The College
of Idaho
Private College in Caldwell, ID. Six-year graduation rate 63%. Median 10-year earnings $48,473.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $48,473 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. The six-year graduation rate is 63%, meaning about two in five students who start do not finish. Debt at graduation runs to a median of $24,500, 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
The College of Idaho admits 49% of applicants and is genuinely selective — roughly one in two applicants are turned away. 3,650 students applied in the most recent cycle — a mid-sized pool drawn mostly from the surrounding region. Yield is low at 15%, so most admitted students do not end up enrolling. The score bands below rest on the 39% of enrolled first-years who submitted an SAT score — a self-selected group, and not a cutoff.
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 | 540–650 | 101 (39%) |
| SAT Math | 530–630 | |
| ACT Composite | 23–31 | 14 (5%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at The College of Idaho →Academics
Six-year completion sits at 63%, meaning about two in five students who enroll leave without finishing. Retention is strong at 82%, and first-year attrition is where most degrees are lost. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. Transfer-out runs to 25% — common enough at this school that the completion rate is measuring a smaller group than the entering class. A 10:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,047 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $21,686 annually once grants are applied. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $14,026 at the $0–30k band to $23,095 at $110k+. Grant aid is widespread — 100% of students receive it, averaging $27,319. Federal borrowing reaches 47% 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 · 296 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 | $14,026 |
| $30–48k | $16,218 |
| $48–75k | $17,773 |
| $75–110k | $19,729 |
| $110k+ | $23,095 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 496 of these 1,047 students, totalling $3,121,724 — an average of $6,294 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Canyon 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)