More selective than 17% of Michigan colleges we cover.
College Scorecard, Fall 2024 entering class
Average after grants for all families receiving federal aid. Pick your income above.
Sticker price $51,652. College Scorecard.
Higher than 73% of Michigan colleges we cover and 70% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 38% of Michigan colleges we cover and 40% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
AQ acceptance rate & admissions
Of 2,291 applicants, Aquinas College admitted 1,628 and 296 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class). The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 910–1140 on the SAT or 20–26 on the ACT.
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
AQ tuition, cost & net price
What families actually pay per year, by income
Average net price after grants and scholarships for students who receive federal aid. Tap your income band.
College Scorecard, latest reported year (federal aid recipients)
Sticker price (before aid)
IPEDS 2023-24 cost items; total from College Scorecard
College Scorecard; Urban Institute Education Data Portal
What AQ costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of Aquinas College took 4.3 years on average to finish, so the yearly price adds up to the total below. Payback compares former students' earnings with what high school graduates earn in Michigan. The figures follow your residency and income choices above.
| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0–30k | $10,725 | $46,654 | 2.9 years |
| $30–48k | $11,222 | $48,816 | 3.0 years |
| $48–75k | $13,594 | $59,134 | 3.7 years |
| $75–110k | $15,468 | $67,286 | 4.2 years |
| $110k+ | $21,093 | $91,755 | 5.7 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.3 years, the average time graduates took (43% finished in 4 years; students who entered fall 2017, IPEDS). Years to pay back = cost to finish ÷ the earnings gain: median earnings of former students 10 years after starting ($49,584) minus $33,411 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in MI (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $16,173 a year. Before taxes, loan interest and earnings given up while in school. Method
College Scorecard (net price, earnings); IPEDS Graduation Rates (time to finish); U.S. Census Bureau ACS (high school earnings). Calculated by EducationGuide.
AQ majors, earnings & careers
Aquinas College offers 58 bachelor's majors across 9 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Humanities & Languages · 14
- Business & Finance · 9
- Social Sciences & Public Service · 9
- Science & Math · 7
- Education · 6
- Arts & Design · 5
- Health & Medicine · 4
- Communications & Media · 2
- Technology & Computing · 2
Highest-earning majors at AQ
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Accounting | $76,274 | — |
| Business Administration | $74,404 | $26,000 |
| Sustainability Studies | $60,285 | — |
| Kinesiology / Exercise Science | $51,806 | $24,500 |
| Biology | $51,002 | $24,500 |
| Communications | $48,075 | $22,232 |
| Liberal Arts / General Studies | $46,148 | $31,000 |
| Psychology | $45,698 | $27,000 |
Quick list of all 58 majors
- Accounting$76,274
- Allied Health (Imaging / Therapy / Tech)—
- Arts and Entertainment Management—
- Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education—
- Biochemistry—
- Biology$51,002
- Business / Corporate Communications—
- Business Administration$74,404
- Business Economics—
- Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other—
- Chemistry—
- Communications$48,075
- Community Organization and Advocacy$44,910
- Computer and Information Sciences—
- East Asian Languages (Chinese / Japanese / Korean)—
- Economics—
- Education—
- Education (Elementary / Secondary)—
- Education (Subject Teaching)—
- English—
- Environmental Science / Conservation—
- Ethnic / Gender Studies—
- Film and Photography—
- Geography—
- German—
- Health Sciences—
- History—
- Human Development and Family Studies—
- Human Resources—
- International / Global Studies—
- International Business—
- International Relations—
- Journalism—
- Kinesiology / Exercise Science$51,806
- Liberal Arts / General Studies$46,148
- Linguistics—
- Management Information Systems—
- Mathematics—
- Music—
- Philosophy—
- Physics—
- Political Science—
- Pre-Med / Pre-Health—
- Psychology$45,698
- Religious Music and Worship—
- Religious Studies—
- Social Sciences—
- Sociology—
- Software and Media Applications—
- Spanish / French / Romance Languages—
- Special Education—
- Studio Art—
- Sustainability Studies$60,285
- Teaching English or French as a Second or Foreign Language—
- Theatre—
- Theology / Ministry—
- Urban Studies / Affairs—
- Writing$39,465
— means too few graduates to report earnings.
College Scorecard field of study, latest release
All majors by area with earnings 1 and 4 years out, and debt →Business Administration → Management analyst
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 10.1% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Biology → Biological technician
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 7.4% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Living in Grand Rapids
Overall prices in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $1,630. Housing costs 13% below the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 40 inches of rain a year, 75 inches of snow.
NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020
Highest: tornado (relatively high); river flooding (relatively high); winter weather (relatively high).
FEMA National Risk Index, Kent County
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
Kent County at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare AQ with similar schools
Similar private colleges in Michigan by selectivity, graduation rate and size. Tap “Why?” to see where the price difference comes from.
| School | Acceptance | You'd pay | Graduation | Earnings, 10 yrs | Price gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aquinas College | 90% | $16,626 | 65% | $49,584 | This school |
| College for Creative Studies | 92% | $34,617 | 71% | $44,860 | |
| Andrews University | 82% | $12,547 | 72% | $53,187 | |
| Albion College | 81% | $14,301 | 62% | $58,799 | |
| Kettering University | 79% | $34,660 | 71% | $94,823 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
Aquinas College would cost you $17,991 less per year than College for Creative Studies, on average.
- Lower sticker price at Aquinas College, mostly from lower tuition & fees (−$13,132).
- Aquinas College gives aided families $3,629 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, Michigan resident | AQ | CCS | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $40,218 | $53,350 | −$13,132 |
| Books & supplies | $2,098 | $2,154 | −$56 |
| Housing & meals | $10,994 | $11,040 | −$46 |
| Personal & travel | $2,098 | $3,316 | −$1,218 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$3,756 | −$3,846 | +$90 |
| Sticker price | $51,652 | $66,014 | −$14,362 |
| Average grants | −$35,026 | −$31,397 | −$3,629 |
| You pay | $16,626 | $34,617 | −$17,991 |
“+” means AQ costs more; “−” means it costs less. Grants are the sticker price minus the net price. Cost items: IPEDS, on-campus budget. Sticker and net price: College Scorecard, latest reported year; the adjustment reconciles the two. Net price is an average for first-time, full-time students receiving federal aid, not a quote.
Common questions about AQ
What is the AQ acceptance rate?
Aquinas College accepts 90% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 1,628 of 2,291 applicants were admitted. The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 910–1140 on the SAT or 20–26 on the ACT.
How much does Aquinas College cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $51,652 a year. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $16,626 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $10,725 and families earning $110k+ pay $21,093.
How much do AQ graduates earn?
Former Aquinas College students earn a median $49,584 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the AQ graduation rate?
65% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 78% return for their second year.
How long does a AQ degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at Aquinas College costs about $59,134 after grants ($13,594 a year for 4.3 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $49,584 ten years after starting, $16,173 more than high school graduates in Michigan ($33,411), so the cost is repaid in 3.7 years of that gain, before taxes and interest (EducationGuide calculation).
Is AQ the right fit for your family?
Get a free report comparing AQ with up to 4 other schools on what you'd actually pay, what graduates in your major earn, and how each fits your priorities.
Build my free reportCheck my chances of getting inWe never share your contact information.
Sources on this page: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS; U.S. Census Bureau (ACS); Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS, Employment Projections); Bureau of Economic Analysis; HUD; NOAA; FEMA; Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By); Wikidata. “Colleges we cover” means colleges awarding bachelor's degrees to at least 100 undergraduates. Averages are not quotes; confirm costs with the school. How we score
Data: download this school's data (JSON) · Markdown · all datasets
Cite this: “Aquinas College: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/aquinas-college (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).