Hawaii Pacific University

Statistics

Scholarships & Financial Aid

School Says - General Information
Hawai'i Pacific University (HPU) is a private, nonprofit university with an international student population of approximately 8,200 students. HPU is one of the most culturally diverse universities in America with students from all 50 U.S. states and more than 100 countries. Founded in 1965, HPU prides itself on maintaining strong academic programs, small class sizes, individual attention to students, and a diverse faculty and student population. HPU offers more than 50 acclaimed undergraduate programs and 13 distinguished graduate programs. Hawai'i Pacific University (HPU) is consistently recognized as one of the best institutions of higher education in the nation. HPU is ranked a best college in the western region by both U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review. Barron's Best Buys in College Education includes HPU in its exclusive list of 260 colleges for offering a quality education at an affordable tuition. Bloomberg Businessweek recognizes HPU as having the "Best Return on Investment" for an undergraduate degree in Hawai'i based on tuition cost and the earnings of alumni. HPU is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission, and the Council on Social Work Education, to name a few.

HPU puts a priority on teaching. There are no student assistants; only highly qualified faculty with academic and business credentials teach class. Faculty range from top-level executives at Fortune 500 companies, to state government leaders that enliven the learning experience with real-world knowledge. Our student-centered approach and low student-faculty ratio of 15:1 naturally results in personal attention and one-on-one guidance. Even with 8,200 students, our average class size is under 25 students. This means youÂ'll enjoy all of the technological and academic resources expected at a large university, delivered within the atmosphere of a small school.

The diversity of the student body stimulates learning about other cultures firsthand, both inside and outside of the classroom. There is no majority population at HPU. Students are encouraged to examine the values, customs, traditions, and principles of others to gain a clearer understanding of their own perspectives. HPU students develop friendships with students from throughout the United States and the world and form important connections for success in the global economy of the twenty-first century.

HPU has NCAA Division II intercollegiate sports. Men's athletic programs include baseball, basketball, cross-country, golf, soccer, and tennis. Women's athletics include basketball, cross-country, soccer, softball, tennis, and volleyball.

The housing office at HPU offers many services and living options for students. Residence halls with cafeteria service are available on the windward Hawai'i Loa campus, while off-campus apartments are available in the Honolulu and Waikiki areas for those seeking more independent living arrangements.

School Says - Student Body
With more than 8,200 students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries, HPU is one of the most culturally diverse universities in the world. HPU is consistently ranked as one of the most international institutions of higher education by Open Doors, the annual publication on international student enrollment in the U.S. and around the world. The diversity of HPU's student body is a unique asset that stimulates learning about other cultures firsthand, both inside and outside of the classroom. Students are encouraged to examine the values, customs, traditions, and principles of others to gain a clearer understanding of their own perspectives.

Below are some statistics regarding the HPU student body (Fall 2010):
Total Enrollment: 8,339
Undergraduates: 7,058
Graduates: 1,281
Full-time: 4,665
Part-time: 3,674
Male: 44%
Female: 56%

The Center for Student Life and First-Year Programs holds regular on-campus activities and events to enhance the college experience at HPU. Students can look forward to the following organized events: Movie on the Mall, Music on the Mall, intramural sports tournaments, and recreational activities. Annual events include Club Carnival, Welcome Week, Da Freakshow, Halloween Hoopla, and Pacific Bowl. HPU students can join one of the more than 70 student clubs; run for office in the Associated Students of Hawai'i Pacific University (ASHPU), the University's governing body; participate in Army or Air Force ROTC; write for the student newspaper, Kalamalama; edit the school's literary journal, Hawai'i Pacific Review; or join HPU's stage and pep band or International Choral program.

School Says - Academics
HPU offers more than 50 acclaimed undergraduate programs and 13 distinguished graduate programs, with liberal arts at the heart of the curriculum. The baccalaureate student must complete at least 124 semester hours of credit. Forty-five of these credits provide the student with a strong foundation in the liberal arts and sciences, with the remaining credits composed of appropriate upper-division classes in the student's major and related areas. HPU's academic year consists of standard fall and spring semesters. HPU makes other terms available so that students can take courses year round. HPU offers a 5 week winter intersession, two accelerated sessions (fall and spring), and three summer sessions. By attending these supplemental sessions, a student may complete the baccalaureate degree program in three years.

School Says - Admissions
Hawai'i Pacific University seeks students who are motivated and show academic promise. The Admissions Office requires that applicants complete and forward the admission application and their high school transcripts. Transfer students should also submit college transcripts. SAT and/or ACT scores should be submitted if these scores are not posted in their transcripts. First-time freshmen are expected to have a minimum GPA of 2.5 (on a 4.0 scale) in college-preparatory courses. HPU recommends that students complete 4 years of English, 4 years of history or social science, 3 years of math, and 2 years of science. Transfer students with 24 or more postsecondary credits are required to have a GPA of 2.0 or above. For students with less than 24 credits, a combination of college and high school GPA is used. The Marine Science and Environmental Science Programs require a GPA of 3.0 or above and 3 years of science, including biology, chemistry, (physics is recommended), as well as mathematics through trigonometry, (calculus is recommended). Transfer students must demonstrate ability in science and math at the college level. Students not meeting the above criteria are encouraged to enroll at HPU without declaring a major to demonstrate the ability to do college-level work in science and math.

Application Information
Candidates are notified of admission decisions on a rolling basis, usually within two weeks of receipt of application materials. Early entrance and deferred entrance are available.

For further information and for application materials, students should contact:
Office of Admissions
Hawai'i Pacific University
1164 Bishop Street, Suite 200
Honolulu, Hawai'i 96813
Phone: 808-544-0238 / 866-CALL-HPU (toll-free in U.S. and Canada)
Fax: 808-544-1136
E-mail: admissions@hpu.edu
Website: www.hpu.edu/princetonreview

School Says - Campus Life
Hawai'i Pacific University's main campus in downtown Honolulu provides a fast-paced, exciting urban environment in the heart of the business community. The downtown campus comprises six buildings in the center of Honolulu's business district and is home to the College of Business Administration and the College of Humanities & Social Sciences. The campus location makes it easy for students to commute to, find, and maintain internship opportunities at neighboring businesses. One of the downtown buildings is the HPU Frear Center, which houses state-of-the-art classrooms, a communication lab, and a high-tech information systems classroom. HPU's Meader Library provides a multitude of general and specialized resources, including a business reference collection, a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) collection, and many online databases and journals. The circulating book collections support communications, computer studies, education, literature, social sciences, and other curriculum areas. Also available are study areas, group study rooms, computer work stations, and wireless Internet. The Tutoring and Testing center provides free tutoring in all core subjects. The expanded downtown computer lab boasts 420 plus computers for student use.

Eight miles away, the 135-acre windward Hawai'i Loa campus, which is set in the lush foothills of the Ko'olau mountains, is the home of the College of Nursing & Health Sciences and the College of Natural & Computational Sciences. The Hawai'i Loa campus has residence halls, dining commons, the Educational Technology Center, a student center, and outdoor recreational facilities including a soccer field, tennis courts, a softball field, and an exercise room. Academic life on the Hawai'i Loa campus revolves around the Amos N. Starr and Juliette Montague Cooke Academic Center (AC). The AC houses classrooms, organic chemistry, nuclear magnetic resonance, and regular laboratories, faculty and staff offices, a theater, an art gallery, and the Atherton Library which includes circulating and reference book collections in the areas of art, history, marine science, nursing, and Hawai'i and the Pacific. Additionally, the library provides access to electronic books (e-books), databases, study rooms, computers, and wireless Internet. Computers are also available for library research, e-mail, and word processing.

HPU is also affiliated with the Oceanic Institute, a major research center specializing in marine biology, marine aquaculture, biotechnology and ocean resource management. It is located on a 56-acre site at Makapu'u Point on the southeastern coast of O'ahu, Hawaii. Learning, internship and research opportunities for graduates and undergraduates abound in this hands-on learning environment. All three sites are conveniently linked by free shuttle.

School Says - Cost Aid
For the 2011-12 academic year, tuition is $16,510 for most majors while other expenses including books, supplies, and health insurance cost approximately $3,190. Tuition for marine science majors is $19,400, and tuition for junior- or senior-year nursing majors is $24,070. The cost to live in on-campus residence halls or off-campus apartments is comparable; room and board are $12,230 for a double occupancy room. There is an additional $500 refundable security deposit required for residence halls and off-campus apartments.HPU offers most forms of federal financial aid, including student grant and loan programs, as well as loans for parents of dependent students. Over 60 percent of the University's students benefit from federal financial aid programs, or a wide range of institutional scholarships. Students should complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for federal aid programs. While aid can be awarded throughout the academic year, students should complete the application prior to the March 1 priority deadline to be considered for all available funding. Visit www.hpu.edu/financialaid for current Financial Aid and Scholarship information.

Students Say - Academics
Mega-diverse Hawaii Pacific University is the biggest private university in the Aloha State and "a perfect setting where east and west traditions meet." Students come here from more than 100 countries. There are some 50 undergraduate concentrations available. Marine biology, oceanography, nursing, and travel industry management are all stellar. There's "a strong business program," too. The administration "works extremely hard to make sure student needs are met." "Registering for classes is very easy." "Small classes" allow for plenty of "individualized learning and attention." "Professors are smart, qualified, very enthusiastic about their subjects, and very willing to help the students," says a marketing major. "They try to be as accessible as possible," and they "go out of their way to help you learn."

Students Say - Campus Life
HPU has two campuses. ("The school provides transportation to and from both.") The "gorgeous" and more residential Windward campus is "nestled in the beautiful mountains with lushness and almost no commercialism." "You have the steep green valleys on one side and the clear ocean on the other." The other campus "in the heart of downtown Honolulu" is very convenient. It's mostly "rented classrooms from office buildings," though, and the neighborhood is a little on the sketchy side. Campus life here is "laid-back" and really unique. One reason is because the student population is so epically diverse. "You can hear 10 different conversations in 10 different languages just by walking from one end of campus to the other," swears one student. Another reason is because of the island locale. "School spirit is pretty low," and "the general university feel is lacking because of the lack of a large campus." Who cares, though? Life at HPU is all about "students from around the world learning and having fun in paradise." "Nightlife involves clubs, house parties, or parties on the beaches." The ritzy Waikiki neighborhood and its "hot spot clubs and diners" isn't too far from downtown campus, and "there is always something fun or crazy going on" there. Students also get to bask in "the best weather in the world" on a daily basis. Hiking is very popular. "Getting some rays" or "surfing a swell" at world-class beaches "scattered around the island" is routine.

Students Say - Student Body
HPU is "a beautiful mix of color and people" and "completely another culture unto itself." "I love the diversity," beams a junior. You'll find "almost every type of person" here. There are "locals" "wannabe surfer types," and "rich kids from" the continental United States. There are "parents and single moms" and various other "older adults who take their work very seriously." The student population at Hawaii Pacific is also "extremely" global. If you want to study in an international environment, this "is the place for you." It's not uncommon to meet someone "who grew up in France, studied abroad in Brazil, traveled throughout Asia, and can fluently speak three languages." "A person can go around the whole world simply by meeting new people from different countries" and students tell us that the rich mosaic of backgrounds "adds a whole other perspective to class discussions" and to campus life in general.

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