Grinnell College
Private College in Grinnell, IA. Six-year graduation rate 88%. Median 10-year earnings $62,830.
Ten-year median earnings of $62,830 are the headline number here, and they are strong ones. 88% graduate within six years, so most students who start here finish here. Median debt at graduation is $17,500, 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.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.28 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ Graduation rate 88% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Admit rate 15% — heavily selective, limited transfer slots
Admissions
Grinnell College admits just 15% of applicants, placing it among the most selective undergraduate institutions in the country. 9,758 applications came in, enough to make the rates below reasonably stable year to year. 31% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. The score bands below rest on the 29% 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 | 700–750 | 129 (29%) |
| SAT Math | 710–790 | |
| ACT Composite | 31–34 | 92 (21%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Grinnell College →Academics
Six-year completion runs to 88% — students who start here overwhelmingly finish here. First-year retention of 93% shows the cohort holds together through the hardest year. The 9:1 student-faculty ratio is small enough that seminar-sized classes are the norm. This is a private nonprofit four-year college, so read every rate on this page against that peer group specifically. At 1,775 undergraduates, expect a small, closely-held student body.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,709 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price averages $34,363 annually, so cost is the first thing to weigh here. The income table below is the number that matters — $9,970 at $0–30k versus $37,725 at $110k+. Most students get help: 93% receive grants worth $48,277 on average. Federal borrowing is uncommon here at 13% of students.
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 · 457 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 | $9,970 |
| $30–48k | $7,789 |
| $48–75k | $9,669 |
| $75–110k | $19,348 |
| $110k+ | $37,725 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 226 of these 1,709 students, totalling $1,228,943 — an average of $5,438 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Poweshiek 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)