South Dakota
State University
Public Research University in Brookings, SD. Six-year graduation rate 63%. Median 10-year earnings $55,070.
Students who entered South Dakota State University land at a median of $55,070 a decade later, close to what most four-year schools deliver. 63% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Debt at graduation runs to a median of $23,250, 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
With an acceptance rate of 98%, South Dakota State University takes nearly everyone who applies. 7,287 applications came in, enough to make the rates below reasonably stable year to year. About 34% of admitted students enroll, a yield in the normal range. 2% 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 | 530–610 | 45 (2%) |
| SAT Math | 530–630 | |
| ACT Composite | 19–25 | 1,828 (75%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at South Dakota State University →Academics
Six-year completion sits at 63%, meaning about two in five students who enroll leave without finishing. 84% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 60% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled. A 17:1 ratio is unremarkable; expect a mix of lecture halls and seminars.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 8,805 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $19,932 annually once grants are applied. Net price varies modestly by income — $14,266 at $0–30k against $21,886 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. 75% of students receive grant aid, averaging $6,223 — common but not automatic. Federal borrowing reaches 49% 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 · 2,207 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 | $14,266 |
| $30–48k | $15,248 |
| $48–75k | $18,073 |
| $75–110k | $20,706 |
| $110k+ | $21,886 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 4,330 of these 8,805 students, totalling $27,662,425 — an average of $6,389 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Brookings 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)