BaccalaureatePrivate nonprofit

Colby College

Waterville, Maine·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·New England·colby.edu
6-yr Graduation
89%
-2.0pp vs Baccalaureate
Total enrollment
2,412
peer median 2,201
Avg net price
$17,180
-$4.4k vs Baccalaureate
Use this data
Ask Clema

Admissions & acceptance rate

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

Applied
19,187
19,187 candidates competed
Admitted
1,360
7.1% acceptance rate
Enrolled
628
46.2% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
89%-2.0pp vs Baccalaureate
4-year graduation
75%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
89%
Full-time retention
94%

Pell equity

5.5pp gap
Pell recipients
84%70 of 83
Non-Pell (all)
90%445 of 497
Subsidized loan, no Pell
81%17 of 21
No Federal Aid
90%428 of 476

Non-Pell students graduate at a 5.5-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Source: IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) — Pell/SSL cohort, 2024 cohort.

Program outcomes

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

Of 39 Title IV programs, 4 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 35 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
39
Passing
4
10.3% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

39programs
  • Passing4 · 10.3%
  • No Data35 · 89.7%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
4
No data
35

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.

4
Natural Resources Conservation and Research
Bachelor Degree · Natural Resources And Conservation
+60.1%
$55,719 vs $34,808
Area Studies
Bachelor Degree · Area, Ethnic, Cultural, And Gender Studies
+84.5%
$64,207 vs $34,808
Political Science and Government
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
+177.6%
$96,621 vs $34,808
Economics
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
+197.3%
$103,491 vs $34,808

Debt vs earnings

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

3
Natural Resources Conservation and Research
Bachelor Degree · Natural Resources And Conservation
35%
$19,500 debt · $55,719 earn
Political Science and Government
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
22%
$21,000 debt · $96,621 earn
Economics
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
21%
$21,500 debt · $103,491 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

New England Commission of Higher Education

Accredited since 1929Next review Jun 2028

Action history · 2

  1. Apr 2018Renewal of Accreditation
    New England Commission of Higher Education
  2. Feb 2008Renewal of Accreditation
    New England Commission of Higher Education

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$4,049
$30–48k$1,251
$48–75k$3,666
$75–110k$12,106
$110k+$46,511

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

Avg net price (private)
$17,180
-$4,426vs Baccalaureate median $21,606
Federal loans
8.5%
In-state tuition
$69,600
Out-of-state
$69,600

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 422 students received $2.7M in Pell grants, alongside $4.1M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
422
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$2.7M
$2,718,923 total
Direct Loans
$4.1M
351 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

0k
20
0k
21
0k
22
0k
23
0k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$248K
81 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$1.2M
202 loan awards
Parent PLUS$2.7M
68 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 157 borrowers who entered repayment, 0 (0.0%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.0%
-2.3pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
157
Defaulted
0
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
0.0%
2017
3.7%
2018
2.0%
2019
0.0%
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 Colby College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs50
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

713 total completions
01Social Sciences
21830.6%
02Biological Sciences
8511.9%
03Psychology
679.4%
04Multi/Interdisciplinary
628.7%
05Computer Sciences
598.3%
06Natural Resources
567.9%
07Physical Sciences
507.0%
08Mathematics
415.8%
09English Language
405.6%
10Visual/Performing Arts
354.9%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
2,412
12-mo unduplicated
2,553
Undergraduate
2,553
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
49%1,243
Women
51%1,310

Race / ethnicity composition

White
54.9%
Non-resident
11.2%
Asian
10.2%
Hispanic
8.4%
Two or more
7.1%
Black
4.8%
Unknown
3.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
693
392 M · 301 W
Women athletes
43.4%
Athletic aid
$0
Total student aid
Budget
$12.0M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$0
$0
Recruiting expense
$99K
$69K
Head-coach salaries
$82K
$76K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 18

Lacrosse
60 M · 45 W
$1.1M
Football
88 M ·
$1.1M
Track and Field (Indoor)
45 M · 36 W
$215K
Track and Field (Outdoor)
44 M · 36 W
$278K
Rowing
40 M · 29 W
$453K
Soccer
37 M · 30 W
$675K

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
4.38
10 offenses · 2,284 students

3-year trend

4.862 yrs ago5.221 yr ago4.38Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
33
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
19
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
7

Criminal offenses by type

Rape
6
Fondling
4

By location

10total
  • On campus10

Includes 10 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
10
Dating violence
2
Stalking
12 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs05
Liquor078

Residence-hall fires

  • Leonard Hall1 fire
    Smoking materialsDamage $25,000-$49,999

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
9.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
245

Colby College vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Colby College 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
SubjectColby College
89%2,412$17,180Baccalaureate
95%7.1%1,881$14,398Baccalaureate
90%13.3%1,760$29,351Baccalaureate
92%14.0%2,407$25,496Baccalaureate
84%29.2%2,238$34,832Baccalaureate
94%8.3%2,164$17,716Baccalaureate
Peer group median91%13.3%2,201$21,606

Institutions like Colby College

Explore the federal data for institutions in Colby College's comparison group.

Colby College Institutional Research office

The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.

Office
Office of Institutional Research and Analytics
Phone
207-859-4792
Address
4770 Mayflower Hill Waterville, Maine 04901

The Office of Institutional Research and Analytics is Colby’s hub for organizational intelligence, serving as the authoritative source of aggregated information about the College and promoting and enabling evidence-based decision-making at all levels of the institution.

Visit IR office page
Team
2 members
  • Christopher Hourigan
    Director of Institutional Research and Analytics
  • Michelle Steinley-Bumgarner
    Associate Director of Institutional Research and Analytics

Frequently asked questions about Colby College

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Colby College.

What is the graduation rate at Colby College?

Colby College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 89% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Colby College?

Colby College reports a total enrollment of 2,412 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Colby College?

The average net price at Colby College is $17,180 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Colby College?

Colby College's yield rate is 46.2%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Colby College located?

Colby College is located in Waterville, Maine 04901-8840.

Who runs Institutional Research at Colby College?

Colby College's IR work is done by the Office of Institutional Research and Analytics.

About the data on this page

Every figure comes from an official federal or public source. Here is each one and the release it is currently on.

IPEDS2025 provisional data (Fall 2025–26 release, July 28, 2026)
Enrollment, completions, graduation rates, tuition, financial aid, staffing, and finance for every U.S. institution in federal student aid programs.
College ScorecardJune 10, 2026 release (merged 2025–26 files)
Institution and field-of-study costs, graduate earnings, debt, completion, and admissions outcomes compiled from federal aid records, tax data, and IPEDS.
FVT/GE program performanceProvisional preview, May 18, 2026 release
Program-level debt-to-earnings and earnings-premium measures behind the FVT/GE and STATS accountability frameworks.
DAPIP accreditationContinuously refreshed
Accreditation status for institutions and programs, reported by recognized accrediting agencies.
Federal Pell Grant volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
Pell Grant recipient counts, award amounts, and disbursements by institution and award year.
Federal student loan volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
Federal Direct Loan recipient counts and disbursement volume by institution and award year.
Cohort Default RatesFY 2022 official rates
Institution-level federal student loan default rates, measuring borrowers who default within three years of entering repayment.
Equity in Athletics (EADA)Academic year 2024–25
Athletics participation, coaching, revenues, and expenses by sport and gender for Title IV institutions.
Campus Safety & SecurityData through reporting year 2024
Criminal offenses, arrests, disciplinary actions, VAWA offenses, and fire statistics reported by campus under the Clery Act.

Have a question this page can’t answer?

Ask Clema anything about Colby College and its peers — plain language in, cited answers out, in minutes instead of days.

Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card