Idaho State University
Public Research University in Pocatello, ID. Six-year graduation rate 38%. Median 10-year earnings $45,608.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $45,608 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. Only 38% finish within six years, so roughly three in five students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Graduates carry a median of $20,039 in debt — in line with the national norm.
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
Academics
Completion is the problem here: 38% graduate within six years. First-year retention is 72% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. That gap between coming back and finishing is where this school loses people — after the first year, not during it. A 21% 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. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 45% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 7,271 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $12,174 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. The gap between the $0–30k and $110k+ bands is narrow ($10,593 versus $16,288), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. Grant aid reaches 73% of students at an average of $8,983. 33% 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 · 1,634 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 | $10,593 |
| $30–48k | $10,011 |
| $48–75k | $11,538 |
| $75–110k | $14,483 |
| $110k+ | $16,288 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 2,397 of these 7,271 students, totalling $16,554,828 — an average of $6,906 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Bannock 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)