Northeastern University
Private Research University in Boston, MA. Six-year graduation rate 91%. Median 10-year earnings $92,538.
Students who entered Northeastern University reach a median of $92,538 ten years later, which puts this school in the upper band of undergraduate earnings outcomes. The six-year graduation rate of 91% is well above average and the clearest sign this school holds onto its students. Median debt at graduation is $24,250, 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 0.26 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ Graduation rate 91% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Admit rate 5% — heavily selective, limited transfer slots
Admissions
An acceptance rate of 5% means admission is the exception — plan accordingly. 98,425 students applied, a pool deep enough to make the acceptance rate meaningful. Yield is high — 54% of admitted students go on to enroll, well above the typical rate. Read the score bands below narrowly: only 24% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, and test-optional applicants are not represented in them.
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 | 710–760 | 653 (24%) |
| SAT Math | 730–780 | |
| ACT Composite | 33–35 | 203 (7%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Northeastern University →Academics
91% of students finish within six years, putting completion well above the national norm. Retention is strong at 97%, and first-year attrition is where most degrees are lost. A 16:1 ratio is unremarkable; expect a mix of lecture halls and seminars. Judge these figures against other institutions of the same type — sector explains more of the variation in completion than any single campus factor. With 15,898 undergraduates, this is a large institution — expect the administrative scale and the range of offerings that come with it.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 15,719 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price averages $34,207 annually, so cost is the first thing to weigh here. Aid is steeply need-based: families in the $0–30k band pay $2,264 while those at $110k+ pay $47,696. About 60% get grants averaging $35,888, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 28% 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 · 2,744 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 | $2,264 |
| $30–48k | $2,436 |
| $48–75k | $5,301 |
| $75–110k | $16,241 |
| $110k+ | $47,696 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 4,343 of these 15,719 students, totalling $25,544,007 — an average of $5,882 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Suffolk 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)