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College profile

Saint Cloud State University

MN · Public · Small city · 5,026 applicants 2023

95% admit rate SAT 970–1280 $14K–$21K/yr in-state — aid decides

A parent's read

  • The payoff holds even at full price: roughly 7× over a decade. With no aid at all — the full in-state ~$21,116/yr — a decade of median earnings (~$55,813/yr) still runs about 7× the four-year cost. This payoff doesn't depend on qualifying for anything. (Out-of-state costs more.)
  • Worth asking: do students finish? Only 40% graduate within six years here — the standard federal measure. Ask what drives that: course availability, transfers out, students working long hours. Not finishing is the costliest outcome there is.

Composed from this page's data — every claim is backed by a number in the sections below.

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Odds at Saint Cloud State University

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Live odds from each college's own published admissions data.

Parent/student verdict

Accessible

Accessible for most applicants. Affordable — net price averages ~$13,529/yr among aid recipients. Major value play for in-state residents.

Best for

  • In-state residents (tuition ~$10,245 — major value play)
  • Students drawn to Business, Management, & Marketing or Health Professions (the two biggest majors)

The reality

  • You'd be near the bottom of their admitted class if: SAT below 970, or ACT below 18 (test bands are the school's own; the GPA floor is our estimate, not a published figure)

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

What are your child's odds here?

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Weighted is the higher GPA, with honors/AP credit in it — pick whichever your school reports. PSAT scores work in the SAT box.

Institutional snapshot

What kind of college is this?

Carnegie classification
M1: Master's - Larger Programs
Undergraduates
5,088
10,000 - 19,999 including graduate students
TuitionThe published full price before any aid. Families who don't qualify for need-based aid at a given college pay this, minus any merit scholarships — whether you qualify depends on the college's price and policies, not on any fixed income line.
$10,245
flat rate (no in/out-of-state split) · 2023–24 federal figure
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.
94.9%
Accepts the majority
SAT middle 50%The middle half of the enrolled first-years who sent this test scored in this range — a quarter of them scored BELOW the low end and still got in, and a quarter scored above the high end. At a test-optional college the students who submitted are often a minority of the class, so the range describes them rather than everyone who enrolled. Above the top number is a genuine strength; below the bottom isn't automatic rejection.
970–1280
EBRW + Math composite
ACT middle 50%The middle half of the enrolled first-years who sent this test scored in this range — a quarter of them scored BELOW the low end and still got in, and a quarter scored above the high end. At a test-optional college the students who submitted are often a minority of the class, so the range describes them rather than everyone who enrolled. Above the top number is a genuine strength; below the bottom isn't automatic rejection.
18–25
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.
$55,813
median, after entry

2% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, 34% an ACT — these ranges describe students who submitted, not the whole class.

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
$47,215
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.
$55,813
Graduate within 6 yrsThe share of students who start here and finish a bachelor's within six years — the standard federal measure, and the one College Scorecard publishes. It is not a four-year rate. Read it as the odds of finishing at all: nationally about a third of students who start never do, and an unfinished degree is the most expensive outcome in this decision.
40%
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."
$21,058

The real cost

What Saint Cloud State University actually costs

If you qualify for need aidGrant money based on your family's finances (via FAFSA and the college's own forms), not your student's stats.
$13,529/yr
average among aid-receiving families, all incomes — your number depends on your finances
If you don't
$21,116/yr
the full published price for in-state students — out-of-state runs higher

Which side your family lands on isn't set by any national income line — it's set by Saint Cloud State University's own aid decision: the gap between its price and your family's finances.

Get your family's number — Saint Cloud State University's Net Price Calculator ↗ 10–15 minutes; have a tax return handy. It's still an estimate — but it's this college's own, built from your family's numbers, not anyone's average.
Start your Family Decision Report →

Your odds + estimated cost across your whole college list, side by side.

The payoffTen years of typical graduate pay minus four years of cost — how many dollars ahead a typical graduate runs by year ten. Check both the full-price and with-aid versions to see which applies to you; median pay reflects who a college admits and what they study as much as the college itself., both ways

+$474K ahead at full price +$504K with aid
Full price, no aidThe all-in yearly price — tuition, housing, food, books, fees — before any aid. This is the real "full price," not just the tuition line. (4 yrs, in-state)
$84,464
~$21,116/yr all-in (out-of-state runs higher)
Aid recipients pay (4 yrs)
$54,116
$13,529/yr average
10-yr earnings total
$558,130
$55,813/yr median, 10 yrs out
Years to recoup the cost
1.5 yrs
at full price (1.0 with aid), at the median earnings rate

Source: College Scorecard (average net price among Title IV first-time, full-time undergraduates who received aid) and each college's published cost of attendance. We don't show the federal net-price-by-income brackets: their categories were fixed in 2008 and never adjusted, and none of the averages is your family's own number — the full story. Payoff = (10-yr median earnings × 10) − (4 years of cost), in dollars — how far ahead a typical graduate runs by year ten; medians travel with the students a college admits and the majors they choose as much as with the college itself. Full price is the published cost of attendance, largely in-state for publics; earnings are 10 years after enrollment, all majors combined.

What students study here

Most popular majors at Saint Cloud State University

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

1. Business, Management, & Marketing
250 degrees · 33.2%
Broad set of corporate roles. Finance + consulting pay top, accounting + HR pay middle, sales spread is wide.
2. Health Professions
159 degrees · 21.1%
Highest-paying group on this list, but most careers require additional training beyond a 4-year degree.
3. Computer & Information Sciences
123 degrees · 16.3%
High-paying tech roles dominate. Median software roles cluster in the $90k-$130k range.
4. Education
112 degrees · 14.9%
Teaching is the largest path. Salary depends heavily on district + state.
5. Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
109 degrees · 14.5%
Often paired with another field (data + biology, design + tech). Outcomes match the second discipline.

What those majors earn here

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

Major (CIP) Credential Cohort 1-yr earnings 4-yr earnings
Computer Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 30 $77,792 $107,133
Computer Science. Bachelor's Degree 39 $63,287 $103,765
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 16 $69,943 $90,009
Mechanical Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 34 $70,179 $87,503
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Bachelor's Degree 88 $74,111 $84,470
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Bachelor's Degree 101 $56,987 $80,331
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. Bachelor's Degree 41 $74,147 $78,067
Accounting and Related Services. Bachelor's Degree 46 $58,497 $76,080
Marketing. Bachelor's Degree 51 $47,453 $74,847
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians. Bachelor's Degree 26 $69,616 $73,695

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 →

AI program signal

AI + computing education at Saint Cloud State University

CS degrees (annual)
65
CIP 11.0701 + 11.0101

Full multi-lens comparison: /ai-colleges →

Alternatives to Saint Cloud 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.
University of Alabama in Huntsville
AL · Public
39 stats-based merit scholarships
Texas Tech University
TX · Public
30 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
The University of Alabama
AL · Public
21 stats-based + 2 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.
United States Merchant Marine Academy
NY · Public
$9,168/yr full price (in-state) · $11,948 less before aid for NY residents
Indiana University-Kokomo
IN · Public
$11,837/yr full price (in-state) · $9,279 less before aid for IN residents
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
GA · Public
$13,956/yr full price (in-state) · $7,160 less before aid for GA residents

Or compare any college side-by-side

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At a glance

JSON · Using this page with an AI assistant

Saint Cloud State University is a public four-year college in MN. It admitted 95% of applicants (5,026 applied, 2023). Test policy: Test-optional.

Middle 50% of enrolled first-years who submitted that test: SAT 970–1280, ACT 18–25. 2% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, 34% an ACT — these ranges describe students who submitted, not the whole class.

Cost: about $13,529 a year on average with aid, $21,116 a year at full price for in-state students.

Median earnings ten years after entry: $55,813 a year. Payoff, meaning ten years of that pay minus four years of cost: $504,014 ahead with aid, $473,666 ahead at full price.

Highest median earnings four years after the degree, by program: Computer Engineering ($107,133); Computer Science ($103,765); Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering ($90,009).

Machine-readable version of this page: https://highschoolreach.com/colleges/saint-cloud-state-university.json

By major: AccountingArt (Studio)BiologyBusiness AdministrationCommunicationComputer EngineeringComputer ScienceCriminal Justice and CriminologyDesign (graphic, interior, industrial)Electrical EngineeringEnglishEnvironmental ScienceFilm and TelevisionFinanceInformation SystemsLiberal Studies (teacher preparation)MarketingMechanical EngineeringNursing (BSN)Political SciencePsychologyPublic HealthSocial WorkSociology
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What families ask next

Can my kid get in? Score odds calculator → See how a higher SAT or ACT changes admit odds — college by college. What will it cost — and pay back? Earnings by major → What graduates actually earn, program by program. What do we do next? Free Family Decision Report Reach / Competitive / Match / Likely for every college on their list, plus the real cost. Start with a 10-second odds check — no email needed. Check odds →