Colgate University
About
Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York, United States. It was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York and operated under that name until 1823, when it was renamed Hamilton Theological and Literary Institution, often called Hamilton College (1823–1846), then Madison College (1846–1890), and its present name since 1890.
Admissions & acceptance rate
First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.
Graduation rate & outcomes
Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.
Pell equity
Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.
Program outcomes
Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.
Of 45 Title IV programs, 10 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 35 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing10 · 22.2%
- No Data35 · 77.8%
- Failing0 · 0.0%
Severity spectrum
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.
Debt vs earnings
Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.
Accreditation status & history
Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.
New England Commission of Higher Education
Middle States Commission on Higher Education
Programmatic accreditations · 2
Action history · 3
- Jun 2025Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary WithdrawalMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
- Jul 2023Voluntary Withdrawal ReceivedMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
- Jun 2018Renewal of AccreditationMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
Tuition & cost
What families actually pay, broken down by family income.
Net price by family income
Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.
Federal aid volume & trends
Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.
In AY 2024–25, 476 students received $2.9M in Pell grants, alongside $7.8M in federal Direct Loans.
Pell recipients · 5-year trend
Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25
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.
Student loan default rate
The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.
Of 275 borrowers who entered repayment, 2 (0.7%) defaulted within three years — below the 2.3% national rate.
Default rate vs national, by cohort
* 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.
Academic programs at Colgate
Top program areas ranked by completions.
Top program families by completions
Enrollment trends & demographics
Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.
Gender split
Race / ethnicity composition
Athletics & Title IX gender equity
How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.
Men vs women · spending splits
Sport-by-sport · 13
Campus safety & crime statistics
Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.
3-year trend
Criminal offenses by type
By location
- On campus14
Includes 9 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
No hate crimes reported.
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
- Drake Hall1 fireMachinery/IndustrialDamage $1,000-$9,999
- West Hall1 fireOtherDamage $0-$99
- Parker Apts2 firesCookingDamage $0-$99
- Parker Apts2 firesSmoking materialsDamage $0-$99
- Beta Theta Phi1 fireOpen flamesDamage $0-$99
- Philanthropy House1 fireCookingDamage $0-$99
- Townhouse Apartments1 fireCookingDamage $0-$99
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Colgate vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Colgate selected for federal comparison reporting.
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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectColgate University | 91% | — | 3,211 | $29,107 | Baccalaureate |
Amherst College | 94% | 9.0% | 1,914 | $18,246 | Baccalaureate |
Boston College | 91% | 16.4% | 15,432 | $39,866 | R1 Research |
Bowdoin College | 95% | 7.1% | 1,881 | $20,786 | Baccalaureate |
Brown University | 96% | 5.4% | 11,956 | $26,572 | R1 Research |
Bucknell University | 86% | 28.9% | 3,969 | $40,429 | Baccalaureate |
Colby College | 89% | 7.1% | 2,412 | $23,939 | Baccalaureate |
Cornell University | 95% | 8.8% | 26,793 | $32,337 | R1 Research |
Dartmouth College | 96% | 5.4% | 6,938 | $28,619 | R1 Research |
Davidson College | 91% | 13.4% | 1,869 | $18,127 | Baccalaureate |
Duke University | 97% | 5.7% | 17,499 | $34,454 | R1 Research |
Georgetown University | 95% | 12.9% | 20,031 | $39,433 | R1 Research |
Hamilton College | 91% | 13.6% | 2,031 | $28,314 | Baccalaureate |
Lafayette College | 88% | 31.4% | 2,775 | $32,496 | Baccalaureate |
Lehigh University | 88% | 25.9% | 7,692 | $33,549 | R2 Research |
Middlebury College | 91% | 10.7% | 2,803 | $25,934 | Baccalaureate |
Princeton University | 98% | 4.6% | 9,137 | $10,555 | R1 Research |
University of Notre Dame | 95% | 11.3% | 13,042 | $27,823 | R1 Research |
University of Richmond | 85% | 22.2% | 3,722 | $33,417 | Baccalaureate |
Wake Forest University | 89% | 21.7% | 9,322 | $28,746 | R2 Research |
Williams College | 94% | 8.3% | 2,164 | $14,852 | Baccalaureate |
| Peer group median | 91% | 11.0% | 3,969 | $28,619 |
Colgate Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
The Office of Institutional Analysis (OIA) oversees the University's research and assessment activities in support of decision-making by University leaders. Reporting to the Provost and Vice President for Administration, the office also manages data governance and the routine reporting needs of University's leadership team and external entities.
Visit IR office page- Neil AlbertAssociate Provost for Institutional Analysis; University Registrar
- Karen ChealAssociate Director of Institutional Analysis
- Gwynne LimInstitutional Research Analyst
Common Data Set (10)
The institution's official annual Common Data Set publications — the most detailed reference for enrollment, admissions, and outcomes.
Reports & documents (2)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
- DFR reportIPEDS Data Feedback Report 20242024nces.ed.gov
- Strategic planThe Third-Century Plan2026Colgate University, with its Third-Century Plan, aims to elevate its standing as a leading liberal arts institution by focusing on four key areas: enhancing student and faculty support, strengthening academics, enriching student life, and improving the campus environment. This ambitious long-term plan seeks to sustain excellence through strategic initiatives and a robust financial foundation. The success of the plan will require years of dedicated effort, resource mobilization, and continuous governance involvement.colgate.edu
Notable alumni of Colgate (29)
A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.
- Charles AddamsThe arts
- Ralph ArlyckThe arts
- Ivy AustinThe arts
- Ken BakerThe arts
- Joe BerlingerThe arts
- Lin BrehmerThe arts
- Jay ChandrasekharThe arts
- Brent MaddockThe arts
- Johnny MarksThe arts
- Monica CrowleyJournalism
- John AcropolisBusiness
- Chase CareyBusiness
Frequently asked questions about Colgate University
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Colgate.
What is the graduation rate at Colgate University?
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Who runs Institutional Research at Colgate University?
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