# Princeton University

Private nonprofit college in Princeton, NJ. IPEDS ID 186131.
Source page: https://educationguide.com/colleges/princeton-university · Data: https://educationguide.com/data/colleges/princeton-university.json · Method: https://educationguide.com/how-we-score

## Key numbers
- Acceptance rate: 5% (Fall 2024, College Scorecard)
- Average net price after grants: $6,128 per year (AcadYr 2023-24, reported in IPEDS DCY2024-25)
- Graduation rate (6 years): 98%; beats 100% of NJ colleges and 99% nationwide
- Median earnings 10 years after starting: $110,066; beats 100% of NJ colleges and 99% nationwide
- Median debt at graduation: $10,000

## Net price by family income (per year, after grants)
| Family income | Net price |
|---|---|
| 0-30k | $41 |
| 30-48k | $352 |
| 48-75k | $1,217 |
| 75-110k | $4,478 |
| 110k+ | $36,094 |

Average after grants for first-time, full-time students receiving federal aid. Negative values mean grants exceed cost.

## Cost to finish and years to pay back (EducationGuide calculation)
Graduates took 4.2 years on average (80% finished in 4 years; Fall 2017 entrants, IPEDS). Earnings gain = $110,066 (median earnings of former students 10 years after starting college (College Scorecard)) minus $36,661 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in NJ (Census ACS 2020-2024).

| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | $41 | $172 | under 1 year |
| 30-48k | $352 | $1,478 | under 1 year |
| 48-75k | $1,217 | $5,111 | under 1 year |
| 75-110k | $4,478 | $18,808 | under 1 year |
| 110k+ | $36,094 | $151,595 | 2.1 years |

Method: https://educationguide.com/how-we-score#value

## Sticker price
- Cost of attendance: $84,040
- Tuition and fees: $62,688
- Housing and meals: $19,380; books: $1,050

## Admissions
- SAT reading & writing: 740–780; SAT math: 770–800; ACT: 34–35 (25th–75th percentile, Fall 2024)
- Fall 2023: 39,644 applicants, 1,782 admitted, 1,366 enrolled; test scores considered but not required
- Fall 2024: acceptance 5%, ACT 34–35 (College Scorecard)
- Fall 2023: acceptance 5%, ACT 34–35 (IPEDS Admissions)

## Majors (37 bachelor's majors)
| Major | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|
| Computer Science | $146,624 | $217,973 | not reported |
| Computer Engineering | not reported | $214,274 | not reported |
| Economics | $103,041 | $160,763 | $11,250 |
| Mechanical Engineering | $85,328 | $115,927 | not reported |
| Public Policy Analysis | $73,630 | $107,792 | $10,527 |
| Political Science | $63,317 | $88,576 | not reported |
| History | $45,363 | $80,347 | not reported |
| Psychology (Research) | $47,050 | $63,216 | not reported |
| Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | $53,038 | $62,344 | not reported |
| English | $35,178 | $61,323 | not reported |
| Architecture | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Area Studies | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Ethnic / Gender Studies | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Engineering | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Chemical Engineering | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Civil Engineering | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Electrical Engineering | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Operations Research | $100,354 | not reported | not reported |
| Linguistics | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Slavic, Baltic and Albanian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| German | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Spanish / French / Romance Languages | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Classics | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Biochemistry | $41,848 | not reported | not reported |
| Neuroscience | $32,647 | not reported | not reported |
| Mathematics | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Multi / Interdisciplinary Studies, Other | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Philosophy | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Religious Studies | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Astronomy and Astrophysics | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Chemistry | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Geology / Earth Science | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Physics | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Anthropology | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Sociology | $32,914 | not reported | not reported |
| Studio Art | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Music | not reported | not reported | not reported |

## Major to career
- Computer Science → Software developer: median wage $128,770 (Trenton-Princeton, NJ), $135,940 (NJ), $135,980 (U.S.)
- Computer Engineering → Computer hardware engineer: median wage not reported (Trenton-Princeton, NJ), $142,880 (NJ), $161,740 (U.S.)

## Sources and years
- Net price: AcadYr 2023-24, reported in IPEDS DCY2024-25; cost of attendance: AcadYr 2023-24, reported in IPEDS DCY2024-25; tuition: AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2024-25
- Graduation: Fall 2018 or AcadYr 2018-19 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2024-25; earnings: Treasury AY2009-10, AY2010-11 pooled cohort measured in CY2020, CY2021, inflation adjusted to 2022 dollars; debt: NSLDS FY2020, FY2021 pooled cohorts
- Major earnings (4 yr): Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars

Free to reuse with attribution: cite "EducationGuide.com" with a link to the page URL. Most figures are U.S. government data (public domain); loan default rates and athletics come from the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By 1.0, attribution required) and founding years from Wikidata (CC0).