Texas A
& M University-Corpus Christi
Public Research University in Corpus Christi, TX. Six-year graduation rate 40%. Median 10-year earnings $51,865.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $51,865 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. 40% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Debt at graduation runs to a median of $23,000, neither a bargain nor a burden. Mobility is where this school separates itself: 2.3% 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.
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi admits 89% of applicants — effectively open admission, so the application is a formality rather than a hurdle. The applicant pool is large — 12,049 in the most recent cycle — so the published rate reflects genuine competition rather than a small-sample quirk. 21% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. 46% 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 | 500–610 | 1,029 (46%) |
| SAT Math | 470–583 | |
| ACT Composite | 19–25 | 183 (8%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi →Academics
Completion is middling: 40% finish inside six years. Retention is weak: only 58% of full-time first-years return, so roughly two in five leave after one year. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. 41% of students transfer out, which reframes what the graduation rate above is measuring. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 46% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 7,804 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $15,233 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. The income table below is the number that matters — $11,445 at $0–30k versus $23,426 at $110k+. Grant aid reaches 65% of students at an average of $8,610. 42% 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 · 1,994 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 | $11,445 |
| $30–48k | $11,961 |
| $48–75k | $14,180 |
| $75–110k | $19,479 |
| $110k+ | $23,426 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 3,252 of these 7,804 students, totalling $21,060,731 — an average of $6,476 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Nueces 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)