College · Public · Hays, KS · Town
Fort Hays State University
Hays, KS
Admit rate90%
6-yr median pay$44k
Net price / yr$13k
Undergrad size9,733
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $13k/yr for a shot at a $44k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 90% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid. Admitted students average SAT 1089.
If you get in
9,733 undergrads. Medium. Clubs matter for finding your people.
Where you live
Town setting — self-contained, social life mostly on campus.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $20k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $13k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$80k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$50k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$29k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.1x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $5.9k
- Tuition · out-of-state
- $17.7k
- Room & board
- $9.1k
- Books & supplies
- $1,000
How students pay for it.
Pell grants23%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans24%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$21k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $10k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention77%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr48%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$44k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$49k
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
- Town
- Control
- Public
- Undergrad size
- 9,733
- Location
- Hays, KS
- Region
- Plains (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD)
- Carnegie class
- Master's Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
- Size & setting
- Four-year · medium · primarily nonresidential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · higher part-time
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
- Also known as
- FHSU
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White50%
- Unknown36%
- Hispanic7%
- Black3%
- Asian2%
- Two or more races2%
First-gen students39%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time52%
Many students enroll part-time — often working.
Veterans1%
Share using veteran education benefits.
Median family income$42k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 50
What you can study.