10-yr median earnings
$80,490
Federal aid recipients only
Private Nonprofit · Waterville, Maine
Colby College
Colby College is a private nonprofit institution in Waterville, Maine. as a private nonprofit, published Scorecard outcomes cover federal-aid recipients at this campus — endowment and sticker price sit outside those cohort fields.
- $80,490
- 10-yr median earnings
- 7.1%
- Acceptance rate
- $17,180
- Avg net price / yr
- 89.5%
- 150%-time completion
The verdict
Colby College pairs top-5% former-student earnings with a highly selective admit.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- Top 4%
- former-student earnings, US
- 7.1%
- acceptance rate
- 89.5%
- 150%-time completion
- +34%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
Town: Remote
Carnegie: Bacc: A&S
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
How to read this Colby College 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 ("Baccalaureate Colleges: Arts & Sciences Focus"), 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
Colby College
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+
$80,490
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price D
$17,180
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate A+
89.5%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt F
$19,157
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment A+
91.7%
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention A
93.7%
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
$17,180
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
89.5%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 89.5%
Four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - Colby College 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 Colby College 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.
Colby College: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$80,490 Top 4% higher than 96% 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 | Colby College | National rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $80,490 | #182 of 5103 | 96th |
| Average net price | $17,180 | #2522 of 5020 | 50th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 89.5% | #238 of 4858 | 95th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 2,407 | #1307 of 5462 | 76th |
National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.
Quick Facts
2,407
Undergraduate enrollment
7.1%
Acceptance rate
1,501
SAT average
89.5%
150%-time completion
$80,490
10-yr median earnings
93.7%
First-year retention
How Colby College ranks in Maine
State rank among 32 reporting Maine colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.
| Metric | Colby College | State rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $80,490 | #3 of 32 | 91st |
| Average net price | $17,180 | #15 of 31 | 52nd (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 89.5% | #4 of 30 | 87th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 2,407 | #8 of 32 | 75th |
Highest former-student earnings in Maine
| # | School | 10-yr earnings | Net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maine Maritime Academy | $89,964 | $23,414 |
| 2 | Bowdoin College | $82,735 | $14,398 |
| 3 | Colby CollegeThis school | $80,490 | $17,180 |
| 4 | Maine College of Health Professions | $79,840 | $26,312 |
| 5 | Bates College | $69,498 | $29,351 |
| 6 | The Landing School | $65,849 | $35,532 |
| 7 | Saint Joseph's College of Maine | $59,045 | $27,555 |
| 8 | University of New England | $55,921 | $38,107 |
| 9 | University of Maine at Fort Kent | $51,077 | $7,482 |
| 10 | University of Southern Maine | $49,958 | $13,596 |
| 11 | University of Maine | $48,653 | $17,510 |
| 12 | University of Maine - Machias | $48,653 | - |
Admissions
| Admission Rate | 7.1% |
| SAT Average | 1,501 |
| SAT Math (25th-75th) | 740 – 790 |
| SAT Reading (25th-75th) | 720 – 760 |
| ACT Average | 33 |
| ACT (25th-75th) | 32 – 34 |
Costs & Financial Aid
Net price by family income at Colby College
Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket
- $0 – $30k $4,049
$0 – $30k
$4,049 net price / yr
- $30k – $48k $1,251
$30k – $48k
$1,251 net price / yr
- $48k – $75k $3,666
$48k – $75k
$3,666 net price / yr
- $110k+
$110k+
$46,511 net price / yr
What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at Colby College - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $69,600 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $69,600 |
| Average Net Price | $17,180 |
14.3%
Pell Grant Rate
8.5%
Federal Loan Rate
$19,157
Median Debt
$203/mo
Monthly Payment
Net price at Colby College swings rather than trends
Across 11 reported years between 2013 and 2023, the average net price here has ranged from $16,507 to $25,848 without settling into a rise or a fall. Comparing only the first and last years would read as +2.2%, 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
$16,507
Highest year
$25,848
Most recent (2023)
$23,939
11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $23,4282023 · $23,939
Over the same years, enrollment went +25.4% (1,820 → 2,282 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
56.8%
Female
10.9%
First Generation
Outcomes
93.7%
Retention Rate
$60,052
Median Earnings (6yr)
77.6%
Earning Over $25K
91.7%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)
Outcomes & debt snapshot
| Measure | Cohort / horizon | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Completion within 150% of normal time | First-time, full-time | 89.5% |
| First-year retention | First-time, full-time freshmen | 93.7% |
| Median earnings | 6 years after entry | $60,052 |
| Median earnings | 10 years after entry | $80,490 |
| Share earning over $25,000 | Working, not enrolled | 77.6% |
| Loan repayment rate | Completers, 3 years after leaving | 91.7% |
| Median federal student debt | At completion | $19,157 |
| Estimated monthly payment | Standard 10-year plan | $203/mo |
Programs & Earnings
Top programs at Colby College by completer earnings
Median earnings of program completers, College Scorecard field-of-study file
- Economics
Economics
$103,491 median earnings
- Political Science and Gove…
Political Science and Government
$96,621 median earnings
- Area Studies
Area Studies
$64,207 median earnings
- Natural Resources Conserva…
Natural Resources Conservation and Research
$55,719 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Economics | Bachelor's | 89 | $103,491 | $24,250 |
| Political Science and Government | Bachelor's | 76 | $96,621 | $27,000 |
| Area Studies | Bachelor's | 14 | $64,207 | - |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research | Bachelor's | 52 | $55,719 | $19,313 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | Bachelor's | 25 | - | $17,500 |
| English Language and Literature, General | Bachelor's | 14 | - | - |
| Biology, General | Bachelor's | 38 | - | - |
| International/Globalization Studies | Bachelor's | 42 | - | - |
| Psychology, General | Bachelor's | 41 | - | - |
| Anthropology | Bachelor's | 12 | - | - |
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 Colby College? ▼
Colby College is a private nonprofit institution in Waterville, Maine. The acceptance rate is 7.1%. The average SAT score is 1,501. Undergraduate enrollment is 2,407 students.
How much do Colby College former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at Colby College who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $80,490 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $60,052.
How much does Colby College cost? ▼
The average net price at Colby College is $17,180. In-state tuition is $69,600 and out-of-state tuition is $69,600. Median student debt at graduation is $19,157.
What is the graduation rate at Colby College? ▼
Colby College has a 89.5% 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 93.7%.
Is Colby College worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at Colby College is $19,157, while former students earn a median of $80,490 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 24% of those annual earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 91.7% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $203.
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 Colby College
- Compare Colby College against schools with similar outcomes at a lower average net price.Find similar schools that cost less
- Browse every reporting college in Maine side by side.Browse Maine
- 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.