A parent's read

  • The payoff holds even at full price: roughly 5× over a decade. With no aid at all — the full in-state ~$25,791/yr — a decade of median earnings (~$49,634/yr) still runs about 5× the four-year cost. This payoff doesn't depend on qualifying for anything. (Out-of-state costs more.)
  • Ask the submit question deliberately. This college is test-optional — but at many such colleges, applicants who submit strong scores are admitted at meaningfully higher rates. “Optional” is a strategy decision, not a pass.

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

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Odds at Stephen F Austin State University

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Parent/student verdict

Accessible

Accessible for most applicants. Affordable — net price averages ~$14,260/yr among aid recipients. Major value play for in-state residents.

Best for

  • In-state residents (tuition ~$11,128 — major value play)
  • Students drawn to Business, Management, & Marketing or Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies (the two biggest majors)

The reality

  • You'd be near the bottom of their admitted class if: SAT below 980, 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?

Enter their numbers once — this and every college page shows their verdict, and the UC campus cards on California school pages light up with it too. Free, no email.

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
8,728
10,000 - 19,999 including graduate students
In-state 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.
$11,128
sticker, before aid
Out-of-state tuition
$23,426
+$12,298 vs in-state
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.
88.3%
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.
980–1160
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.
$49,634
median, after entry

50% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, 14% 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
$43,144
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.
$49,634
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.
53%
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."
$23,409

The real cost

What Stephen F Austin 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.
$14,260/yr
average among aid-receiving families, all incomes — your number depends on your finances
If you don't
$25,791/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 Stephen F Austin State University's own aid decision: the gap between its price and your family's finances.

Get your family's number — Stephen F Austin 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

+$393K ahead at full price +$439K 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)
$103,164
~$25,791/yr all-in (out-of-state runs higher)
Aid recipients pay (4 yrs)
$57,040
$14,260/yr average
10-yr earnings total
$496,340
$49,634/yr median, 10 yrs out
Years to recoup the cost
2.1 yrs
at full price (1.1 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 Stephen F Austin State University

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

1. Business, Management, & Marketing
412 degrees · 31.5%
Broad set of corporate roles. Finance + consulting pay top, accounting + HR pay middle, sales spread is wide.
2. Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
286 degrees · 21.8%
Often paired with another field (data + biology, design + tech). Outcomes match the second discipline.
3. Health Professions
276 degrees · 21.1%
Highest-paying group on this list, but most careers require additional training beyond a 4-year degree.
4. Visual & Performing Arts
193 degrees · 14.7%
Highly variable. Steady-pay roles cluster in design, illustration, production. Performance careers have very wide income distributions.
5. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness
143 degrees · 10.9%
Coaching, athletic training, public-sector recreation, fitness industry.

What those majors earn here

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

Major (CIP) Credential Cohort 1-yr earnings 4-yr earnings
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Bachelor's Degree 136 $74,683 $84,107
Engineering Physics. Bachelor's Degree 15 $52,715 $80,086
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Bachelor's Degree 54 $49,445 $75,271
Accounting and Related Services. Bachelor's Degree 64 $49,406 $69,635
Finance and Financial Management Services. Bachelor's Degree 53 $52,710 $65,535
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Bachelor's Degree 49 $41,585 $62,185
Business/Commerce, General. Bachelor's Degree 133 $40,868 $61,686
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. Bachelor's Degree 74 $34,509 $61,476
Mathematics. Bachelor's Degree 18 $52,774 $59,075
Interior Architecture. Bachelor's Degree $38,538 $59,047

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. It measures two things at once: how many lower-income students a college enrols, and how many of them reach the top earnings quintile later. A high rate says the college does both — it does not establish that the campus caused the earnings, because the students it admits differ from the students it doesn't. Read it as a signal about access and destination, not as proof of value added.

Top-1% access
0.9%
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.
2.0%
bottom 20% → top 20% by age 32
Upward rate
21.6%
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.
39%
on federal need grants — context for these numbers

Full leaderboards: /college-mobility →

AI program signal

AI + computing education at Stephen F Austin State University

CS degrees (annual)
34
CIP 11.0701 + 11.0101

Full multi-lens comparison: /ai-colleges →

Alternatives to Stephen F Austin 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.
Texas Tech University
TX · Public
30 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
Mississippi State University
MS · Public
18 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
University of Alabama at Birmingham
AL · Public
17 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) · $16,623 less before aid for NY residents
Indiana University-Kokomo
IN · Public
$11,837/yr full price (in-state) · $13,954 less before aid for IN residents
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
GA · Public
$13,956/yr full price (in-state) · $11,835 less before aid for GA residents
Safer in-state options
Same state and similar selectivity, but with a more forgiving admit rate — useful safety / match anchors.
The University of Texas at El Paso
TX · Public
100% admit rate (vs 88% here)
More students move up here
Per Opportunity Insights, a larger share of these campuses' lower-income students reach the top earnings quintile than at Stephen F Austin State University. That reflects who they admit as well as what they do, so read it as a destination signal rather than proof of value added.
CUNY Lehman College
NY · Public
10.2% mobility rate (vs 2.0% here)
CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice
NY · Public
9.7% mobility rate (vs 2.0% here)
MCPHS University
MA · Private nonprofit
9.3% mobility rate (vs 2.0% here)

Or compare any college side-by-side

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Feeder high schools

Which high schools send graduates to Stephen F Austin State University?

3 high schools publish a numbered matriculation list — where their graduates actually enrolled, counted, in the school's own School Profile — and name Stephen F Austin State University on it. Between them they printed 3 enrolled graduates. Ranked by graduates per class year enrolling at Stephen F Austin State University, from each school's own published list: the number that school printed, divided by the class years its list covers. The published total and the school's own years label are shown beside every school, so a one-year list and a five-year list can sit on the same page. A list whose class years we cannot read is not divided by a guess — it is listed below with its total instead.

High school · years its list covers Enrolled per class year
St. Mark's School of Texas · Classes of 2023-2025 0.3 · 1 over 3 class years
The Hockaday School · 2024 – 2026 0.3 · 1 over 3 class years
Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart (Houston) · 2021 - 2024 0.2 · 1 over 4 class years

All 3 feeder schools, ranked →

Counted from each school's own published document, linked on that school's page. A high school that is not here does not publish a numbered list we could read — that is all absence means, and it says nothing about its graduates. Where a school publishes both, the two lists are shown separately: an acceptances list is not a list of enrollments, and the two are never added together.

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At a glance

JSON · Using this page with an AI assistant

Stephen F Austin State University is a public four-year college in TX. It admitted 88% of applicants (12,591 applied, 2023). Test policy: Test-optional.

Middle 50% of enrolled first-years who submitted that test: SAT 980–1160, ACT 18–25. 50% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, 14% an ACT — these ranges describe students who submitted, not the whole class.

Cost: about $14,260 a year on average with aid, $25,791 a year at full price for in-state students.

Median earnings ten years after entry: $49,634 a year. Payoff, meaning ten years of that pay minus four years of cost: $439,300 ahead with aid, $393,176 ahead at full price.

Highest median earnings four years after the degree, by program: Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing ($84,107); Engineering Physics ($80,086); Computer and Information Sciences, General ($75,271).

Economic mobility (Opportunity Insights): 9% of students came from families in the bottom fifth of income, and 22% of those reached the top fifth as adults.

High schools that publish a numbered matriculation list and name Stephen F Austin State University: 3, 3 enrolled students between them — ranked by graduates per class year, most often St. Mark's School of Texas (0.3 per class year, 1 over 3 class years, Classes of 2023-2025); The Hockaday School (0.3 per class year, 1 over 3 class years, 2024 – 2026); Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart (Houston) (0.2 per class year, 1 over 4 class years, 2021 - 2024). Each figure is the number that school printed divided by the class years its own list covers; the totals and years are shown. These are the schools that publish such a list, not every school that sends students; full list: https://highschoolreach.com/leaderboards/feeder-schools/stephen-f-austin-state-university.

Machine-readable version of this page: https://highschoolreach.com/colleges/stephen-f-austin-state-university.json

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