College · Public · Cleveland, OH · City
Cleveland State University
Cleveland, OH
Admit rate91%
6-yr median pay$45k
Net price / yr$15k
Undergrad size8,969
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $15k/yr for a shot at a $45k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 91% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid. Admitted students average ACT 23.
If you get in
8,969 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 $27k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $15k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$109k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$59k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$50k
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
- $13.0k
- Tuition · out-of-state
- $18.5k
- Room & board
- $15.1k
- Books & supplies
- $1,000
How students pay for it.
Pell grants41%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans74%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$22k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $8k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention70%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr51%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$45k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$52k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out27%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity
Setting, size, and who this school is.
- Setting
- City
- Control
- Public
- Undergrad size
- 8,969
- Location
- Cleveland, OH
- Region
- Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI)
- Carnegie class
- Doctoral Universities: High Research Activity (R2)
- Size & setting
- Four-year · large · primarily nonresidential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, inclusive, higher transfer-in
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White56%
- Black18%
- Hispanic9%
- International6%
- Two or more races5%
- Asian4%
- Unknown2%
First-gen students38%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time17%
Mixed full-time and part-time.
Veterans1%
Share using veteran education benefits.
Median family income$34k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 71
What you can study.