Tufts University
Private research university in Medford/Somerville, Massachusetts
Tufts University Rankings
Tufts University was founded as Tufts College in 1852 in the Boston Metropolitan Area–suburb of Medford, north of Cambridge. The school was built under the auspices of the Universalist Church of America on 20 acres of land donated by businessman and philanthropist Charles Tufts. Today, the university also has a satellite campus located in downtown Boston.
When Charles Tufts first purchased the land, it was an undeveloped parcel on the top of a barren hill, and when his family asked him what he intended to do with it, he is said to have replied: “I will put a light on it.”
The college was built up piecemeal over the years. In 1893 a medical school began operation, with electrical, chemical, civil, and mechanical engineering schools all opening during the same decade. In 1933 the internationally renowned Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy was founded.
Women began to be admitted to Tufts College in 1893, while Jackson College for Women—a closely associated, but administratively separate, four-year, women’s liberal arts college—opened in 1910. In 2002, Jackson College was wholly absorbed by Tufts’s School of Arts and Sciences.
In 1954 the college was officially elevated to university status and its name changed accordingly. However, the school’s rapid growth into a major research university began particularly with the presidency of French scientist, Jean Mayer, beginning in 1976.
Tufts is associated with seven Nobel laureates, namely,
- Physicist, Rainer Weiss
- Chemist, Roderick MacKinnon
- Computed-tomography (CT) pioneer Allan MacLeod Cormack — physiology or medicine
- Economists, Eugene Fama & Paul Samuelson
- Egyptian-born international public servant, Mohamed ElBaradei — peace
- President of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos — peace
Other distinguished Tufts-connected individuals include the following:
- Singer-songwriter, Tracy Chapman
- New York Times publisher, Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr.
- TV personality, Meredith Vieira
- Showman and philanthropist, P.T. Barnum
- Actors, William Hurt, Peter Gallagher & Jessica Biel
- Psychologists, Robert J. Sternberg & Richard Alpert (Ram Dass)
- Mathematician and philosopher, Norbert Wiener
- Linguist, Ray Jackendoff
- Computer scientists, John Reif, Kathleen Fisher & Pierre Omidyar
- Cell biologist, Frederick Grinnell
- Evolutionary biologist, Sean B. Carroll
- Electrical engineer and inventor, Elihu Thomson
- Engineer and government administrator, Vannevar Bush
- Economist, Peter Navarro
- Historians, Gordon S. Wood & Jill Lepore
- Indian politician and former United Nations diplomat, Shashi Tharoor
- Former New Mexico governor, Bill Richardson
- Current US Representative, Dan Crenshaw
- Former US Senators, Daniel Patrick Moynihan & Scott Brown
Admissions
What does this school look for?
Annual Applications
21,501
Acceptance
15%
Graduation Rate
92%
Median SAT Score
1455
Median ACT Score
32
Costs
How much does it cost to attend?
Tuition (in-state)
$55,172
Fees (in-state)
$1,210
| Income | Average Net Cost |
|---|---|
| 0-30K | $4,679 |
| 30K-48K | $8,616 |
| 48K-75K | $14,676 |
| 75K-110K | $25,602 |
| 110K+ | $50,333 |
After Graduation
Averages for 10 years after enrolling
Avg Earnings
$103,300
Employed
91%
Campus Life
What's it like to attend this school?
The People
Full time on-campus stats
Student Body
11K
Under-Grads
6K
Graduates
4K
The Campus
Where will you be attending?
Location
,
Medford MA
02155-5555
On Campus Crime Rates
Property Crime
7 per 100k
Violent Crime
1 per 100k
City Crime Rates
Property Crime
12 per 100k
Violent Crime
2 per 100k
What is Tufts University known for?
Our answer to this is to show you the disciplines in which a school's faculty and alumni have had the highest historical influence. A school may be influential in a discipline even if they do not offer degrees in that area. We've organized two lists to show where they are influential and offer corresponding degrees, and where they are influential through scholarship although they don't offer degrees in the disciplines.
Top areas of influence with degrees offered
Other areas of influence
Influential People
Who are Tufts University's Most influential alumni?
Tufts University's most influential alumni faculty include professors and professionals in the fields of Political Science, Medical, and Engineering. Tufts University’s most academically influential people include Norbert Wiener, Eugene Fama, and Pierre Omidyar.
Norbert Wiener
American mathematician, scientist in cybernetics and artificial intelligence
view profileRam Dass
American contemporary spiritual teacher and the author of the 1971 book Be Here Now
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