San Jose
State University
Public College in San Jose, CA. Six-year graduation rate 69%. Median 10-year earnings $78,988.
Students who entered San Jose State University reach a median of $78,988 ten years later, which puts this school in the upper band of undergraduate earnings outcomes. 69% graduate within six years, so most students who start here finish here. Graduates leave owing a median of $15,000 — modest by four-year standards. Mobility is where this school separates itself: 5.4% 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.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.19 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
An acceptance rate of 85% puts San Jose State University on the accessible end — a realistic target for a broad range of applicants. The applicant pool is large — 37,132 in the most recent cycle — so the published rate reflects genuine competition rather than a small-sample quirk. Only 15% 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 San Jose State University →Academics
A 69% six-year graduation rate is the strongest academic signal on this page. 87% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. Retention drops to 62% for part-time students, a gap worth weighing if full-time study is not realistic. At 25:1, instructor access is thin — worth probing on a campus visit.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 26,757 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $13,892 annually, well below typical undergraduate net price. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $9,730 at the $0–30k band to $22,862 at $110k+. Grant aid reaches 56% of students at an average of $11,385. Federal borrowing is uncommon here at 20% 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 · 4,340 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 | $9,730 |
| $30–48k | $10,114 |
| $48–75k | $12,099 |
| $75–110k | $15,102 |
| $110k+ | $22,862 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 5,293 of these 26,757 students, totalling $34,027,689 — an average of $6,429 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Santa Clara 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)