McNeese State University
Public College in Lake Charles, LA. Six-year graduation rate 47%. Median 10-year earnings $46,453.
Ten years after entry, the median McNeese State University student earns $46,453 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. The six-year graduation rate is 47%, meaning about one in two students who start do not finish. Median debt at graduation is $23,000, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree. Mobility is where this school separates itself: 2.6% of students move from the bottom income quintile to the top.
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
McNeese State University accepts 78% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. The applicant pool runs to 3,902, typical for a school of this reach. Yield sits at 38% — the remainder of admitted students enroll elsewhere or not at all. The score bands below rest on the 7% 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 | 490–610 | 83 (7%) |
| SAT Math | 450–588 | |
| ACT Composite | 18–23 | 1,001 (86%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at McNeese State University →Academics
Six-year completion sits at 47%, meaning about one in two students who enroll leave without finishing. 68% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in three are gone before sophomore year. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. A 29% 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 27% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 4,846 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $12,430 a year after grant aid — low for a four-year institution, though your own figure depends on aid eligibility. Income makes less difference than usual: $10,482 at $0–30k, $18,250 at $110k+. 79% of students receive grant aid, averaging $9,735 — common but not automatic. About 37% 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 · 1,052 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 | $10,482 |
| $30–48k | $11,067 |
| $48–75k | $11,640 |
| $75–110k | $16,190 |
| $110k+ | $18,250 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,784 of these 4,846 students, totalling $11,734,037 — an average of $6,577 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Calcasieu Parish) — 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)