University of Houston
Public Research University in Houston, TX. Six-year graduation rate 65%. Median 10-year earnings $62,377.
Ten-year median earnings of $62,377 are the headline number here, and they are strong ones. 65% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Graduates carry a median of $18,194 in debt — in line with the national norm.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.29 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
University of Houston accepts 74% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. With 31,716 applications received, this is a school operating at national scale. Yield sits at 27% — the remainder of admitted students enroll elsewhere or not at all. The score bands below rest on the 46% 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 | 590–670 | 2,833 (46%) |
| SAT Math | 570–670 | |
| ACT Composite | 23–29 | 389 (13%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at University of Houston →Academics
Completion is middling: 65% finish inside six years. 87% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. Retention drops to 74% for part-time students, a gap worth weighing if full-time study is not realistic. At 22:1, class sizes land in the normal range for an undergraduate institution.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 37,175 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $14,309 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. The income table below is the number that matters — $10,929 at $0–30k versus $23,811 at $110k+. 62% of students receive grant aid, averaging $9,629 — common but not automatic. Federal borrowing reaches 32% 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 · 5,214 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 | $10,929 |
| $30–48k | $10,220 |
| $48–75k | $12,528 |
| $75–110k | $19,197 |
| $110k+ | $23,811 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 11,908 of these 37,175 students, totalling $76,425,477 — an average of $6,418 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Harris 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)