College · Private nonprofit · Claremont, CA · Suburb
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont, CA
Admit rate10%
6-yr median pay$88k
Net price / yr$29k
Undergrad size1,388
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $29k/yr for a shot at a $88k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 10% means this is competitive but not impossible. Admitted students average SAT 1527 · ACT 34.
If you get in
1,388 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.
Where you live
Suburban — a short drive to the nearest city, greener but still connected.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $87k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $29k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$346k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$115k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$231k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.3x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $68.0k
- Room & board
- $20.8k
- Books & supplies
- $1,200
How students pay for it.
Pell grants18%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans21%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$14k
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 retention97%
Very high — students stay.
Graduation · 6 yr91%
Most finish on time.
6-yr median pay$88k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$105k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out0%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity
Setting, size, and who this school is.
- Setting
- Suburb
- Control
- Private nonprofit
- Undergrad size
- 1,388
- Location
- Claremont, CA
- Region
- Far West (AK, CA, HI, NV, OR, WA)
- Carnegie class
- Baccalaureate Colleges: Arts & Sciences Focus
- Size & setting
- Four-year · small · highly residential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, more selective, lower transfer-in
- Accreditor
- Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White36%
- Asian17%
- Hispanic15%
- International15%
- Two or more races9%
- Unknown5%
- Black4%
Part-time1%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$71k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 45
What you can study.