More selective than 2% 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 $28,919. College Scorecard.
Higher than 42% of Illinois colleges we cover and 56% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 43% of Illinois colleges we cover and 60% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
SIUE acceptance rate & admissions
Of 8,937 applicants, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville admitted 8,688 and 1,602 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class). The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 950–1190 on the SAT or 20–27 on the ACT.
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
SIUE tuition, cost & net price
What families actually pay per year, by income
Average net price after grants and scholarships for Illinois residents who receive federal aid. Tap your income band.
College Scorecard, latest reported year (in-state, federal aid recipients)
Sticker price (before aid)
IPEDS 2023-24 cost items; total from College Scorecard
College Scorecard; Urban Institute Education Data Portal
What SIUE costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville took 4.5 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 | $8,483 | $37,834 | 1.8 years |
| $30–48k | $8,587 | $38,298 | 1.9 years |
| $48–75k | $11,116 | $49,577 | 2.4 years |
| $75–110k | $19,351 | $86,305 | 4.2 years |
| $110k+ | $24,684 | $110,091 | 5.4 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.5 years, the average time graduates took (33% 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 ($56,346) minus $35,797 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in IL (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $20,549 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.
SIUE majors, earnings & careers
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville offers 47 bachelor's majors across 10 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Engineering · 8
- Humanities & Languages · 7
- Social Sciences & Public Service · 7
- Business & Finance · 5
- Health & Medicine · 5
- Science & Math · 5
- Arts & Design · 3
- Education · 3
- Technology & Computing · 3
- Communications & Media · 1
Highest-earning majors at SIUE
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Computer Science | $106,082 | $21,745 |
| Electrical Engineering | $99,325 | $25,113 |
| Construction Engineering Technology / Technician | $95,430 | — |
| Computer Engineering | $94,494 | $23,125 |
| Civil Engineering | $85,969 | $22,275 |
| Nursing | $83,867 | $23,043 |
| Industrial Engineering | $82,744 | — |
| Mechanical Engineering | $81,428 | $23,110 |
Quick list of all 47 majors
- Accounting$69,610
- Anthropology$44,974
- Biology$60,059
- Business Administration$65,403
- Business Economics$74,248
- Chemistry$70,541
- Civil Engineering$85,969
- Communications$52,466
- Computer and Information Sciences$73,513
- Computer Engineering$94,494
- Computer Science$106,082
- Construction Engineering Technology / Technician$95,430
- Construction Management—
- Criminal Justice$57,915
- Dietetics$52,166
- Economics—
- Education (Elementary / Secondary)$43,916
- Education (Subject Teaching)—
- Electrical Engineering$99,325
- English$41,310
- Environmental Science / Conservation—
- Geography$75,877
- History$46,814
- Industrial Engineering$82,744
- Information Technology—
- Interdisciplinary Studies$55,110
- International / Global Studies—
- Kinesiology / Exercise Science$49,837
- Liberal Arts / General Studies—
- Linguistics—
- Mathematics—
- Mechanical Engineering$81,428
- Mechatronics, Robotics, and Automation Engineering—
- Music$46,196
- Nursing$83,867
- Philosophy—
- Physics—
- Political Science$52,564
- Psychology$48,951
- Public Health$47,652
- Social Work$52,480
- Sociology$51,465
- Special Education$43,928
- Speech-Language Pathology / Communication Disorders$54,615
- Studio Art$36,717
- Surveying Engineering—
- Theatre$39,698
— 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 →Nursing → Registered nurse
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 5.6% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
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
Living in St. Louis
Overall prices in the St. Louis, MO-IL area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $1,349. Housing costs 21% below the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 46 inches of rain a year, 11 inches of snow.
NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020
Highest: tornado (relatively high); heat wave (relatively high); winter weather (relatively high).
FEMA National Risk Index, Madison County
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
Madison County at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare SIUE with similar schools
Similar public 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | 98% | $14,889 | 57% | $56,346 | This school |
| Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | 87% | $13,297 | 62% | $53,390 | |
| University of Illinois Springfield | 86% | $9,833 | 53% | $57,103 | |
| Northern Illinois University | 70% | $13,391 | 49% | $57,808 | |
| Western Illinois University | 71% | $12,937 | 45% | $54,163 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville would cost you $1,592 more per year than Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, on average.
- Higher sticker price at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, mostly from a higher estimate for personal & travel costs (+$2,831).
- Southern Illinois University-Carbondale gives aided families $1,002 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, Illinois resident | SIUE | Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $12,922 | $13,334 | −$412 |
| Books & supplies | $980 | $1,100 | −$120 |
| Housing & meals | $10,562 | $12,114 | −$1,552 |
| Personal & travel | $5,782 | $2,951 | +$2,831 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$1,327 | −$1,170 | −$157 |
| Sticker price | $28,919 | $28,329 | +$590 |
| Average grants | −$14,030 | −$15,032 | +$1,002 |
| You pay | $14,889 | $13,297 | +$1,592 |
“+” means SIUE 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 SIUE
What is the SIUE acceptance rate?
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville accepts 98% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 8,688 of 8,937 applicants were admitted. The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 950–1190 on the SAT or 20–27 on the ACT.
How much does Southern Illinois University Edwardsville cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $28,919 a year for in-state students. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $14,889 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $8,483 and families earning $110k+ pay $24,684.
How much do SIUE graduates earn?
Former Southern Illinois University Edwardsville students earn a median $56,346 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the SIUE graduation rate?
57% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 76% return for their second year.
How long does a SIUE degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville costs about $49,577 after grants ($11,116 a year for 4.5 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $56,346 ten years after starting, $20,549 more than high school graduates in Illinois ($35,797), so the cost is repaid in 2.4 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: “Southern Illinois University Edwardsville: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).