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Princeton University

Princeton, New Jersey · Private, a small city · 5,709 undergraduates

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Is it hard to get into Princeton?

The middle half of admitted students scored in these ranges: a quarter scored lower, a quarter higher. Fall 2024 admissions, from the College Scorecard.

Acceptance rate
4.6%
39,644 applied
SAT, middle half
1510 to 1580
Reading plus math, out of 1600
ACT, middle half
34 to 35
Composite, out of 36
Test scores this year
Optional: considered if sent
77% of admitted students enrolled
What they look at
  • High school GPAConsidered
  • Class rankConsidered
  • Courses takenRequired
  • College-prep programConsidered
  • RecommendationsRequired
  • EssayRequired
  • PortfolioConsidered

How much does Princeton cost?

Sticker prices and what students actually paid after grants, by family income. A year means tuition, fees, room, board, books and other costs.

Tuition and fees
$65,510
A full year, sticker price
$87,888
Living on campus
Average price after grants
$7,815
Students who got federal aid

What a year cost, by family income

Family incomeAverage paid after grants
Under $30,000Not published
$30,001 to $48,000$795
$48,001 to $75,000$1,346
$75,001 to $110,000$4,761
Over $110,000$38,927
Room and board on campus
$21,170 a year
Books and supplies
$1,050 a year
The school's own grants
60% of full-time first-years get one, averaging $57,898

Tuition over the years

Tuition and fees for a year, as reported to the federal government.

$0K$19K$38K$57K$76K201220142016201820202022Princeton

How much do Princeton students borrow?

Federal student loans only, for students who borrowed.

Typical debt at graduation
$12,400
About $141 a month over ten years
Students who borrow
4%
Get a Pell Grant
24%
Federal grant for lower-income families
Over 25 when they start
1.5%

What do Princeton graduates earn?

Typical yearly pay of everyone who started here with federal aid, whatever they studied and whether or not they finished.

Six years after starting
$97,927
Ten years after starting
$133,523
Middle half: $75,037 to $231,630
Best-paid program, five years out
$144,719
Economics
Lowest-paid program, five years out
$73,129
Research and Experimental Psychology

Do Princeton students finish?

Of the students who started full time, first time.

Back for second year
98.4%
Graduate in six years
97.4%
The four-year figure is for a later, smaller group, so it is not shown
After eight years
98% graduated
1% transferred, 0% still enrolled

Who goes to Princeton?

Women
50.4%
First in their family at college
27.7%
Part-time
0%
Students per teacher
5
Background
White 34%, Hispanic 10%, Black 9%, Asian 23%, Two or more 7%, International 13%
Housing
Campus housing, 5,526 beds

What do Princeton graduates earn, by program?

Every bachelor's program the school awards, with what its graduates earn and owe. The government hides pay for small programs, so some rows have no figure.

Computer science

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Computer Science414$155,162HiddenHidden

Engineering

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Chemical Engineering52HiddenHiddenHidden
Civil Engineering73HiddenHiddenHidden
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering83HiddenHiddenHidden
Engineering, General0HiddenHiddenHidden
Mechanical Engineering82HiddenHiddenHidden
Operations Research149$131,721HiddenHidden

Life sciences

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology103$49,217HiddenHidden
Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology71HiddenHiddenHidden
Neurobiology and Neurosciences74$51,188HiddenHidden

Math and physical sciences

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Astronomy and Astrophysics23HiddenHiddenHidden
Chemistry53$49,184HiddenHidden
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences11HiddenHiddenHidden
Mathematics67HiddenHiddenHidden
Physics54HiddenHiddenHidden

Social sciences

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Anthropology69HiddenHiddenHidden
Area Studies21HiddenHiddenHidden
Economics256$108,471$144,719Hidden
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies20HiddenHiddenHidden
Political Science and Government115$87,334$117,522Hidden
Public Policy Analysis244$75,701$106,001Hidden
Research and Experimental Psychology88Hidden$73,129Hidden
Sociology71$66,007$80,886Hidden

Arts and humanities

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics22HiddenHiddenHidden
English Language and Literature, General61HiddenHiddenHidden
Germanic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics9HiddenHiddenHidden
History128$48,516$87,660Hidden
Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services42HiddenHiddenHidden
Philosophy43HiddenHiddenHidden
Religion/Religious Studies20HiddenHiddenHidden
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics21HiddenHiddenHidden
Slavic, Baltic and Albanian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics6HiddenHiddenHidden

Fine and performing arts

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Fine and Studio Arts27HiddenHiddenHidden
Music13HiddenHiddenHidden

Architecture and design

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Architecture21HiddenHiddenHidden

General arts and science (major chosen later)

ProgramGraduatesPay, one year outPay, five years outDebt
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other2HiddenHiddenHidden

Compare Princeton with other universities

Side by side: acceptance rates, scores, costs and pay.

Where these numbers come from

College Scorecard release 10152026, Most Recent Cohorts files, fetched 2026-10-20. Test policy: the school's page (opens in a new tab). Tuition history, housing and the school's own grants: the federal IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) survey.

How every figure in this part of the site is sourced, and the check of every link.

Careerhelp is not affiliated with Princeton University. Figures describe past students; check the school's own pages before you apply.

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