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Pittsburg State University

KS · Public · Distant town · 2,856 applicants 2023

88% admit rate $22,099/yr full price
Get your child's odds at Pittsburg State University Free Family Decision Report — Reach / Match / Likely + your real net price. Pittsburg State University starts already on the list. Start →

🎯 Parent/student verdict

Likely

Accessible for most applicants. Major value play for in-state residents.

✅ Best for

  • In-state residents (tuition ~$8,400 — major value play)
  • Students drawn to Business, Management, & Marketing or Engineering Technologies (the two biggest majors)

🎯 The reality

  • Bottom-quartile academic profile if: ACT below 18 (admitted-class quartiles; GPA floor is a calibrated heuristic where CDS not yet on file)

Verdict is composed from this college's structured data (admit rate, SAT bands, net price by income, Carnegie classification, scholarship grids) using transparent rule thresholds — not a chat-bot's opinion.

🏛️ Institutional snapshot

What kind of college is this?

Carnegie classification
M1: Master's - Larger Programs
Total enrollment
4,210
5,000 - 9,999
In-state tuitionThe published full price before any aid. Families who don't qualify for need-based aid — common above ~$110K income — pay this, minus any merit scholarships.
$8,400
sticker, before aid
Out-of-state tuition
$19,744
+$11,344 vs in-state

⚠️ Sticker price isn't every family's price. Lower- and middle-income families often pay materially less after grants; higher-income families frequently pay close to sticker unless the college offers merit scholarships. Check the school's own net-price calculator for your number.

Admit rateThe share of applicants a college accepts. Useful context, but your student's odds depend on their own grades and scores, not the average.
88.2%
Accepts the majority
ACT middle 50%The middle half of enrolled students scored in this range — a quarter scored BELOW the low end and still got in, and a quarter scored above the high end. Above the top number is a genuine strength; below the bottom isn't automatic rejection.
18–24
composite
Test policyApplicants choose whether to send SAT/ACT scores. At many such colleges, students who submit strong scores are still admitted at higher rates.
Test-optional
2023
10-yr earningsMedian yearly pay of former students ten years after they STARTED here — not ten years after graduating — all majors combined. The broadest single outcome number a college reports.
$50,579
median, after entry

Source: federal IPEDS Admissions 2023 for scores + admit rate; federal College Scorecard (20260606 vintage) for earnings + outcomes. SAT/ACT bands are the 25th–75th percentile of enrolled submitters.

📊 Outcomes & cost

What graduates actually earn, finish, and owe.

Federal College Scorecard data. Earnings are median annual income measured years after entering. Debt is for federal-aid borrowers only (cash-pay students aren't counted).

Earnings, 6 yrs after entry
$43,793
Earnings, 10 yrs after entryMedian yearly pay of former students ten years after they STARTED here — not ten years after graduating — all majors combined. The broadest single outcome number a college reports.
$50,579
4-year completionThe share of students who finish a bachelor's in four years. Nationally barely half do — and a fifth year quietly adds a full extra year of cost to the real price.
57%
Median debt (completers)The federal-loan balance of the typical graduating borrower. Families who pay cash aren't counted, so read it as "among those who borrowed."
$18,969

📚 What students study here

Most popular majors at Pittsburg State University

Top 5 fields of study by bachelor's degrees awarded (most recent IPEDS Completions). Use this to see what Pittsburg State University actually graduates — not just what it markets.

1. Business, Management, & Marketing
224 degrees · 32.5%
Broad set of corporate roles. Finance + consulting pay top, accounting + HR pay middle, sales spread is wide.
2. Engineering Technologies
158 degrees · 22.9%
Technician-track engineering roles. Strong wages, faster ramp than full engineer path.
3. Health Professions
123 degrees · 17.8%
Highest-paying group on this list, but most careers require additional training beyond a 4-year degree.
4. Education
114 degrees · 16.5%
Teaching is the largest path. Salary depends heavily on district + state.
5. Psychology
71 degrees · 10.3%
Most undergrad psych grads go into non-clinical roles. Clinical/counseling psych requires a master's or doctoral.

💼 What those majors earn here

Median earnings 4 years after entry, by major — Pittsburg State University's own graduates, not national averages.

Major (CIP) Credential Cohort 1-yr earnings 4-yr earnings
Engineering/Engineering-Related Technologies/Technicians, Other. Bachelor's Degree 14 $66,582 $111,920
Construction Management. Bachelor's Degree 78 $69,733 $90,321
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians. Bachelor's Degree 37 $64,703 $81,562
Finance and Financial Management Services. Bachelor's Degree 24 $50,450 $76,033
Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians. Bachelor's Degree 44 $57,234 $74,878
Computer Systems Analysis. Bachelor's Degree 22 $54,783 $71,199
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Bachelor's Degree 128 $66,243 $70,657
Accounting and Related Services. Bachelor's Degree 27 $43,624 $66,851
Business/Commerce, General. Bachelor's Degree 42 $46,738 $64,565
Marketing. Bachelor's Degree 47 $44,401 $60,219

Sources: IPEDS Completions (C2023_a; bachelor's-level first majors, 2-digit CIP family — share is of the top 5 only) · College Scorecard program-level outcomes (PP-FOS). Full college-vs-major comparison: /college-outcomes →

📈 Student body & economic mobility

Who attends here — and what the campus adds.

Opportunity Insights data. Why it matters even if you're full-pay: a high mobility rate means the campus itself confers earnings power — the outcomes aren't just selection effects.

Top-1% access
0.4%
from top-1% households
Mobility rateThe share of ALL students who arrived from the bottom 20% of family incomes AND reached the top 20% themselves by their early 30s — access and lift in one number, and a sign the campus itself adds earnings power.
1.5%
bottom 20% → top 20% by age 32
Upward rate
23.0%
of lower-income students who reach the top 20%
Pell recipientsStudents receiving federal Pell grants, which go to lower- and middle-income families — the standard shorthand for a college's economic mix.
30%
on federal need grants — context for these numbers

Full leaderboards: /college-mobility →

Alternatives to Pittsburg State University

Matched not just by selectivity, but by strategic goal — what a family actually decides on.

🏆 Better merit-aid options
These similar-selectivity schools publish merit scholarships your family can plan around — your kid’s stats could unlock real scholarship dollars.
Mississippi State University
MS · Public
18 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
University of Alabama at Birmingham
AL · Public
17 stats-based + 2 competitive scholarships
University of Mississippi
MS · Public
14 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
💰 Lower full price
Similar selectivity, but a meaningfully lower full sticker price — the comparison that matters most for families who won't qualify for much need-based aid.
Indiana University-Kokomo
IN · Public
$11,837/yr full price (in-state) · $10,262 less before aid
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
GA · Public
$13,956/yr full price (in-state) · $8,143 less before aid
Indiana University-Northwest
IN · Public
$13,989/yr full price (in-state) · $8,110 less before aid
🚀 Stronger campus value-add
Per Opportunity Insights, these campuses add more earnings power to the students they enroll than Pittsburg State University does — a quality signal, not a cost play.
California State University-Los Angeles
CA · Public
9.9% mobility rate (vs 1.5% here)
Pace University
NY · Private nonprofit
8.4% mobility rate (vs 1.5% here)
CUNY New York City College of Technology
NY · Public
8.3% mobility rate (vs 1.5% here)

⚖️ Or compare any college side-by-side

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