Colleges / Grinnell College
College · Private nonprofit · Grinnell, IA · Town
GC

Grinnell College

Grinnell, IA

Address1121 Park Street, Grinnell, IA 50112-1690
Websitewww.grinnell.edu
Price calculatorRun your numbers →
Admit rate15%
6-yr median pay$49k
Net price / yr$18k
Undergrad size1,729
§ I · The real read

What it's actually like.

The bet

Net price of $18k/yr for a shot at a $49k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.

Getting in

Admit rate of 15% means this is competitive but not impossible. Admitted students average SAT 1486 · ACT 32.

If you get in

1,729 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.

Where you live

Town setting — self-contained, social life mostly on campus.

§ II · Cost & aid

Sticker vs. real.

Sticker cost of attendance is $83k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $18k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.

Sticker · 4 yrs$334k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$71k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$263k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.4x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.

Where the money goes · annual sticker.

Tuition · in-state
$68.1k
Room & board
$16.8k
Books & supplies
$800

How students pay for it.

Pell grants18%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans13%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$18k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $6k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes

Do people finish? Do they land?

1-yr retention93%
Very high — students stay.
Graduation · 6 yr88%
Most finish on time.
6-yr median pay$49k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$63k
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
Private nonprofit
Undergrad size
1,729
Location
Grinnell, IA
Region
Plains (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD)
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
Higher Learning Commission
Also known as
Grinnell
§ · Who studies here

The student body at a glance.

  • White48%
  • International21%
  • Asian10%
  • Hispanic9%
  • Two or more races6%
  • Black5%
  • Unknown1%
First-gen students18%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time0%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$75k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 31

What you can study.

Colleges / Grinnell College
College · Private nonprofit · Grinnell, IA · Town
GC

Grinnell College

Grinnell, IA

Address1121 Park Street, Grinnell, IA 50112-1690
Websitewww.grinnell.edu
Price calculatorRun your numbers →
Admit rate15%
6-yr median pay$49k
Net price / yr$18k
Undergrad size1,729
§ I · The real read

What it's actually like.

The bet

Net price of $18k/yr for a shot at a $49k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.

Getting in

Admit rate of 15% means this is competitive but not impossible. Admitted students average SAT 1486 · ACT 32.

If you get in

1,729 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.

Where you live

Town setting — self-contained, social life mostly on campus.

§ II · Cost & aid

Sticker vs. real.

Sticker cost of attendance is $83k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $18k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.

Sticker · 4 yrs$334k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$71k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$263k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.4x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.

Where the money goes · annual sticker.

Tuition · in-state
$68.1k
Room & board
$16.8k
Books & supplies
$800

How students pay for it.

Pell grants18%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans13%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$18k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $6k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes

Do people finish? Do they land?

1-yr retention93%
Very high — students stay.
Graduation · 6 yr88%
Most finish on time.
6-yr median pay$49k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$63k
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
Private nonprofit
Undergrad size
1,729
Location
Grinnell, IA
Region
Plains (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD)
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
Higher Learning Commission
Also known as
Grinnell
§ · Who studies here

The student body at a glance.

  • White48%
  • International21%
  • Asian10%
  • Hispanic9%
  • Two or more races6%
  • Black5%
  • Unknown1%
First-gen students18%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time0%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$75k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 31

What you can study.