Chapman University
Private Research University in Orange, CA. Six-year graduation rate 82%. Median 10-year earnings $70,070.
A decade after enrolling, the median Chapman University student earns $70,070 — comfortably above what the typical bachelor's-granting institution returns. The six-year graduation rate of 82% is well above average and the clearest sign this school holds onto its students. Median debt at graduation is $20,500, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.29 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ Graduation rate 82% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
Chapman University accepts 65% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. With 15,634 applications received, this is a school operating at national scale. A 16% yield rate is low: the admitted pool is much larger than the entering class. Read the score bands below narrowly: only 14% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, and test-optional applicants are not represented in them.
Test score bands (middle 50% of submitters)
These bands describe the enrolled first-years who submitted a score, not the entering class. Where most students apply test-optional the submitters are a self-selected, higher-scoring group.
| Test | 25th–75th percentile | Submitted |
|---|---|---|
| SAT Evidence-Based Reading | 630–720 | 236 (14%) |
| SAT Math | 630–720 | |
| ACT Composite | 28–31 | 78 (5%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Chapman University →Academics
A 82% six-year graduation rate is the strongest academic signal on this page. Retention is strong at 92%, and first-year attrition is where most degrees are lost. The part-time picture is harder: 60% return, against 92% full-time. A 12:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty. Judge these figures against other institutions of the same type — sector explains more of the variation in completion than any single campus factor.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 7,629 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price — what students actually pay after grant aid — is $47,902 a year, at the high end of undergraduate cost. The income table below is the number that matters — $33,559 at $0–30k versus $55,066 at $110k+. About 84% get grants averaging $31,523, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. Borrowing is widespread: 62% take federal loans.
Entering first-year students
A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 1,796 students
Net price by family income
The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.
| Family income band | Average net price |
|---|---|
| $0–30k | $33,559 |
| $30–48k | $33,978 |
| $48–75k | $33,709 |
| $75–110k | $40,011 |
| $110k+ | $55,066 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 4,751 of these 7,629 students, totalling $31,684,322 — an average of $6,669 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Orange County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026
Veterans & GI Bill
VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)