Florida's oldest private college, blending liberal arts with professional schools since 1883.
Stetson offers more than 55 undergraduate majors and minors across the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business Administration, School of Music, and College of Law. The university awards Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Music Education, and Bachelor of Business Administration degrees, plus 18 graduate programs in business, law, education, counseling, and fine arts. The student-faculty ratio is 10:1 overall, with 265 full-time faculty. The School of Business (founded 1897) holds AACSB accreditation; the School of Music has been accredited by NASM since 1938; and the College of Law (founded 1900, relocated to Gulfport in 1954) is a member of the Association of American Law Schools.
The main DeLand campus spans 175 acres and is designated a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places. Notable buildings include DeLand Hall (1884, oldest building in Florida in continuous use for higher education), the Lynn Business Center (2003, Florida's first LEED-certified green building), and Lee Chapel in historic Elizabeth Hall (built 1897, seats 787). The university also maintains campuses in Gulfport and Tampa. Student life includes approximately 100 student organizations, 30% Greek participation (8 fraternities, 9 sororities), and the Patrick Smith Model United States Senate program (established 1970). The student body is 50% White, 20% Hispanic, 12% Black, 9% foreign national, with 37% low-income and 63% affluent students.
Stetson competes at the NCAA Division I level across 20 intercollegiate teams in the ASUN Conference, Pioneer Football League (FCS), and MAAC. The mascot is 'John B.,' a stylized version of the university's benefactor. Notable achievements include seven ASUN baseball championships and 16 NCAA Regional appearances since 1970; women's basketball won A-Sun titles in 2005, 2011, and 2013, with a signature 2024 NCAA regional victory over Alabama. Football returned in 2013 after a 57-year hiatus; women's lacrosse and sand volleyball were added in 2011 and 2012 respectively.
The duPont-Ball Library (opened 1964) serves as the main library, housing 934,251 items and providing access to 50,000 full-text journals, magazines, and newspapers. Stetson became Florida's first federal depository library in 1887 and has received State of Florida publications since 1968. The Sampson Library, a Carnegie library built in 1908 with matching funds from Elizabeth S. Stetson and the Carnegie Corporation, remains part of the library system.