Stephens College
Private College in Columbia, MO. Six-year graduation rate 43%. Median 10-year earnings $43,071.
Ten years after entry, the median Stephens College student earns $43,071 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. Six-year completion sits at 43%, near the national average for undergraduate institutions. Median debt at graduation reaches $27,000, heavy enough to shape the years right after the degree.
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
- ! Debt-to-income ratio 0.63 — elevated (above 0.60)
- ! Mobility score 0.7 — limited economic uplift documented
Admissions
Stephens College accepts 77% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. Only 1,058 students applied, so treat these rates as directional — small pools swing sharply between cycles. A 15% yield rate is low: the admitted pool is much larger than the entering 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 | — | — |
| SAT Math | — | |
| ACT Composite | — | — |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Stephens College →Academics
43% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. 78% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in five are gone before sophomore year. Retention runs well ahead of completion, which means students are not leaving immediately; they are leaving somewhere between the second year and the finish line. 39% of students transfer out, which reframes what the graduation rate above is measuring. At 8:1, students get materially more instructor contact than at a typical public university.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 344 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price after grant aid is $23,194 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. The income table below is the number that matters — $9,918 at $0–30k versus $29,787 at $110k+. 97% of students get grant aid averaging $21,115, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. Borrowing is widespread: 62% take federal loans.
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 · 69 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 | $9,918 |
| $30–48k | $14,796 |
| $48–75k | $18,547 |
| $75–110k | $25,644 |
| $110k+ | $29,787 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 213 of these 344 students, totalling $1,688,441 — an average of $7,927 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Boone 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)