More selective than 91% of Tennessee colleges we cover.
College Scorecard, Fall 2024 entering class
Average after grants for all families receiving federal aid. Pick your income above.
Sticker price $71,136. College Scorecard.
Higher than 97% of Tennessee colleges we cover and 93% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 95% of Tennessee colleges we cover and 82% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
Rhodes College acceptance rate & admissions
Of 6,025 applicants, Rhodes College admitted 2,993 and 483 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class). The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1300–1486 on the SAT or 26–32 on the ACT.
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
Rhodes College 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 Rhodes College costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of Rhodes College 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 Tennessee. The figures follow your residency and income choices above.
| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0–30k | $15,770 | $64,184 | 2.0 years |
| $30–48k | $19,960 | $81,237 | 2.5 years |
| $48–75k | $15,910 | $64,754 | 2.0 years |
| $75–110k | $37,103 | $151,009 | 4.7 years |
| $110k+ | $31,878 | $129,743 | 4.0 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.1 years, the average time graduates took (77% 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 ($66,651) minus $34,518 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in TN (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $32,133 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.
Rhodes College majors, earnings & careers
Rhodes College offers 35 bachelor's majors across 9 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Humanities & Languages · 10
- Science & Math · 8
- Social Sciences & Public Service · 5
- Arts & Design · 4
- Business & Finance · 3
- Education · 2
- Communications & Media · 1
- Health & Medicine · 1
- Technology & Computing · 1
Highest-earning majors at Rhodes College
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Economics | $82,950 | $19,500 |
| Computer Science | $78,973 | $25,982 |
| Business Administration | $77,838 | $22,240 |
| Political Science | $72,062 | $26,500 |
| International Relations | $56,744 | $22,072 |
| Biology | $50,036 | $23,465 |
| English | $49,042 | $21,545 |
Quick list of all 35 majors
- Anthropology—
- Area Studies—
- Biochemistry—
- Biology$50,036
- Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology—
- Business Administration$77,838
- Chemistry—
- Classics—
- Communications—
- Computer Science$78,973
- Economics$82,950
- Education—
- Educational Administration and Supervision—
- English$49,042
- Environmental Science / Conservation—
- Ethnic / Gender Studies—
- Film and Photography—
- German—
- Health Professions Education, Ethics, and Humanities—
- History—
- International Business—
- International Relations$56,744
- Liberal Arts / General Studies—
- Mathematics—
- Music—
- Neuroscience—
- Philosophy—
- Physics—
- Political Science$72,062
- Psychology—
- Religious Studies—
- Spanish / French / Romance Languages—
- Studio Art—
- Theatre—
- Urban Studies / Affairs—
— 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
Computer Science → Software developer
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 10.2% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Living in Memphis
Overall prices in the Memphis, TN-MS-AR area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $1,301. Housing costs 20% below the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 55 inches of rain a year, 3 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, Shelby County
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
Shelby County at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare Rhodes College with similar schools
Similar private colleges in Tennessee 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rhodes College | 50% | $28,585 | 85% | $66,651 | This school |
| The University of the South | 57% | $27,872 | 80% | $64,911 | |
| Freed-Hardeman University | 60% | $21,574 | 71% | $47,485 | |
| Union University | 60% | $27,171 | 66% | $53,990 | |
| Lipscomb University | 68% | $24,739 | 72% | $55,541 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
Rhodes College would cost you $713 more per year than The University of the South, on average.
- Lower sticker price at Rhodes College, mostly from lower housing & meal costs (−$2,428).
- The University of the South gives aided families $1,563 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, Tennessee resident | Rhodes College | The University of the South | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $57,110 | $56,120 | +$990 |
| Books & supplies | $1,125 | $1,200 | −$75 |
| Housing & meals | $12,910 | $15,338 | −$2,428 |
| Personal & travel | $2,619 | $1,750 | +$869 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$2,628 | −$2,422 | −$206 |
| Sticker price | $71,136 | $71,986 | −$850 |
| Average grants | −$42,551 | −$44,114 | +$1,563 |
| You pay | $28,585 | $27,872 | +$713 |
“+” means Rhodes College 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 Rhodes College
What is the Rhodes College acceptance rate?
Rhodes College accepts 50% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 2,993 of 6,025 applicants were admitted. The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1300–1486 on the SAT or 26–32 on the ACT.
How much does Rhodes College cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $71,136 a year. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $28,585 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $15,770 and families earning $110k+ pay $31,878.
How much do Rhodes College graduates earn?
Former Rhodes College students earn a median $66,651 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the Rhodes College graduation rate?
85% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 92% return for their second year.
How long does a Rhodes College degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at Rhodes College costs about $64,754 after grants ($15,910 a year for 4.1 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $66,651 ten years after starting, $32,133 more than high school graduates in Tennessee ($34,518), so the cost is repaid in 2.0 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: “Rhodes College: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/rhodes-college (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).