About
The SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry is a small college located in Syracuse, New York, with a focus on the study of the environment and the development of renewable technologies. The institution has a student body of over 2,000 scholars and is known for addressing environmental challenges and promoting sustainability.
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
Non-Pell students graduate at a 16.0-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 48 Title IV programs, 8 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 40 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing8 · 16.7%
- No Data40 · 83.3%
- 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.
Accreditation status & history
Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.
Middle States Commission on Higher Education
Action history · 4
- Jun 2024Accreditation Reaffirmed: Warning RemovedMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
- Jun 2023Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: WarningMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
- Jun 2022Renewal of AccreditationMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
- Nov 2017Renewal 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, 577 students received $3.4M in Pell grants, alongside $8.2M 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 448 borrowers who entered repayment, 4 (0.8%) 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 ESF
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 · 6
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
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
No hate crimes reported.
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
Data quality: 1 report was later determined unfounded across the reporting period and are excluded from the totals above.
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
ESF vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions ESF 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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectSUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 66% | — | 2,757 | $18,730 | R2 Research |
Binghamton University | 82% | 38.6% | 18,816 | $21,364 | R1 Research |
Colorado School of Mines | 82% | 60.7% | 8,044 | $29,240 | R1 Research |
Michigan Technological University | 68% | 92.4% | 7,403 | $15,729 | R2 Research |
Stony Brook University | 76% | 49.0% | 26,689 | $18,430 | R1 Research |
SUNY Polytechnic Institute | 55% | 81.3% | 2,733 | $13,882 | Masters Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs |
Tennessee Technological University | 58% | 76.1% | 10,511 | $14,207 | R2 Research |
The University of Montana | 49% | 95.9% | 10,811 | $17,118 | R1 Research |
University at Albany | 61% | 69.1% | 17,560 | $18,486 | R1 Research |
University at Buffalo | 75% | 74.2% | 31,903 | $20,470 | R1 Research |
University of Maine | 55% | 96.6% | 12,029 | $18,045 | R1 Research |
University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 83% | 59.7% | 31,726 | $23,691 | R1 Research |
University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 76% | 88.2% | 13,554 | $23,261 | R1 Research |
University of Vermont | 79% | 65.3% | 14,476 | $20,860 | R2 Research |
Utah State University | 57% | 92.5% | 28,904 | $12,869 | R1 Research |
| Peer group median | 68% | 75.2% | 13,554 | $18,486 |
ESF Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
The Office of Institutional Research supports a collaborative effort among the campus community to maintain a drive for continuous improvement and provide a solid framework of data-based decision making that supports strategic planning and student success initiatives.
Visit IR office page- Jeremy HallInstitutional Research and Assessment Coordinator
Common Data Set (3)
The institution's official annual Common Data Set publications — the most detailed reference for enrollment, admissions, and outcomes.
Reports & documents (6)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
- DashboardDashboardesf.edu
- Data definitionData GovernanceThe data governance framework at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry promotes cross-functional collaboration to enhance the institution's data infrastructure. It aims to maintain data integrity, security, and accessibility by establishing clear principles and guidelines. The Data Governance Committee, led by the Chief Information Data Officer, reviews and manages policies, ensuring data use is balanced with accessibility, usability, and security. Policies and guidelines encompass a variety of key areas, including roles, data element definitions, and sensitive information. The institution values transparency and documentation as part of its data strategy to support its strategic goals.esf.edu
- Data dictionaryData Governance2026Data Governance at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry facilitates cross-unit collaboration to enhance institutional data infrastructure by establishing data principles and guidelines. The governance framework ensures data integrity, security, and accessibility while balancing the need for accessibility and usability. The Data Governance Committee regularly reviews policies and procedures, overseeing data management to support ESF's strategic goals.esf.edu
- DFR reportIPEDS Data Feedback Report 20242024nces.ed.gov
- FactbookInstitutional Data2018This webpage from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry provides access to various institutional data, including the ESF Common Data Set for the years 2016-17 to 2018-19. The Institutional Research and Assessment office is responsible for this data. The page offers links to additional information such as consumer information, accreditation, and program reviews.esf.edu
- Strategic planSUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry Strategic Plan2026In 2022, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry initiated a comprehensive strategic planning initiative to evaluate and update the College’s mission and goals. The plan serves as a roadmap for the next five years, setting goals, devising strategies, identifying metrics, and planning for contingencies. The strategic plan's structure includes overarching principles, with each pillar containing two themes, and each theme encompassing multiple goals.esf.edu
Frequently asked questions about SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about ESF.
What is the graduation rate at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry?
How many students attend SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry?
What is the average net price at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry?
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Where is SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry located?
Who runs Institutional Research at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry?
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