Doctoral/ProfessionalPrivate nonprofit

Drake University

Des Moines, Iowa·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Plains·drake.edu
6-yr Graduation
74%
+7.5pp vs Doctoral/Professional
Total enrollment
4,345
peer median 3,732
Avg net price
$30,042
+$7.9k vs Doctoral/Professional
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
9,873
9,873 candidates competed
Admitted
6,304
63.9% acceptance rate
Enrolled
618
9.8% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
74%+7.5pp vs Doctoral/Professional
4-year graduation
66%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
73%
Full-time retention
84%

Pell equity

13.0pp gap
Pell recipients
61%
Non-Pell
74%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 13.0-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 80 Title IV programs, 32 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 48 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
80
Passing
32
40.0% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

80programs
  • Passing32 · 40.0%
  • No Data48 · 60.0%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
1
Watch
3
Safe
28
No data
48

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.

32
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
First Professional Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+7.1%
$57,322 vs $53,519
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+17.0%
$42,233 vs $36,082
History
Bachelor Degree · History
+17.1%
$42,256 vs $36,082
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Master's Degree · Education
+22.7%
$56,615 vs $46,158
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
+29.2%
$59,658 vs $46,158
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+32.2%
$47,706 vs $36,082
Curriculum and Instruction
Master's Degree · Education
+35.9%
$62,724 vs $46,158
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
+36.6%
$49,289 vs $36,082

Debt vs earnings

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

21
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
First Professional Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
314%
$179,963 debt · $57,322 earn
Law
First Professional Degree · Legal Professions And Studies
129%
$112,946 debt · $87,375 earn
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
59%
$35,029 debt · $59,658 earn
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Master's Degree · Education
56%
$31,625 debt · $56,615 earn
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
53%
$26,256 debt · $49,289 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
51%
$24,142 debt · $47,706 earn
English Language and Literature General
Bachelor Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
47%
$27,000 debt · $57,563 earn
Journalism
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
40%
$25,000 debt · $62,969 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1913Next review Aug 2028

Programmatic accreditations · 6

Action history · 8

  1. Jan 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education · Pharmacy (PHAR) - Professional degree programs
  2. Feb 2022Renewal of Accreditation
    American Bar Association, Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar · Law (LAW) - Professional schools
  3. Nov 2018Initial Accreditation
    American Occupational Therapy Association, Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education · Occupational Therapy (OTD) - Programs leading to a Doctoral Degree
  4. Oct 2018Renewal of Accreditation
    American Bar Association, Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar · Law (LAW) - Professional schools
  5. Feb 2018Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission

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$27,372
$30–48k$25,335
$48–75k$26,358
$75–110k$32,215
$110k+$32,993

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

Avg net price (private)
$30,042
+$7,872vs Doctoral/Professional median $22,170
Federal loans
47.1%
In-state tuition
$49,944
Out-of-state
$49,944

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 773 students received $4.3M in Pell grants, alongside $31.3M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
773
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$4.3M
$4,334,409 total
Direct Loans
$31.3M
3,136 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

1k
20
1k
21
1k
22
1k
23
1k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$3.6M
846 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$4.7M
1,143 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$9.2M
538 loan awards
Parent PLUS$6.1M
316 loan awards
Grad PLUS$7.7M
293 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 996 borrowers who entered repayment, 8 (0.8%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.8%
-1.5pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
996
Defaulted
8
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
2.4%
2017
2.2%
2018
1.9%
2019
0.8%
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 Drake

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs92
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,286 total completions
01Education
28622.2%
02Business
28021.8%
03Health Professions
20515.9%
04Legal Professions
15311.9%
05Communication
876.8%
06Multi/Interdisciplinary
614.7%
07Visual/Performing Arts
594.6%
08Social Sciences
574.4%
09Computer Sciences
564.4%
10Biological Sciences
423.3%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
4,345
12-mo unduplicated
4,999
Undergraduate
2,813
Graduate
2,186

Gender split

Men
37%1,850
Women
63%3,149

Race / ethnicity composition

White
70.5%
Hispanic
7.8%
Black
6.9%
Two or more
5.4%
Asian
4.9%
Non-resident
3.8%
Unknown
0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
399
215 M · 184 W
Women athletes
46.1%
Athletic aid
$5.4M
Total student aid
Budget
$21.8M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$2.0M
$3.4M
Recruiting expense
$102K
$86K
Head-coach salaries
$199K
$81K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 9

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)
85 M · 78 W
$1.8M
Football
112 M ·
$1.5M
Soccer
32 M · 35 W
$1.8M
Basketball
17 M · 28 W
$7.1M
Rowing
· 34 W
$489K
Softball
· 21 W
$1.0M

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
2.35
11 offenses · 4,685 students

3-year trend

2.932 yrs ago4.511 yr ago2.35Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
47
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
12
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Fondling
5
Rape
3
Robbery
1
Burglary
1
Motor vehicle theft
1

By location

11total
  • On campus11

Includes 6 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

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

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons01
Drugs02
Liquor166

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
11.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
289

Drake vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Drake 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
SubjectDrake University
74%4,345$30,042Doctoral/Professional
Saint Ambrose University
61%77.3%2,498$22,750Doctoral/Professional
University of Mary
67%75.3%3,861$18,568Doctoral/Professional
Bethel University
71%87.8%3,603$28,439Doctoral/Professional
Briar Cliff University
48%61.7%947$21,590Doctoral/Professional
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
66%92.8%4,505$21,034Doctoral/Professional
Peer group median67%77.3%3,732$22,170

Frequently asked questions about Drake University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Drake.

What is the graduation rate at Drake University?

Drake University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 74% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Drake University?

Drake University reports a total enrollment of 4,345 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Drake University?

The average net price at Drake University is $30,042 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Drake University?

Drake University's yield rate is 9.8%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Drake University located?

Drake University is located in Des Moines, Iowa 50311-4505.

Have a question this page can’t answer?

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

Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card