Longy School
of Music of Bard College
Private College in Cambridge, MA. Six-year graduation rate 78%. Median 10-year earnings $46,543.
Students who entered Longy School of Music of Bard College land at a median of $46,543 a decade later, close to what most four-year schools deliver. 78% graduate within six years, so most students who start here finish here. Median debt at graduation is $24,254, 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.
- ✓ Graduation rate 78% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
Longy School of Music of Bard College accepts 84% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. With 109 applicants, admissions statistics here move a lot on small changes. Only 13% of admitted students enroll — the great majority of admits go elsewhere or nowhere.
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 | — | — |
| SAT Math | — | |
| ACT Composite | — | — |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Longy School of Music of Bard College →Academics
78% of students finish within six years, putting completion well above the national norm. 86% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. A 4:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty. As a private nonprofit four-year college, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions. At 34 undergraduates, expect a small, closely-held student body.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 34 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price — what students actually pay after grant aid — is $49,815 a year, at the high end of undergraduate cost. Income makes less difference than usual: $40,055 at $30–48k, $37,005 at $48–75k. 100% of students get grant aid averaging $26,530, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. Federal borrowing is uncommon here at 12% 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 · 12 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 | — |
| $30–48k | $40,055 |
| $48–75k | $37,005 |
| $75–110k | — |
| $110k+ | — |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 4 of these 34 students, totalling $25,318 — an average of $6,330 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Middlesex 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)