Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger ProgramsPublicHBCU

Bowie State University

Bowie, Maryland·Public, 4-year or above·Mid East·bowiestate.edu
6-yr Graduation
38%
-6.0pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Total enrollment
6,353
peer median 5,891
Avg net price
$19,335
+$2.7k vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
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Admissions & acceptance rate

First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.

Applied
4,669
4,669 candidates competed
Admitted
3,381
72.4% acceptance rate
Enrolled
922
27.3% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
38%-6.0pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
4-year graduation
16%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
38%
Full-time retention
68%

Pell equity

10.0pp gap
Pell recipients
34%
Non-Pell
44%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 10.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 68 Title IV programs, 21 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 1 fails. 46 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
68
Passing
21
30.9% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
1
1.5% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.5%
+0.9pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

68programs
  • Passing21 · 30.9%
  • No Data46 · 67.6%
  • Failing1 · 1.5%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
1
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
21
No data
46

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

22
Design and Applied Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-7.3%
$33,841 vs $36,491
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+28.0%
$79,149 vs $61,854
English Language and Literature General
Bachelor Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
+33.5%
$48,707 vs $36,491
Human Resources Management and Services
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+35.8%
$86,829 vs $63,916
Human Development Family Studies and Related Services
Bachelor Degree · Family And Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences
+45.7%
$53,181 vs $36,491
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+48.2%
$54,082 vs $36,491
Communication Journalism and Related Programs Other
Master's Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+50.4%
$83,948 vs $55,818
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Bachelor Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
+52.9%
$55,788 vs $36,491

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

21
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
91%
$71,750 debt · $79,149 earn
Design and Applied Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
80%
$27,000 debt · $33,841 earn
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
72%
$54,468 debt · $75,995 earn
English Language and Literature General
Bachelor Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
56%
$27,490 debt · $48,707 earn
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Bachelor Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
49%
$27,563 debt · $55,788 earn
Communication Journalism and Related Programs Other
Master's Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
49%
$41,000 debt · $83,948 earn
Human Resources Management and Services
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
47%
$41,000 debt · $86,829 earn
Human Development Family Studies and Related Services
Bachelor Degree · Family And Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences
46%
$24,675 debt · $53,181 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Accredited since 1961Next review Nov 2029

Programmatic accreditations · 4

Action history · 12

  1. Oct 2025Grant Substantive Change: Other
    Middle States Commission on Higher Education
  2. Apr 2023Accreditation Reaffirmed: Probation Removed
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (MNUR) - Master's program
  3. Apr 2023Accreditation Reaffirmed: Probation Removed
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (NUR) - Baccalaureate program
  4. Mar 2022Renewal of Accreditation
    Middle States Commission on Higher Education
  5. Sep 2021Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: Probation
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (NUR) - Baccalaureate program

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$16,935
$30–48k$16,967
$48–75k$19,731
$75–110k$23,194
$110k+$23,943

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$19,335
+$2,712vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs median $16,624
Federal loans
40.9%
In-state tuition
$8,999
Out-of-state
$19,889

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 2,785 students received $15.9M in Pell grants, alongside $29.6M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
2,785
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$15.9M
$15,921,405 total
Direct Loans
$29.6M
5,230 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

2k
20
3k
21
3k
22
2k
23
3k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$8.7M
2,234 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$7.5M
2,106 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$5.6M
404 loan awards
Parent PLUS$7.5M
455 loan awards
Grad PLUS$311K
31 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 1,742 borrowers who entered repayment, 101 (5.7%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
5.7%
+3.4pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
1,742
Defaulted
101
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
14.1%
2017
14.7%
2018
11.1%
2019
5.7%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Bowie State

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs48
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

846 total completions
01Business
16119.0%
02Computer Sciences
14617.3%
03Psychology
11213.2%
04Security/Protective
8910.5%
05Comm. Technologies
799.3%
06Education
789.2%
07Biological Sciences
526.1%
08Visual/Performing Arts
516.0%
09Health Professions
414.8%
10Public Admin
374.4%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
6,353
12-mo unduplicated
7,274
Undergraduate
5,886
Graduate
1,388

Gender split

Men
37%2,721
Women
63%4,553

Race / ethnicity composition

Black
82.4%
Hispanic
5.7%
Two or more
3.8%
White
2.5%
Unknown
2.4%
Non-resident
1.5%
Asian
1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.2%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

Athletes
289
185 M · 104 W
Women athletes
36.0%
Athletic aid
$1.2M
Total student aid
Budget
$5.4M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$707K
$479K
Recruiting expense
$45
$280
Head-coach salaries
$89K
$40K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 9

Football
138 M ·
$1.4M
Track and Field (Indoor)
40 M · 27 W
$192K
Track and Field (Outdoor)
39 M · 28 W
$129K
Basketball
17 M · 16 W
$958K
Softball
· 26 W
$269K
Volleyball
· 19 W
$179K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
3.98
25 offenses · 6,275 students

3-year trend

3.522 yrs ago7.131 yr ago3.98Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
92
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
31
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Aggravated assault
10
Burglary
4
Robbery
3
Fondling
3
Motor vehicle theft
3
Rape
2

By location

25total
  • On campus25

Includes 2 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
7
Dating violence
2
Stalking
9 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons12
Drugs2161
Liquor16

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
15.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
248

Bowie State vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Bowie State selected for federal comparison reporting.

GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectBowie State University
38%6,353$19,335Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Salisbury University
68%87.5%7,025$16,456Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Frostburg State University
50%89.2%4,104$15,323Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
University of Baltimore
38%78.7%3,187$17,546Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Towson University
69%82.0%19,401$16,791Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
New Jersey City University
34%98.4%5,429$11,732Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
Peer group median44%87.5%5,891$16,624

Frequently asked questions about Bowie State University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Bowie State.

What is the graduation rate at Bowie State University?

Bowie State University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 38% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Bowie State University?

Bowie State University reports a total enrollment of 6,353 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Bowie State University?

The average net price at Bowie State University is $19,335 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Bowie State University?

Bowie State University's yield rate is 27.3%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Bowie State University located?

Bowie State University is located in Bowie, Maryland 20715-9465.

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