More selective than 28% of Indiana colleges we cover.
College Scorecard, Fall 2024 entering class
Average after grants for all families receiving federal aid. Pick your income above.
Sticker price $65,970. College Scorecard.
Higher than 96% of Indiana colleges we cover and 90% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 96% of Indiana colleges we cover and 91% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
Butler University acceptance rate & admissions
Of 9,431 applicants, Butler University admitted 8,098 and 1,151 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class). The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1160–1350 on the SAT or 26–31 on the ACT.
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
Butler University 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 Butler University costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of Butler University took 4.1 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 Indiana. The figures follow your residency and income choices above.
| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0–30k | $25,278 | $103,387 | 2.5 years |
| $30–48k | $25,696 | $105,097 | 2.5 years |
| $48–75k | $32,679 | $133,657 | 3.2 years |
| $75–110k | $36,778 | $150,422 | 3.6 years |
| $110k+ | $41,134 | $168,238 | 4.0 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.1 years, the average time graduates took (72% 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 ($77,235) minus $35,534 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in IN (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $41,701 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.
Butler University majors, earnings & careers
Butler University offers 64 bachelor's majors across 10 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Humanities & Languages · 14
- Business & Finance · 9
- Science & Math · 9
- Social Sciences & Public Service · 9
- Arts & Design · 6
- Communications & Media · 5
- Health & Medicine · 5
- Education · 3
- Technology & Computing · 3
- Engineering · 1
Highest-earning majors at Butler University
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Accounting | $93,584 | $23,250 |
| Insurance | $89,343 | — |
| Finance | $81,344 | $23,250 |
| Public Relations and Advertising | $75,382 | $26,176 |
| Marketing | $70,154 | $26,000 |
Quick list of all 64 majors
- Accounting$93,584
- Anthropology—
- Arts and Entertainment Management—
- Astronomy and Astrophysics—
- Audiovisual Communications Technologies / Technicians—
- Biochemistry—
- Biology—
- Broadcasting / Digital Media—
- Chemistry—
- Classical and Ancient Studies—
- Communications—
- Computer and Information Sciences—
- Computer Engineering—
- Criminology—
- Dance—
- Data Science—
- East Asian Languages (Chinese / Japanese / Korean)—
- Economics—
- Education (Elementary / Secondary)—
- Education (Subject Teaching)—
- Education, Other—
- English—
- Entrepreneurship—
- Environmental Science / Conservation—
- Ethnic / Gender Studies—
- Finance$81,344
- German—
- Graphic / Interior / Fashion Design—
- Health Administration—
- Health Sciences—
- History—
- Insurance$89,343
- International Business—
- International Relations—
- Journalism—
- Kinesiology / Exercise Science—
- Liberal Arts / General Studies—
- Linguistics—
- Management Information Systems—
- Management Science / Analytics—
- Marketing$70,154
- Mathematics—
- Music—
- Neuroscience—
- Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution—
- Philosophy—
- Philosophy and Religious Studies, Other—
- Physics—
- Political Science—
- Psychology—
- Psychology, Other—
- Public Health—
- Public Relations and Advertising$75,382
- Religious Studies—
- Science, Technology and Society—
- Social Sciences, Other—
- Sociology—
- Software and Media Applications—
- Spanish / French / Romance Languages—
- Speech-Language Pathology / Communication Disorders—
- Statistics—
- Studio Art—
- Theatre—
- Writing—
— 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 →Marketing → Marketing specialist
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 7.0% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Finance → Financial analyst
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 7.2% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Living in Indianapolis
Overall prices in the Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $1,536. Housing costs 11% below the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 41 inches of rain a year, 27 inches of snow.
NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020
Highest: tornado (very high); river flooding (relatively high); heat wave (relatively high); winter weather (relatively high).
FEMA National Risk Index, Marion County
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
Marion County at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare Butler University with similar schools
Similar private colleges in Indiana 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Butler University | 85% | $36,041 | 80% | $77,235 | This school |
| Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | 77% | $42,513 | 78% | $101,253 | |
| Trine University | 85% | $25,355 | 64% | $57,165 | |
| Valparaiso University | 89% | $18,578 | 70% | $63,191 | |
| Indiana Wesleyan University-Marion | 89% | $22,866 | 67% | $59,986 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
Butler University would cost you $6,472 less per year than Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, on average.
- Lower sticker price at Butler University, mostly from lower tuition & fees (−$11,089).
- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology gives aided families $5,448 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, Indiana resident | Butler University | RHIT | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $47,560 | $58,649 | −$11,089 |
| Books & supplies | $1,300 | $1,500 | −$200 |
| Housing & meals | $15,870 | $17,718 | −$1,848 |
| Personal & travel | $4,060 | $1,998 | +$2,062 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$2,820 | −$1,975 | −$845 |
| Sticker price | $65,970 | $77,890 | −$11,920 |
| Average grants | −$29,929 | −$35,377 | +$5,448 |
| You pay | $36,041 | $42,513 | −$6,472 |
“+” means Butler University 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 Butler University
What is the Butler University acceptance rate?
Butler University accepts 85% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 8,098 of 9,431 applicants were admitted. The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1160–1350 on the SAT or 26–31 on the ACT.
How much does Butler University cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $65,970 a year. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $36,041 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $25,278 and families earning $110k+ pay $41,134.
How much do Butler University graduates earn?
Former Butler University students earn a median $77,235 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the Butler University graduation rate?
80% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 87% return for their second year.
How long does a Butler University degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at Butler University costs about $133,657 after grants ($32,679 a year for 4.1 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $77,235 ten years after starting, $41,701 more than high school graduates in Indiana ($35,534), so the cost is repaid in 3.2 years of that gain, before taxes and interest (EducationGuide calculation).
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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: “Butler University: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/butler-university (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).