East Carolina University
Public Research University in Greenville, NC. Six-year graduation rate 63%. Median 10-year earnings $55,146.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $55,146 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. Six-year completion sits at 63%, near the national average for undergraduate institutions. Median debt at graduation is $22,750, 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
Admissions
With an acceptance rate of 89%, East Carolina University takes nearly everyone who applies. With 26,369 applications received, this is a school operating at national scale. Yield is low at 17%, so most admitted students do not end up enrolling. 6% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score. The bands below describe the middle half of that group, not of the 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 | 540–630 | 251 (6%) |
| SAT Math | 530–610 | |
| ACT Composite | 21–26 | 504 (13%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at East Carolina University →Academics
Completion is middling: 63% finish inside six years. 83% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. 27% transfer out. IPEDS does not follow them, so whether they finished elsewhere is not recorded either way. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 64% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 19,857 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $13,755 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Aid is steeply need-based: families in the $0–30k band pay $10,046 while those at $110k+ pay $23,028. About 55% get grants averaging $9,158, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. About 41% 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 · 3,894 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 | $10,046 |
| $30–48k | $11,699 |
| $48–75k | $14,904 |
| $75–110k | $20,417 |
| $110k+ | $23,028 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 8,150 of these 19,857 students, totalling $51,793,199 — an average of $6,355 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Pitt 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)