Doctoral/ProfessionalPrivate nonprofit

Simmons University

Boston, Massachusetts·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·New England·simmons.edu
6-yr Graduation
72%
+8.0pp vs Doctoral/Professional
Total enrollment
4,666
peer median 4,170
Avg net price
$27,313
-$2.7k vs Doctoral/Professional
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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
4,773
4,773 candidates competed
Admitted
3,340
70.0% acceptance rate
Enrolled
361
10.8% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
72%+8.0pp vs Doctoral/Professional
4-year graduation
65%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
72%
Full-time retention
85%

Pell equity

3.0pp gap
Pell recipients
73%
Non-Pell
70%

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 84 Title IV programs, 17 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 67 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
84
Passing
17
20.2% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

84programs
  • Passing17 · 20.2%
  • No Data67 · 79.8%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
1
Watch
1
Safe
15
No data
67

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.

17
Literature
Master's Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
+8.1%
$53,492 vs $49,483
History
Master's Degree · History
+24.3%
$66,986 vs $53,884
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Doctoral Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+39.6%
$83,921 vs $60,112
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+47.9%
$51,474 vs $34,808
Special Education and Teaching
Master's Degree · Education
+49.0%
$69,110 vs $46,391
Social Work
Master's Degree · Public Administration And Social Service Professions
+50.1%
$69,292 vs $46,158
Political Science and Government
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
+58.2%
$55,069 vs $34,808
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
+64.3%
$79,951 vs $48,653

Debt vs earnings

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

15
Social Work
Master's Degree · Public Administration And Social Service Professions
117%
$80,978 debt · $69,292 earn
History
Master's Degree · History
92%
$61,500 debt · $66,986 earn
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Doctoral Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
73%
$61,500 debt · $83,921 earn
Library Science and Administration
Master's Degree · Library Science
70%
$41,000 debt · $58,512 earn
Special Education and Teaching
Master's Degree · Education
59%
$41,000 debt · $69,110 earn
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
58%
$71,750 debt · $123,629 earn
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
53%
$42,152 debt · $79,951 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
53%
$27,000 debt · $51,474 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 2031

Programmatic accreditations · 8

Action history · 13

  1. May 2025Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNDNP) - Nursing education programs at the doctorate degree levels
  2. Jan 2024Approved for Distance Education
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Didactic Program in Dietetics
  3. Jan 2024Approved for Distance Education
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Dietetics (DIETI) - Dietetic Internship
  4. Dec 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Council on Education for Public Health · Public Health Programs (PHPBG) - Baccalaureate and Graduate level programs offered outside a school of public health
  5. Jan 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics · Dietetics (DIETI) - Dietetic Internship

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$19,518
$30–48k$20,142
$48–75k$22,473
$75–110k$28,297
$110k+$33,812

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

Avg net price (private)
$27,313
-$2,718vs Doctoral/Professional median $30,031
Federal loans
63.8%
In-state tuition
$45,538
Out-of-state
$45,538

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 696 students received $4.0M in Pell grants, alongside $56.2M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
696
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$4.0M
$3,977,701 total
Direct Loans
$56.2M
4,370 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$3.5M
854 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$3.7M
1,010 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$40.8M
2,052 loan awards
Parent PLUS$2.6M
132 loan awards
Grad PLUS$5.7M
322 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 2,252 borrowers who entered repayment, 6 (0.2%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.2%
-2.1pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
2,252
Defaulted
6
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
2.1%
2017
2.0%
2018
1.4%
2019
0.2%
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 Simmons

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs65
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,920 total completions
01Public Admin
64133.4%
02Health Professions
61131.8%
03Library Science
26814.0%
04Psychology
1829.5%
05Education
603.1%
06Social Sciences
392.0%
07Family/Consumer Sci
361.9%
08Communication
301.6%
09Business
271.4%
10Parks/Recreation
261.4%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
4,666
12-mo unduplicated
5,787
Undergraduate
1,836
Graduate
3,951

Gender split

Men
8%472
Women
92%5,315

Race / ethnicity composition

White
48.9%
Hispanic
15.1%
Asian
10.8%
Black
10.2%
Unknown
7.2%
Non-resident
4.3%
Two or more
3.4%

Campus safety & crime statistics

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

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
0.00
0 offenses · 5,710 students

3-year trend

1.122 yrs ago1.671 yr ago0.00Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
17
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
28
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
4
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

No criminal offenses reported.

By location

0total

    VAWA offenses

    1
    Domestic violence
    2
    Dating violence
    8
    Stalking
    11 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

    Hate crimes by bias

    • Religion1
    • Ethnicity1

    Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

    CategoryArrestsReferrals
    Weapons00
    Drugs00
    Liquor017

    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
    9.0:1
    Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
    186

    Simmons vs Peer comparison

    The peer institutions Simmons 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
    SubjectSimmons University
    72%4,666$27,313Doctoral/Professional
    Suffolk University
    61%82.3%6,356$30,031Doctoral/Professional
    Lesley University
    58%96.9%2,557$31,805Doctoral/Professional
    Western New England University
    64%83.5%3,674$31,170Doctoral/Professional
    Northeastern University Professional Programs
    7,411Doctoral/Professional
    Springfield College
    74%71.9%2,599$29,187Doctoral/Professional
    Peer group median64%82.9%4,170$30,031

    Frequently asked questions about Simmons University

    Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Simmons.

    What is the graduation rate at Simmons University?

    Simmons University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 72% per the latest IPEDS.

    How many students attend Simmons University?

    Simmons University reports a total enrollment of 4,666 students per the latest IPEDS.

    What is the average net price at Simmons University?

    The average net price at Simmons University is $27,313 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

    What is the yield rate at Simmons University?

    Simmons University's yield rate is 10.8%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

    Where is Simmons University located?

    Simmons University is located in Boston, Massachusetts 02115-5898.

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