University of
Puerto Rico at Ponce
Public College in Ponce, PR. Six-year graduation rate 48%. Median 10-year earnings $31,394.
Students who entered University of Puerto Rico at Ponce reach a median of $31,394 a decade later, a figure that trails the typical four-year outcome. Six-year completion sits at 48%, near the national average for undergraduate institutions. Borrowing stays contained, with median debt at graduation of $5,500.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.18 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
At 52%, the acceptance rate makes University of Puerto Rico at Ponce a school worth applying to with alternatives in hand. Only 1,426 students applied, so treat these rates as directional — small pools swing sharply between cycles. Yield is high — 84% of admitted students go on to enroll, well above the typical rate.
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 | — | — |
| SAT Math | — | |
| ACT Composite | — | — |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at University of Puerto Rico at Ponce →Academics
Completion is middling: 48% finish inside six years. Retention of 73% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. A 22:1 ratio is unremarkable; expect a mix of lecture halls and seminars. As a public four-year university, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 2,276 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $9,830 annually, well below typical undergraduate net price. Net price varies modestly by income — $10,114 at $0–30k against $12,404 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. 92% of students get grant aid averaging $7,293, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. 8% borrow federally — a low rate, though it covers federal loans only.
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 · 607 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 | $10,114 |
| $30–48k | $10,534 |
| $48–75k | $13,017 |
| $75–110k | $13,600 |
| $110k+ | $12,404 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 182 of these 2,276 students, totalling $762,425 — an average of $4,189 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Ponce Municipio) — 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)