found at Fordham Lincoln Center and over 130 at Fordham Rose Hill. One thing you will not find at Fordham is the presence of fraternities or sororities; Jesuit schools find they run counter to their ideals.

New York is a huge city with a lot to explore and Fordham students are eager to take advantage of their easy access to it. Whether it’s theatre, sports, or nightlife, many Fordham students experience as much of the “Big Apple” as possible when not in the classroom. 

Traditions

It’s often said that Edgar Allen Poe’s poem “The Bells” was inspired by the university’s church bells, which ring 11 times every Sunday at 11 am to signal the start of service. The famous author lived about a mile from Fordham’s Rose Hill campus. 

Founded in 1841, Fordham itself has a rich history, but outdating it is an elm tree near Cunniffe House on the Rose Hill campus—the tree is estimated to be more than 270 years old and is one of the oldest trees, not just on campus, but in all of New York City. 

The Victory Bell in front of Rose Hill Gym is rung after a Fordham Team win and to start commencement. The bell was salvaged from the Japanese warship JUNYO and was a gift to the university from Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. In 1946, President Harry S. Truman became the first person to officially ring the Victory Bell after receiving an honorary degree from the school. 

Dorms

There are no requirements as to where students can live while at Fordham, and even freshmen may live off campus if they desire. However, the university does guarantee housing for four years to admitted students and includes everything from dorm-style rooms to apartments to suites.  

Fordham is split between three campuses across New York City. Rose Hill is the university’s original campus and is within walking distance of the Bronx Zoo, New York Botanical Gardens, and Little Italy. The school’s Lincoln Center campus is close to Central Park, while its Westchester campus, in West Harrison, NY, offers a more suburban experience. 

Fordham provides a handful of living-learning communities—the school calls them integrated learning communities—for students who choose to remain on campus. Each community has its own focus and goals, but all combine learning inside and outside of the classroom. 

Financial Aid

Fordham is need-aware when making admissions decisions—that is, they make the majority of their admissions decisions without considering an applicant’s need for funds, although some are determined by an applicant’s financial situation. About 65% of Fordham undergraduates demonstrate financial need, but the university is only able to meet the needs of about 30% of students.

Fordham is among the most expensive institutions in the country; CBS News recently placed it 14th on its list of the most expensive colleges in America. The median student debt for Fordham graduates is $25,000. 

Resources

The Fordham Museum of Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Art, found on the main floor of the Walsh Family Library, offers free admission to students and the public alike. The museum is home to 260 objects dating back to the 4th millennium B.C. Pieces in the collection include examples of everything from Roman imperial portraiture to painted Greek pottery to simple tableware. 

Thirty miles north of the city, in Armonk, New York, is Fordham University’s Louis Calder Center, the school’s biological field station. Here, students are given the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in the field and examine the natural world firsthand. The Louis Calder Center features a log cabin that houses up to 12 graduate students. 

Location

“The true New Yorker secretly believes that people living anywhere else have to be, in some sense, kidding.” – John Updike

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a city that offers more opportunity than New York. It’s the center of global finance, a mecca for real estate, a hotbed of arts and culture, and plays an essential role in entertainment. From internships on Wall Street to performances on Broadway to shopping on Madison Avenue to nightlife on Bleecker Street, New York City has something for everyone.  

What Are Your Chances of Acceptance at Fordham University?

Fordham University has a holistic admissions process, valuing the Jesuit notion of magis (more), and evaluating the cura personalis (whole person) when making admissions decisions—including academic qualifications, extracurricular activities, and personal experiences. 

If you’re interested to see how your profile stacks up against those of students accepted at Fordham, and curious about your own odds of acceptance, CollegeVine can help. Our free admissions calculator uses factors like GPA and test scores, along with extracurricular activities, like volunteering and club memberships, to predict your odds of admission at Fordham and over 600 other colleges and universities in the U.S. 

You can also search for best-fit schools based on factors such as your chances, size, location, majors, and more, helping you find the right school for you and enabling you to, in the words of Saint Ignatius, “Go and set the world on fire.”