Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium ProgramsPublicHSI

Western Connecticut State University

Danbury, Connecticut·Public, 4-year or above·New England·wcsu.edu
6-yr Graduation
52%
+8.5pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Total enrollment
4,169
peer median 4,149
Avg net price
$18,617
+$3.7k vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
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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
5,910
5,910 candidates competed
Admitted
5,142
87.0% acceptance rate
Enrolled
861
16.7% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
52%+8.5pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
4-year graduation
33%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
52%
Full-time retention
73%

Pell equity

2.0pp gap
Pell recipients
49%
Non-Pell
51%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 2.0-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 60 Title IV programs, 22 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 1 fails. 37 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
60
Passing
22
36.7% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
1
1.7% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.7%
+1.1pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

60programs
  • Passing22 · 36.7%
  • No Data37 · 61.7%
  • Failing1 · 1.7%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
1
At Risk
1
Watch
2
Safe
19
No data
37

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.

23
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-1.6%
$35,889 vs $36,491
Leisure and Recreational Activities
Bachelor Degree · Leisure And Recreational Activities
+8.5%
$39,609 vs $36,491
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Bachelor Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
+11.1%
$40,555 vs $36,491
Radio Television and Digital Communication
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+18.5%
$43,257 vs $36,491
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
+25.8%
$58,337 vs $46,391
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+32.4%
$88,576 vs $66,899
History
Bachelor Degree · History
+36.9%
$49,967 vs $36,491
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+38.1%
$50,410 vs $36,491

Near the line (±5%)

Programs within five points of the pass line, one cohort year from flipping.

1
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-1.6%
$602

Debt vs earnings

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

20
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
75%
$26,942 debt · $35,889 earn
Student Counseling and Personnel Services
Master's Degree · Education
70%
$41,000 debt · $58,337 earn
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Bachelor Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
68%
$27,431 debt · $40,555 earn
Leisure and Recreational Activities
Bachelor Degree · Leisure And Recreational Activities
59%
$23,538 debt · $39,609 earn
Biology General
Bachelor Degree · Biological And Biomedical Sciences
51%
$26,875 debt · $52,458 earn
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
50%
$25,304 debt · $50,955 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
48%
$24,066 debt · $50,410 earn
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Subject Areas
Bachelor Degree · Education
48%
$27,000 debt · $56,882 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

New England Commission of Higher Education

Accredited since 1954Next review Jun 2034

Programmatic accreditations · 5

Action history · 6

  1. Jun 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Council on Education for Public Health · Public Health Programs (PHPB) — Baccalaureate only level programs offered outside a school of public health
  2. Mar 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    New England Commission of Higher Education
  3. May 2019Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNURED) - Nursing education programs at the baccalaureate degree levels
  4. May 2019Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNURED) - Nursing education programs at the graduate degree levels
  5. 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$17,055
$30–48k$15,942
$48–75k$16,697
$75–110k$19,825
$110k+$22,946

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

Avg net price
$18,617
+$3,749vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs median $14,869
Federal loans
49.8%
In-state tuition
$12,763
Out-of-state
$16,095

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 1,590 students received $9.0M in Pell grants, alongside $20.3M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
1,590
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$9.0M
$9,033,319 total
Direct Loans
$20.3M
3,717 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

2k
20
1k
21
1k
22
1k
23
2k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$5.5M
1,433 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$6.8M
1,685 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$3.9M
258 loan awards
Parent PLUS$4.0M
316 loan awards
Grad PLUS$189K
25 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 1,325 borrowers who entered repayment, 37 (2.7%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
2.7%
+0.4pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
1,325
Defaulted
37
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
7.3%
2017
7.6%
2018
6.3%
2019
2.7%
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 Western Connecticut State

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs60
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

845 total completions
01Business
21825.8%
02Health Professions
13215.6%
03Psychology
12614.9%
04Education
829.7%
05Visual/Performing Arts
748.8%
06Security/Protective
698.2%
07Communication
516.0%
08Biological Sciences
364.3%
09Public Admin
293.4%
10English Language
283.3%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
4,169
12-mo unduplicated
4,819
Undergraduate
4,065
Graduate
754

Gender split

Men
46%2,220
Women
54%2,599

Race / ethnicity composition

White
49.7%
Hispanic
29.4%
Black
9.4%
Two or more
5.4%
Asian
4.5%
Unknown
0.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.5%
Non-resident
0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.0%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
405
286 M · 119 W
Women athletes
29.4%
Athletic aid
$0
Total student aid
Budget
$5.3M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$0
$0
Recruiting expense
$4K
$7K
Head-coach salaries
$68K
$69K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 12

Football
115 M ·
$674K
Lacrosse
56 M · 18 W
$462K
Soccer
36 M · 23 W
$555K
Baseball
34 M ·
$343K
Basketball
19 M · 9 W
$563K
Tennis
13 M · 9 W
$92K

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
0.68
3 offenses · 4,417 students

3-year trend

0.762 yrs ago0.421 yr ago0.68Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
9
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
33
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
1

Criminal offenses by type

Rape
2
Motor vehicle theft
1

By location

3total
  • On campus2
  • Public property1

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
9
Dating violence
4
Stalking
13 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs019
Liquor046

Residence-hall fires

  • Centennial Hall1 fire
    CookingDamage $0-$99

Data quality: 3 reports were 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
11.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
179

Western Connecticut State vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Western Connecticut State 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
SubjectWestern Connecticut State University
52%4,169$18,617Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
University of Wisconsin-Parkside
40%75.4%3,925$10,044Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Francis Marion University
43%86.4%4,112$13,451Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
University of the District of Columbia
44%4,202$14,693Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Montana State University Billings
34%4,129$15,044Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
State University of New York at Plattsburgh
59%78.4%4,540$16,547Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Peer group median44%78.4%4,149$14,869

Frequently asked questions about Western Connecticut State University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Western Connecticut State.

What is the graduation rate at Western Connecticut State University?

Western Connecticut State University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 52% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Western Connecticut State University?

Western Connecticut State University reports a total enrollment of 4,169 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Western Connecticut State University?

The average net price at Western Connecticut State University is $18,617 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Western Connecticut State University?

Western Connecticut State University's yield rate is 16.7%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Western Connecticut State University located?

Western Connecticut State University is located in Danbury, Connecticut 06810-6826.

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