College · Private nonprofit · Chestnut Hill, MA · City
Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA
Religious affiliation
Admit rate16%
6-yr median pay$86k
Net price / yr$42k
Undergrad size10,085
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $42k/yr for a shot at a $86k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 16% means this is competitive but not impossible. Admitted students average SAT 1507 · ACT 34.
If you get in
10,085 undergrads. Medium. Clubs matter for finding your people.
Where you live
City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $89k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $42k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$358k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$167k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$191k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.9x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $70.7k
- Room & board
- $18.9k
- Books & supplies
- $1,250
How students pay for it.
Pell grants13%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans30%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$19k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $7k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention96%
Very high — students stay.
Graduation · 6 yr91%
Most finish on time.
6-yr median pay$86k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$104k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out7%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity
Setting, size, and who this school is.
- Setting
- City
- Control
- Private nonprofit
- Undergrad size
- 10,085
- Location
- Chestnut Hill, MA
- Region
- New England (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT)
- Carnegie class
- Doctoral Universities: Very High Research Activity (R1)
- Size & setting
- Four-year · large · highly residential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, more selective, lower transfer-in
- Accreditor
- New England Commission on Higher Education
Identity
Religious affiliation
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White57%
- Hispanic13%
- Asian11%
- International6%
- Black5%
- Two or more races5%
- Unknown2%
First-gen students13%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time3%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$103k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 49
What you can study.