Montana State University
Public Research University in Bozeman, MT. Six-year graduation rate 58%. Median 10-year earnings $53,263.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $53,263 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. The six-year graduation rate is 58%, meaning about two in five students who start do not finish. Debt at graduation runs to a median of $22,500, neither a bargain nor a burden.
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
Montana State University accepts 82% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. The applicant pool is large — 21,652 in the most recent cycle — so the published rate reflects genuine competition rather than a small-sample quirk. About 20% of admitted students enroll, a yield in the normal range. 21% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score. The bands below describe the middle half of that group, not of the class.
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 | 540–645 | 759 (21%) |
| SAT Math | 525–640 | |
| ACT Composite | 21–27 | 1,371 (38%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Montana State University →Academics
Six-year completion sits at 58%, meaning about two in five students who enroll leave without finishing. First-year retention is 79% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. A 24% 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. The part-time picture is harder: 55% return, against 79% full-time.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 14,477 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $20,142 annually once grants are applied. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $17,797 at the $0–30k band to $25,905 at $110k+. About 69% get grants averaging $8,769, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 32% 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 · 3,273 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 | $17,797 |
| $30–48k | $18,570 |
| $48–75k | $21,977 |
| $75–110k | $24,732 |
| $110k+ | $25,905 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 4,668 of these 14,477 students, totalling $28,915,957 — an average of $6,195 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Gallatin 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)