Gallaudet University
Private College in Washington, DC. Six-year graduation rate 47%. Median 10-year earnings $43,101.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $43,101 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. Six-year completion sits at 47%, near the national average for undergraduate institutions. Median debt at graduation is $18,000, 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 0.6 — limited economic uplift documented
Admissions
Gallaudet University admits 58% of applicants and is genuinely selective — roughly two in five applicants are turned away. The applicant pool is small at 403, which makes year-over-year comparisons unreliable. A 61% yield rate puts this school in the upper range for admits who follow through. The score bands below cover the middle 50% of the enrolled students who submitted a score — not the whole class, 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 | 380–502 | 99 (70%) |
| SAT Math | 400–520 | |
| ACT Composite | 14–17 | 44 (31%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Gallaudet University →Academics
47% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. 71% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in three are gone before sophomore year. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. Transfer-out runs to 17% — 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 · grant and loan rates against 879 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $15,944 annually once grants are applied. Income makes less difference than usual: $14,129 at $0–30k, $18,318 at $110k+. 100% of students get grant aid averaging $23,924, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. About 40% 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 · 149 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 | $14,129 |
| $30–48k | $15,238 |
| $48–75k | $14,236 |
| $75–110k | $18,830 |
| $110k+ | $18,318 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 351 of these 879 students, totalling $2,487,117 — an average of $7,086 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (District of Columbia) — 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)