More selective than 50% of Illinois colleges we cover.
College Scorecard, Fall 2024 entering class
Average after grants for all families receiving federal aid. Pick your income above.
Sticker price $63,052. College Scorecard.
Higher than 77% of Illinois colleges we cover and 75% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 79% of Illinois colleges we cover and 84% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
DePaul University acceptance rate & admissions
Of 32,176 applicants, DePaul University admitted 23,660 and 2,943 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class). The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1140–1330 on the SAT or 25–31 on the ACT.
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
DePaul 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 DePaul University costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of DePaul University took 4.2 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 Illinois. The figures follow your residency and income choices above.
| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0–30k | $27,359 | $115,729 | 3.5 years |
| $30–48k | $25,950 | $109,769 | 3.3 years |
| $48–75k | $28,687 | $121,346 | 3.7 years |
| $75–110k | $31,057 | $131,371 | 4.0 years |
| $110k+ | $37,092 | $156,899 | 4.8 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.2 years, the average time graduates took (56% 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 ($68,751) minus $35,797 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in IL (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $32,954 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.
DePaul University majors, earnings & careers
DePaul University offers 73 bachelor's majors across 10 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Humanities & Languages · 12
- Business & Finance · 11
- Technology & Computing · 10
- Social Sciences & Public Service · 9
- Science & Math · 8
- Arts & Design · 7
- Health & Medicine · 6
- Communications & Media · 5
- Education · 3
- Engineering · 2
Highest-earning majors at DePaul University
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Information Technology | $113,645 | $27,000 |
| Computer Programming | $101,315 | $25,497 |
| Economics | $100,185 | $22,433 |
| Software and Media Applications | $96,616 | $23,249 |
| Management Information Systems | $94,197 | $24,016 |
| Finance | $93,719 | $23,000 |
| Accounting | $93,592 | $24,500 |
| Business Economics | $93,563 | $21,666 |
Quick list of all 73 majors
- Accounting$93,592
- Anthropology$50,780
- Architectural History, Criticism, and Conservation—
- Area Studies$49,872
- Arts and Entertainment Management—
- Astronomy and Astrophysics—
- Biochemistry—
- Biology$61,216
- Business Administration$74,847
- Business Economics$93,563
- Chemistry—
- Communications$56,014
- Communications Technologies / Technicians and Support Services, Other—
- Computer and Information Sciences$84,554
- Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other—
- Computer Programming$101,315
- Computer Science—
- Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications$91,007
- Criminology—
- Data Science—
- Economics$100,185
- Education (Elementary / Secondary)$54,208
- Education (Subject Teaching)$57,957
- English$52,608
- Entrepreneurship—
- Environmental Science / Conservation$52,622
- Ethnic / Gender Studies$59,016
- Film and Photography$46,969
- Finance$93,719
- Geography—
- German—
- Graphic / Interior / Fashion Design$55,213
- Graphic Communications$45,028
- Health Administration—
- Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other—
- Health Sciences$62,693
- History$48,857
- Hospitality Management$71,556
- Information Science / Studies$82,551
- Information Technology$113,645
- International Relations$68,180
- Journalism$61,708
- Kinesiology / Exercise Science—
- Liberal Arts / General Studies$86,444
- Management Information Systems$94,197
- Management Science / Analytics$76,420
- Marketing$78,164
- Mathematics$89,908
- Mathematics and Computer Science—
- Medical Laboratory Science—
- Middle / Near Eastern and Semitic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics—
- Music$44,756
- Neuroscience—
- Nursing—
- Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies—
- Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution$53,498
- Philosophy—
- Physics—
- Political Science$58,163
- Psychology$55,664
- Public Policy Analysis—
- Public Relations and Advertising$71,045
- Real Estate—
- Religious Studies—
- Sociology$52,791
- Software and Media Applications$96,616
- Spanish / French / Romance Languages$50,460
- Special Education—
- Studio Art$37,085
- Systems Engineering—
- Theatre$44,095
- Visual and Performing Arts—
- 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 →Public Relations and Advertising → Public relations specialist
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 1.8% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Accounting → Accountant / auditor
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 5.0% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Living in Chicago
Overall prices in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $2,011. Housing costs 12% above the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 44 inches of rain a year, 39 inches of snow.
NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020
Highest: tornado (very high); river flooding (very high); heat wave (very high); winter weather (very high).
FEMA National Risk Index, Cook County
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
Cook County at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare DePaul University with similar schools
Similar private colleges in Illinois 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DePaul University | 76% | $30,902 | 68% | $68,751 | This school |
| Loyola University Chicago | 82% | $36,079 | 73% | $71,530 | |
| School of the Art Institute of Chicago | 77% | $49,790 | 67% | $40,151 | |
| Lewis University | 71% | $17,028 | 67% | $66,099 | |
| Elmhurst University | 74% | $24,185 | 70% | $61,462 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
DePaul University would cost you $5,177 less per year than Loyola University Chicago, on average.
- Lower sticker price at DePaul University, mostly from lower tuition & fees (−$7,711).
- DePaul University gives aided families $821 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, Illinois resident | DePaul University | Loyola University Chicago | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $45,999 | $53,710 | −$7,711 |
| Books & supplies | $1,104 | $1,200 | −$96 |
| Housing & meals | $18,468 | $16,894 | +$1,574 |
| Personal & travel | $2,766 | $1,600 | +$1,166 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$5,285 | −$5,996 | +$711 |
| Sticker price | $63,052 | $67,408 | −$4,356 |
| Average grants | −$32,150 | −$31,329 | −$821 |
| You pay | $30,902 | $36,079 | −$5,177 |
“+” means DePaul 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 DePaul University
What is the DePaul University acceptance rate?
DePaul University accepts 76% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 23,660 of 32,176 applicants were admitted. The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1140–1330 on the SAT or 25–31 on the ACT.
How much does DePaul University cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $63,052 a year. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $30,902 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $27,359 and families earning $110k+ pay $37,092.
How much do DePaul University graduates earn?
Former DePaul University students earn a median $68,751 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the DePaul University graduation rate?
68% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 86% return for their second year.
How long does a DePaul University degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at DePaul University costs about $121,346 after grants ($28,687 a year for 4.2 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $68,751 ten years after starting, $32,954 more than high school graduates in Illinois ($35,797), so the cost is repaid in 3.7 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: “DePaul University: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/depaul-university (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).