BaccalaureatePrivate nonprofit

Oberlin College

Oberlin, Ohio·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Great Lakes·oberlin.edu
6-yr Graduation
81%
+4.5pp vs Baccalaureate
Total enrollment
2,909
peer median 1,994
Avg net price
$39,184
+$12k vs Baccalaureate
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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
10,536
10,536 candidates competed
Admitted
3,601
34.2% acceptance rate
Enrolled
701
19.5% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
81%+4.5pp vs Baccalaureate
4-year graduation
60%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
81%
Full-time retention
91%

Pell equity

7.0pp gap
Pell recipients
87%
Non-Pell
80%

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 44 Title IV programs, 11 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 33 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
44
Passing
11
25.0% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

44programs
  • Passing11 · 25.0%
  • No Data33 · 75.0%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
1
Safe
10
No data
33

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.

11
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+24.5%
$43,343 vs $34,808
Biology General
Bachelor Degree · Biological And Biomedical Sciences
+26.7%
$44,095 vs $34,808
Fine and Studio Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+27.3%
$44,299 vs $34,808
Natural Resources Conservation and Research
Bachelor Degree · Natural Resources And Conservation
+33.8%
$46,580 vs $34,808
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+38.2%
$48,109 vs $34,808
English Language and Literature General
Bachelor Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
+43.4%
$49,906 vs $34,808
Area Studies
Bachelor Degree · Area, Ethnic, Cultural, And Gender Studies
+58.4%
$55,151 vs $34,808
History
Bachelor Degree · History
+74.9%
$60,895 vs $34,808

Debt vs earnings

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

11
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
59%
$25,495 debt · $43,343 earn
Fine and Studio Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
53%
$23,250 debt · $44,299 earn
Biology General
Bachelor Degree · Biological And Biomedical Sciences
52%
$23,000 debt · $44,095 earn
English Language and Literature General
Bachelor Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
48%
$24,125 debt · $49,906 earn
Area Studies
Bachelor Degree · Area, Ethnic, Cultural, And Gender Studies
45%
$24,951 debt · $55,151 earn
Natural Resources Conservation and Research
Bachelor Degree · Natural Resources And Conservation
41%
$19,000 debt · $46,580 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
41%
$19,500 debt · $48,109 earn
History
Bachelor Degree · History
40%
$24,026 debt · $60,895 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

National Association of Schools of Music, Commission on Accreditation

Accredited since 1928
AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1913Next review Aug 2029

Programmatic accreditations · 2

Action history · 3

  1. Sep 2025Initial Accreditation
    Commission on English Language Program Accreditation · English Language
  2. Jan 2019Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  3. Aug 2014Change in Agency recognition
    National Association of Schools of Music, Commission on Accreditation · Music (MUS) - Institutions and units within institutions offering degree-granting and/or non-degree-granting programs

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$19,257
$30–48k$13,640
$48–75k$23,475
$75–110k$36,946
$110k+$48,245

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

Avg net price (private)
$39,184
+$11,610vs Baccalaureate median $27,575
Federal loans
32.9%
In-state tuition
$64,646
Out-of-state
$64,646

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 409 students received $2.3M in Pell grants, alongside $9.6M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
409
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$2.3M
$2,278,941 total
Direct Loans
$9.6M
1,471 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$2.5M
571 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$3.1M
760 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$32K
2 loan awards
Parent PLUS$4.0M
137 loan awards
Grad PLUS$21K
1 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 401 borrowers who entered repayment, 3 (0.7%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.7%
-1.6pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
401
Defaulted
3
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
2.0%
2017
1.7%
2018
2.0%
2019
0.7%
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 Oberlin College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs50
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

753 total completions
01Visual/Performing Arts
25033.2%
02Social Sciences
10013.3%
03Biological Sciences
8010.6%
04Psychology
577.6%
05Area/Ethnic Studies
567.4%
06English Language
547.2%
07History
445.8%
08Natural Resources
395.2%
09Physical Sciences
395.2%
10Computer Sciences
344.5%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
2,909
12-mo unduplicated
4,160
Undergraduate
4,150
Graduate
10

Gender split

Men
42%1,759
Women
58%2,401

Race / ethnicity composition

White
62.0%
Non-resident
9.5%
Two or more
9.3%
Hispanic
8.2%
Asian
5.3%
Black
4.4%
Unknown
1.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.0%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
388
232 M · 156 W
Women athletes
40.2%
Athletic aid
$0
Total student aid
Budget
$4.8M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$0
$0
Recruiting expense
$103K
$42K
Head-coach salaries
$65K
$59K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 13

Lacrosse
46 M · 25 W
$453K
Football
61 M ·
$504K
Soccer
28 M · 28 W
$373K
Swimming and Diving (combined)
19 M · 22 W
$348K
Cross Country
15 M · 18 W
$198K
Basketball
20 M · 12 W
$425K

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
3.01
9 offenses · 2,992 students

3-year trend

4.892 yrs ago0.341 yr ago3.01Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
23
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
16
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
2

Criminal offenses by type

Rape
7
Arson
1
Burglary
1

By location

9total
  • On campus9

Includes 7 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
3
Dating violence
3
Stalking
6 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs034
Liquor021

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Data quality: 1 report was later determined unfounded across the reporting period and are excluded from the totals above.

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)
295

Oberlin College vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Oberlin 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
SubjectOberlin College
81%2,909$39,184Baccalaureate
Denison University
79%17.4%2,394$38,111Baccalaureate
Kenyon College
82%31.0%2,249$29,383Baccalaureate
The College of Wooster
74%59.5%1,738$25,766Baccalaureate
Ohio Wesleyan University
59%55.6%1,525$21,619Baccalaureate
Wittenberg University
53%72.3%1,285$19,470Baccalaureate
Peer group median77%55.6%1,994$27,575

Frequently asked questions about Oberlin College

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

What is the graduation rate at Oberlin College?

Oberlin College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 81% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Oberlin College?

Oberlin College reports a total enrollment of 2,909 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Oberlin College?

The average net price at Oberlin College is $39,184 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Oberlin College?

Oberlin College's yield rate is 19.5%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Oberlin College located?

Oberlin College is located in Oberlin, Ohio 44074.

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