Peter's Hidden Gem Series #13: Lesley University (MA)
FACTS ABOUT LESLEY UNIVERSITY (MA)
Per their website, “Lesley is more than a university. We are an education and resource hub that educates and supports the world’s best practitioners in Education, Mental Health & Well-Being, Art & Design, Liberal Arts & Business. Lesley also educates neurodiverse learners through its innovative Threshold Programs.” Lesley University is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a short distance from Harvard University.
Lesley University does not have a single "main" campus; instead, it has three small campuses in Cambridge. The Porter Campus is the main academic hub. It contains the majority of their classrooms, the College of Art and Design, the Lunder Arts Center, the Graduate School of Education, and the Moriarty Library. Their Doble campus has residence halls, their main dining hall, classrooms, and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Their South Campus mostly contains historic spaces and some student support facilities.
Lesley University operates on a traditional two-semester calendar. They also offer an optional January "mini-semester" (winter term).
Lesley University has approximately 1,285 total undergraduate students, with 770 of them living in campus housing. The entire Cambridge/Boston area is home to dozens of other colleges and universities, including Havard, MIT, Hult, Boston University, Boston College, Tufts, Northeastern, Suffolk, Emerson, and Bentley.
Lesley University offers 40 undergraduate majors and 40 minors. Lesley’s most popular academic offerings span four main areas of study:
Art & Design: (Animation, Film, Game Art & Design, Communication Design, Illustration, and Studio Arts).
Education: (Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, and specialized teaching fields with guaranteed internships).
Mental Health & Well-Being: (Psychology and counseling, including Expressive Arts Therapy and holistic psychology specializations).
Liberal Arts & Business: (Biology, Creative Writing, English, History, Mathematics, and Business Management are popular)
The acceptance rate at Lesley University is 97%. It considers a wide range of students (C+ to A+).
2026-2027 Fees:
Expense Category Cost Per Semester Cost Per Year
Tuition $18,200 $36,400
Housing (Double Room) $7,265 $14,530
Food $3,395 $6,790
Misc Student Fees $750 $1,500
Total Direct Sticker Price $29,610 $59,220
However…
After merit scholarships (that average over $11K), most families (even families that do not qualify for need-based assistance) pay less than the mid-$30Ks without loans. In fact, including students who receive need-based aid, the average amount that students pay is less than $32K. This is a financially stable college (Forbes gives them a solid B for financial strength). Their endowment is over $184 million.
PROGRAM SPOTLIGHTS:
EXPRESSIVE ARTS THERAPY (graduate programs with some undergraduate accelerated pathways)
From their website:
“Students in Lesley University’s Expressive Therapies programs become practitioners who can skillfully integrate the principles of creativity, imagination, and expression into their professional practice. We are one of the nation’s only universities to offer all five expressive therapy specializations (art, dance and movement, drama, expressive arts, and music) within the same academic area, which means exposure to diverse perspectives and ideas. Expressive therapies are woven into all of our mental health programs—from our undergraduate through PhD programs—underscoring our commitment to embracing an interdisciplinary and art-infused approach to wellness.
“Our Expressive Therapies programs offer students a direct path to licensure and modality certification. They graduate prepared to become licensed mental health counselors (LMHC) and certified therapists able to guide individuals, groups, and communities toward better mental health.
If a student begins at Lesley University as a freshman with a goal of becoming a therapist, they can blend their undergraduate program with the graduate program and typically finish in six years rather than seven. Lesley refers to these programs as Integrated B.A./M.A. Dual Degree Programs.
Three examples:
Art Therapy: Blends the undergraduate Psychology major (Art Therapy specialization) with the Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling: Art Therapy.
Expressive Arts Therapy: Connects the undergraduate Expressive Arts Therapy specialization with the Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling: Expressive Arts Therapy.
Dance/Movement Therapy: Designed for undergraduate students in the Expressive Arts Therapy specialization who also take the Dance/Movement Therapy minor and have substantial dance experience.
In general, psychology and the arts are very much integrated throughout their curriculum.
In the arts, they offer:
Majors (BFA/BA):
Animation
Art (BA)
Communication Design
Film
Game Art & Design
Illustration
Studio Arts [1]
Minors:
Animation
Art History
Book Art
Ceramics/3D
Design
Drawing
Film
Game Design & Immersive Technologies
Graphic Design
Illustration
Painting
Photography
Printmaking
User Experience
Visual Effects
Web Design
Website: https://lesley.edu/
Link to their virtual tour information:
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