Earlham College
Private College in Richmond, IN. Six-year graduation rate 69%. Median 10-year earnings $50,797.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $50,797 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. The six-year graduation rate of 69% is well above average and the clearest sign this school holds onto its students. Median debt at graduation is $23,488, 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.
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Mobility score 0.2 — limited economic uplift documented
Admissions
Earlham College accepts 73% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. The applicant pool runs to 2,075, typical for a school of this reach. A 14% yield rate is low: the admitted pool is much larger than the entering class. The score bands below rest on the 24% of enrolled first-years who submitted an SAT score — a self-selected group, and not a cutoff.
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 | 570–660 | 50 (24%) |
| SAT Math | 540–630 | |
| ACT Composite | 24–33 | 20 (9%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Earlham College →Academics
Six-year completion runs to 69% — students who start here overwhelmingly finish here. Retention of 77% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. The 7:1 student-faculty ratio is small enough that seminar-sized classes are the norm. As a private nonprofit four-year college, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions. The undergraduate body is just 635, which shapes everything from class size to how often a required course is offered.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 612 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $27,107 annually once grants are applied. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $17,178 at the $0–30k band to $31,058 at $110k+. Grant aid is widespread — 100% of students receive it, averaging $41,891. About 45% borrow federally, roughly the national pattern.
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 · 202 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 | $17,178 |
| $30–48k | $15,658 |
| $48–75k | $19,768 |
| $75–110k | $26,136 |
| $110k+ | $31,058 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 275 of these 612 students, totalling $1,589,256 — an average of $5,779 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Wayne 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)