Dickinson State University
Public College in Dickinson, ND. Six-year graduation rate 54%. Median 10-year earnings $50,720.
Students who entered Dickinson State University land at a median of $50,720 a decade later, close to what most four-year schools deliver. The six-year graduation rate is 54%, meaning about one in two students who start do not finish. Median debt at graduation is $18,442, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree. Mobility is where this school separates itself: 4.1% of students move from the bottom income quintile to the top.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
At 37%, the acceptance rate makes Dickinson State University a school worth applying to with alternatives in hand. With 1,356 applicants, admissions statistics here move a lot on small changes. 52% of admitted students actually enroll, which is a high yield by national standards.
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 Dickinson State University →Academics
Completion is middling: 54% finish inside six years. First-year retention is 67% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. A 17% transfer-out rate accounts for part of that gap: those students left for another institution rather than dropping out, and the graduation rate above counts them as non-completers here. Retention drops to 46% for part-time students, a gap worth weighing if full-time study is not realistic.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,108 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $14,698 annually, well below typical undergraduate net price. Net price varies modestly by income — $10,479 at $0–30k against $16,922 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. About 82% get grants averaging $6,383, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 43% of students take federal loans, a middling borrowing rate.
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 · 215 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 | $10,479 |
| $30–48k | $8,094 |
| $48–75k | $12,985 |
| $75–110k | $15,484 |
| $110k+ | $16,922 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 473 of these 1,108 students, totalling $2,876,372 — an average of $6,081 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Stark 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)