10-yr median earnings
$93,487
Federal aid recipients only
Private Nonprofit · Providence, Rhode Island
Brown University
Brown University is a private nonprofit institution in Providence, Rhode Island. as a private nonprofit, published Scorecard outcomes cover federal-aid recipients at this campus — endowment and sticker price sit outside those cohort fields.
- $93,487
- 10-yr median earnings
- 5.4%
- Acceptance rate
- $25,184
- Avg net price / yr
- 95.7%
- 150%-time completion
The verdict
Brown University pairs top-1% former-student earnings with a highly selective admit.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- Top 1%
- former-student earnings, US
- 5.4%
- acceptance rate
- 95.7%
- 150%-time completion
- +18%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
City: Midsize
Carnegie: R1
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
How to read this Brown University profile
Figures above come from IPEDS institution records published through the College Scorecard (retrieved July 2026 for institution fields; March 2026 for field-of-study). Peer groups and cost cohorts follow IPEDS ownership sector, Carnegie class ("Doctoral Universities: Very High Research Activity"), and locale, not an editorial shortlist.
Average net price subtracts grant and scholarship aid from cost of attendance for full-time, first-time undergraduate Title IV recipients. It is a defined cohort average, not a personalized price; income-band fields add context but do not replace the school's current net-price calculator.
Earnings use Treasury-linked records for federally aided former students who were working and not enrolled in the measurement year (completers and noncompleters). IPEDS completion and retention use separate first-time, full-time cohorts, so those denominators are not the earnings cohort. Read cost, completion, and earnings as distinct historical measures, not a causal verdict or individual forecast.
College Value Score
B+
College Value Score
78/100
Brown University
A 6-metric composite of earnings, cost, and completion outcomes benchmarked against every reporting US college, not a ranking of teaching quality, campus life, or fit for any individual student. See the full methodology.
Earnings A+
$93,487
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price F
$25,184
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate A+
95.7%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt C+
$11,428
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment A+
90.7%
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention A+
98.8%
First-year students returning for year two
Each axis is the percentile score shown in the breakdown at left; the shape shows this school's overall profile at a glance.
Avg net price
$25,184
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
95.7%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 95.7%
Four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - Brown University vs peers
Each dot is a college plotted by 10-year median earnings (x-axis) vs average net price (y-axis), colored by completion within 150% of normal time. Bottom-right = high earnings/lower price; top-left = lower earnings/higher price.
How Brown University ranks nationally
Where this school's former-student earnings fall within the full national distribution of every US college that reports to the College Scorecard, not just its peer set.
Brown University: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$93,487 Top 1% higher than 99% of 5,103 US colleges
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more US colleges. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard · Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals
| Metric | Brown University | National rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $93,487 | #67 of 5103 | 99th |
| Average net price | $25,184 | #3949 of 5020 | 21st (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 95.7% | #53 of 4858 | 99th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 7,226 | #521 of 5462 | 90th |
National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.
Quick Facts
7,226
Undergraduate enrollment
5.4%
Acceptance rate
1,546
SAT average
95.7%
150%-time completion
$93,487
10-yr median earnings
98.8%
First-year retention
How Brown University ranks in Rhode Island
State rank among 19 reporting Rhode Island colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.
| Metric | Brown University | State rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $93,487 | #1 of 19 | 95th |
| Average net price | $25,184 | #10 of 20 | 50th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 95.7% | #1 of 18 | 94th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 7,226 | #3 of 20 | 85th |
Highest former-student earnings in Rhode Island
| # | School | 10-yr earnings | Net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brown UniversityThis school | $93,487 | $25,184 |
| 2 | Bryant University | $90,008 | $41,219 |
| 3 | Providence College | $87,054 | $48,523 |
| 4 | Salve Regina University | $72,975 | $36,967 |
| 5 | Roger Williams University | $70,266 | $37,999 |
| 6 | Roger Williams University School of Law | $70,266 | - |
| 7 | University of Rhode Island | $69,743 | $21,440 |
| 8 | Rhode Island School of Design | $68,140 | $50,507 |
| 9 | Rhode Island College | $56,318 | $9,478 |
| 10 | New England Tractor Trailer Training School of Rhode Island | $53,085 | $15,866 |
| 11 | New England Institute of Technology | $48,684 | $36,483 |
| 12 | MotoRing Technical Training Institute | $48,281 | $30,141 |
Admissions
| Admission Rate | 5.4% |
| SAT Average | 1,546 |
| SAT Math (25th-75th) | 770 – 800 |
| SAT Reading (25th-75th) | 740 – 780 |
| ACT Average | 34 |
| ACT (25th-75th) | 34 – 35 |
Costs & Financial Aid
Net price by family income at Brown University
Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket
- $0 – $30k $-420
$0 – $30k
$-420 net price / yr
- $30k – $48k $2,031
$30k – $48k
$2,031 net price / yr
- $48k – $75k $5,858
$48k – $75k
$5,858 net price / yr
- $110k+
$110k+
$44,937 net price / yr
What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at Brown University - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $71,412 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $71,412 |
| Average Net Price | $25,184 |
13.8%
Pell Grant Rate
9.6%
Federal Loan Rate
$11,428
Median Debt
$121/mo
Monthly Payment
Net price at Brown University swings rather than trends
Across 11 reported years between 2013 and 2023, the average net price here has ranged from $24,854 to $31,685 without settling into a rise or a fall. Comparing only the first and last years would read as +6.3%, but the years in between do not follow that line, so the honest summary is the range rather than a trend. Budget against the upper end, not the average.
Lowest year
$24,854
Highest year
$31,685
Most recent (2023)
$26,572
11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $25,0052023 · $26,572
Over the same years, enrollment went +17.6% (6,182 → 7,273 students).
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, per-year fields (2013–2023). Net price is the average cost after grant and scholarship aid for federally-aided undergraduates.
Student Demographics
Race & ethnicity
Student body at a glance
54.0%
Female
17.0%
First Generation
Outcomes
98.8%
Retention Rate
$79,131
Median Earnings (6yr)
78.6%
Earning Over $25K
90.7%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)
Outcomes & debt snapshot
| Measure | Cohort / horizon | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Completion within 150% of normal time | First-time, full-time | 95.7% |
| First-year retention | First-time, full-time freshmen | 98.8% |
| Median earnings | 6 years after entry | $79,131 |
| Median earnings | 10 years after entry | $93,487 |
| Share earning over $25,000 | Working, not enrolled | 78.6% |
| Loan repayment rate | Completers, 3 years after leaving | 90.7% |
| Median federal student debt | At completion | $11,428 |
| Estimated monthly payment | Standard 10-year plan | $121/mo |
Programs & Earnings
Field-of-study summary by credential
| Credential | Programs | Award count | Avg earnings | Top earnings | Avg debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's | 32 | 1,887 | $95,114 | $214,479 | $12,983 |
| Master's | 13 | 491 | $105,260 | $208,655 | $46,378 |
| First Professional | 1 | 148 | $106,465 | $106,465 | $146,880 |
Top programs at Brown University by completer earnings
Median earnings of program completers, College Scorecard field-of-study file
- Computer Science
Computer Science
$214,479 median earnings
- Computer Science
Computer Science
$208,655 median earnings
- Applied Mathematics
Applied Mathematics
$157,822 median earnings
- Biotechnology
Biotechnology
$151,944 median earnings
- Entrepreneurial and Small …
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations
$125,955 median earnings
- Economics
Economics
$124,508 median earnings
- Engineering, General
Engineering, General
$108,550 median earnings
- Medicine
Medicine
$106,465 median earnings
What this shows The highest-earning programs at a school are not necessarily its most popular ones - a small specialized program can post strong median earnings without reflecting the outcome most students here actually see.
| Program | Credential | Completers | Median Earnings | Median Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer Science | Bachelor's | 250 | $214,479 | $11,500 |
| Computer Science | Master's | 102 | $208,655 | - |
| Applied Mathematics | Bachelor's | 178 | $157,822 | $10,000 |
| Biotechnology | Master's | 38 | $151,944 | - |
| Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations | Bachelor's | 51 | $125,955 | $18,000 |
| Economics | Bachelor's | 215 | $124,508 | $13,000 |
| Engineering, General | Bachelor's | 78 | $108,550 | $15,000 |
| Medicine | First Professional | 148 | $106,465 | $146,880 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision | Master's | 16 | $95,551 | $20,500 |
| Public Policy Analysis | Bachelor's | 30 | $94,962 | $10,000 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering | Bachelor's | 23 | $91,674 | - |
| Public Health | Master's | 92 | $87,924 | $49,500 |
| Public Policy Analysis | Master's | 93 | $87,139 | $47,500 |
| International Relations and National Security Studies | Bachelor's | 100 | $86,780 | $12,000 |
| History | Bachelor's | 83 | $85,520 | $13,491 |
Nearby Schools
Rhode Island School of Design
Providence, RI
2,084 students
Johnson & Wales University-Providence
Providence, RI
3,868 students
Johnson & Wales University-Online
Providence, RI
2,202 students
Empire Beauty School-Warwick
Providence, RI
107 students
MotoRing Technical Training Institute
East Providence, RI
124 students
Explore Data-Matched Colleges
Independent Scorecard matches among reporting colleges — not recommendations from the institution or a counselor.
Similar Enrollment and Sector
Other Private Nonprofit institutions closest in reported enrollment, preferring the same Carnegie classification.
Similar Reported Net Price
Other Private Nonprofit institutions with the nearest reported average net price.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the acceptance rate at Brown University? ▼
Brown University is a private nonprofit institution in Providence, Rhode Island. The acceptance rate is 5.4%. The average SAT score is 1,546. Undergraduate enrollment is 7,226 students.
How much do Brown University former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at Brown University who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $93,487 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $79,131.
How much does Brown University cost? ▼
The average net price at Brown University is $25,184. In-state tuition is $71,412 and out-of-state tuition is $71,412. Median student debt at graduation is $11,428.
What is the graduation rate at Brown University? ▼
Brown University has a 95.7% completion rate within 150% of normal time at a four-year institution (typically six years for a bachelor’s program). The first-year retention rate is 98.8%.
Is Brown University worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at Brown University is $11,428, while former students earn a median of $93,487 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 12% of those annual earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 90.7% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $121.
Sources & methodology
Private-nonprofit profiles emphasize Scorecard cost-after-aid and completion alongside IPEDS Carnegie class. Endowment, gifts, and sticker price are not Scorecard fields on this page.
Figures are the Mar–Jul 2026 federal retrievals. Nonprofit campuses vary widely in aid practice — net price here is the Title-IV-recipient cohort average, not an individual award letter. Read the full methodology for how the data is sourced, computed, and verified.
- College Scorecard, U.S. Department of Education - former-student earnings, cost & completion (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- IPEDS, National Center for Education Statistics - enrollment, admissions, Carnegie class & demographics (nces.ed.gov/ipeds).
- U.S. Treasury / IRS earnings linkage - median earnings 6 & 10 years after enrollment for federal-aid recipients (irs.gov).
- College Scorecard, Field of Study - program-level (credential) earnings & debt (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- Federal Student Aid (Title IV / NSLDS) - U.S. Department of Education - net price, student debt & aid-recipient repayment outcomes (studentaid.gov).
Where to go next from Brown University
- Compare Brown University against schools with similar outcomes at a lower average net price.Find similar schools that cost less
- Browse every reporting college in Rhode Island side by side.Browse Rhode Island
- See how fields of study differ on former-student earnings and debt.Explore programs
Nonprofit Scorecard medians describe federal-aid recipients who were working and not enrolled — they are not sticker-price ROI and not advice.
Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Private-nonprofit profiles compile Scorecard net-price and earnings cohorts with IPEDS structure fields — no editor-typed figures. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals.