College · Private nonprofit · Des Moines, IA · City
Drake University
Des Moines, IA
Admit rate64%
6-yr median pay$58k
Net price / yr$29k
Undergrad size2,543
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $29k/yr for a shot at a $58k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 64% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid. Admitted students average SAT 1292 · ACT 28.
If you get in
2,543 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 $65k/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$259k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$117k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$143k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback2.0x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $52.1k
- Room & board
- $12.5k
- Books & supplies
- $510
How students pay for it.
Pell grants22%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans44%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$23k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $12k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
Graduation · 6 yr74%
Majority finish.
6-yr median pay$58k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$72k
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
- City
- Control
- Private nonprofit
- Undergrad size
- 2,543
- Location
- Des Moines, IA
- Region
- Plains (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD)
- Carnegie class
- Doctoral/Professional Universities
- Size & setting
- Four-year · medium · highly residential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, selective, lower transfer-in
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
- Also known as
- Drake
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White68%
- Hispanic9%
- Black8%
- Two or more races5%
- Asian5%
- International4%
First-gen students15%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time2%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$90k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 52
What you can study.