University of
Hawaii at Manoa
Public Research University in Honolulu, HI. Six-year graduation rate 64%. Median 10-year earnings $57,624.
Ten years after entry, the median University of Hawaii at Manoa student earns $57,624 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. The six-year graduation rate is 64%, meaning about one in three students who start do not finish. Median debt at graduation is $18,500, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.32 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
With an acceptance rate of 87%, University of Hawaii at Manoa takes nearly everyone who applies. With 16,722 applications received, this is a school operating at national scale. 21% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. 1% 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 | 548–653 | 22 (1%) |
| SAT Math | 533–640 | |
| ACT Composite | 17–25 | 104 (3%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at University of Hawaii at Manoa →Academics
Completion is middling: 64% finish inside six years. Retention is strong at 81%, and first-year attrition is where most degrees are lost. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. The part-time picture is harder: 62% return, against 81% full-time. The 15:1 student-faculty ratio is small enough that seminar-sized classes are the norm.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 14,306 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price after grant aid is $17,202 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $10,675 at the $0–30k band to $22,562 at $110k+. 56% of students receive grant aid, averaging $8,176 — common but not automatic. About 28% borrow federally, roughly the national pattern.
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 · 2,872 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 | $10,675 |
| $30–48k | $12,246 |
| $48–75k | $14,469 |
| $75–110k | $18,760 |
| $110k+ | $22,562 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 3,995 of these 14,306 students, totalling $25,579,486 — an average of $6,403 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Honolulu 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)