The University
of Texas at Austin
Public Research University in Austin, TX. Six-year graduation rate 89%. Median 10-year earnings $75,121.
A decade after enrolling, the median The University of Texas at Austin student earns $75,121 — comfortably above what the typical bachelor's-granting institution returns. 89% graduate within six years, so most students who start here finish here. Median debt at graduation is $20,500, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree. It also moves people — 2.2% of students climb from the bottom fifth of the income distribution 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 0.27 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ Graduation rate 89% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
The University of Texas at Austin admits 27% of applicants and is genuinely selective — roughly three in four applicants are turned away. With 72,885 applications received, this is a school operating at national scale. Yield is high — 47% of admitted students go on to enroll, well above the typical rate. Score ranges below describe the middle half of score submitters among enrolled first-years; students who applied test-optional are not represented in them.
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 | 630–740 | 5,189 (56%) |
| SAT Math | 620–770 | |
| ACT Composite | 27–33 | 1,686 (18%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at The University of Texas at Austin →Academics
89% of students finish within six years, putting completion well above the national norm. 97% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. The student-faculty ratio is 18:1 — typical, which in practice means large lectures early and smaller classes in the major. As a public four-year university, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions. With 42,444 undergraduates, this is a large institution — expect the administrative scale and the range of offerings that come with it.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 42,100 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $17,942 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. The income table below is the number that matters — $12,553 at $0–30k versus $30,082 at $110k+. About 50% get grants averaging $12,574, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 27% 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 · 9,230 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 | $12,553 |
| $30–48k | $14,297 |
| $48–75k | $17,207 |
| $75–110k | $24,406 |
| $110k+ | $30,082 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 11,552 of these 42,100 students, totalling $69,836,655 — an average of $6,045 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Travis 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)