College · Private nonprofit · Fairfield, CT · Suburb
Fairfield University
Fairfield, CT
Religious affiliation
Admit rate33%
6-yr median pay$74k
Net price / yr$48k
Undergrad size5,373
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $48k/yr for a shot at a $74k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 33% means this is selective — grades, essays, and testing matter. Admitted students average SAT 1335 · ACT 29.
If you get in
5,373 undergrads. Small. You will know your cohort.
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 $76k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $48k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$304k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$192k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$112k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback2.6x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $58.4k
- Room & board
- $19.8k
- Books & supplies
- $1,175
How students pay for it.
Pell grants7%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans43%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$26k
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 retention91%
Very high — students stay.
Graduation · 6 yr84%
Majority finish.
6-yr median pay$74k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$89k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out12%
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
- 5,373
- Location
- Fairfield, CT
- Region
- New England (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT)
- Carnegie class
- Doctoral/Professional Universities
- Size & setting
- Four-year · medium · 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.
- White79%
- Hispanic9%
- Unknown5%
- Two or more races2%
- International2%
- Asian2%
- Black1%
First-gen students17%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time1%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$117k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 48
What you can study.