Cornish College
of the Arts
Private College in Seattle, WA. Six-year graduation rate 56%. Median 10-year earnings $33,696.
Median earnings ten years after entry come to $33,696, below what most undergraduate institutions return — the central fact to weigh against cost here. The six-year graduation rate is 56%, meaning about two in five students who start do not finish. Median debt at graduation reaches $27,000, heavy enough to shape the years right after the degree.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ! Debt-to-income ratio 0.80 — elevated (above 0.60)
- ! Mobility score 0.8 — limited economic uplift documented
Admissions
An acceptance rate of 62% puts Cornish College of the Arts on the accessible end — a realistic target for a broad range of applicants. With 1,249 applicants, admissions statistics here move a lot on small changes. A 19% yield rate is low: the admitted pool is much larger than the entering class.
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 | — | — |
| SAT Math | — | |
| ACT Composite | — | — |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Cornish College of the Arts →Academics
56% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. Retention of 69% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. Transfer-out runs to 23% — common enough at this school that the completion rate is measuring a smaller group than the entering class. At 6:1, students get materially more instructor contact than at a typical public university.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Net price averages $41,758 annually, so cost is the first thing to weigh here. The income table below is the number that matters — $31,806 at $0–30k versus $47,206 at $110k+. Most students get help: 100% receive grants worth $18,515 on average. Most students borrow — 59% take federal loans to cover the gap.
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 | $31,806 |
| $30–48k | $32,992 |
| $48–75k | $34,781 |
| $75–110k | $42,906 |
| $110k+ | $47,206 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (King County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026