College · Private nonprofit · Worcester, MA · City
College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, MA
Religious affiliation
Admit rate18%
6-yr median pay$70k
Net price / yr$39k
Undergrad size3,106
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $39k/yr for a shot at a $70k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 18% means this is competitive but not impossible. Admitted students average SAT 1353 · ACT 30.
If you get in
3,106 undergrads. Small. You will know your cohort.
Where you live
City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $80k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $39k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$321k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$155k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$166k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback2.2x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $64.5k
- Room & board
- $18.8k
- Books & supplies
- $1,000
How students pay for it.
Pell grants15%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans38%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$27k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $9k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention94%
Very high — students stay.
Graduation · 6 yr87%
Most finish on time.
6-yr median pay$70k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$91k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out6%
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
- 3,106
- Location
- Worcester, MA
- Region
- New England (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT)
- 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
- New England Commission on Higher Education
- Also known as
- Holy Cross
Identity
Religious affiliation
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White68%
- Hispanic13%
- Black5%
- Two or more races4%
- Unknown4%
- International3%
- Asian3%
First-gen students17%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time0%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$107k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 44
What you can study.