10-yr median earnings
$63,435
Federal aid recipients only
Public · Altoona, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona is a public institution in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Former students earn a median of $63,435 ten years after enrollment at an average net price of $22,213/yr — as a public institution, published Scorecard outcomes are the federal Title-IV cohort view of former students — not every graduate and not a guarantee for any one enrollee.
- $22,213
- Avg net price / yr
- $63,435
- 10-yr median earnings
- 17.2%
- 150%-time completion
- 98.1%
- Acceptance rate
The verdict
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona pairs top-quartile former-student earnings with open admission.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- Top 12%
- former-student earnings, US
- 98.1%
- acceptance rate
- 17.2%
- 150%-time completion
- +14%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
City: Small
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona is a public institution in Altoona, Pennsylvania enrolling 2,367 undergraduates, using College Scorecard institution data retrieved in July 2026. The acceptance rate is 98.1% with an average SAT of 1,187. Federally aided former students who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $63,435 ten years after entry. Average net price for the reported Title IV-recipient cohort is $22,213. This profile combines source fields with separately labeled PlainCollege comparisons and derived metrics.
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona operates as a public institution located in Altoona, Pennsylvania (city: small), with a reported undergraduate enrollment of 2,367 students. Institution-level records in the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) classify each school by Carnegie category, ownership sector, and urban/rural locale, which is how this profile's peer group and cost cohort are determined.
Admissions and cost fields are IPEDS-derived values published through the Scorecard and retain their source reporting periods. 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; the income-band fields provide more context but still do not replace an institution's current net-price calculator.
Earnings use Treasury-derived records for federally aided former students who were working and not enrolled in the measurement year; the entry cohort includes completers and noncompleters. IPEDS completion and retention rates use separate first-time, full-time cohorts, so their denominator is not the earnings cohort. Read cost, completion, and earnings as distinct historical measures, not as a causal verdict or an individual forecast.
College Value Score
D
College Value Score
46/100
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona
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
$63,435
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price F
$22,213
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate F
17.2%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt F
$25,000
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment A
79.3%
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention C+
79.5%
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
$22,213
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
17.2%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 17.2%
Four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona 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 Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona 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.
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$63,435 Top 12% higher than 88% 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
Quick Facts
2,367
Undergraduate enrollment
98.1%
Acceptance rate
1,187
SAT average
17.2%
150%-time completion
$63,435
10-yr median earnings
79.5%
First-year retention
Admissions
| Admission Rate | 98.1% |
| SAT Average | 1,187 |
| SAT Math (25th-75th) | 540 – 640 |
| SAT Reading (25th-75th) | 530 – 650 |
| ACT (25th-75th) | 22 – 28 |
Share of applicants admitted
Costs & Financial Aid
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $15,972 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $26,958 |
| Average Net Price | $22,213 |
Net Price by Family Income
| $0 – $30,000 | $16,017 |
| $30,001 – $48,000 | $16,546 |
| $48,001 – $75,000 | $19,464 |
| Over $110,000 | $28,263 |
29.4%
Pell Grant Rate
53.7%
Federal Loan Rate
$25,000
Median Debt
$265/mo
Monthly Payment
2013–2023: what Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona costs has stayed close to flat
Average net price moved +7.5% over 10 years, from $22,976 to $24,699 in nominal dollars. The median college measured over the same span moved +14.6%.
8 reported years (years the source did not report are left as gaps). Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $22,9762023 · $24,699
Over the same years, enrollment went -36.2% (3,779 → 2,412 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
50.1%
Female
28.8%
First Generation
Outcomes
17.2%
150%-Time Completion
79.5%
Retention Rate
$55,620
Median Earnings (6yr)
$63,435
Median Earnings (10yr)
73.1%
Earning Over $25K
79.3%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)
Programs & Earnings
Top programs at Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona by completer earnings
Median earnings of program completers, College Scorecard field-of-study file
- Computer and Information S…
Computer and Information Sciences, General
$120,729 median earnings
- Computer/Information Techn…
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management
$102,874 median earnings
- Computer/Information Techn…
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management
$98,637 median earnings
- Registered Nursing, Nursin…
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
$91,032 median earnings
- Accounting and Related Ser…
Accounting and Related Services
$88,192 median earnings
- Electromechanical Technolo…
Electromechanical Technologies/Technicians
$81,835 median earnings
- Management Information Sys…
Management Information Systems and Services
$81,794 median earnings
- Civil Engineering
Civil Engineering
$81,403 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.
Nearby Schools
Explore Data-Matched Colleges
Matches use Scorecard measures among reporting colleges — not state-system recommendations or geographic proximity.
Similar Enrollment and Sector
Other Public institutions closest in reported enrollment, preferring the same Carnegie classification.
University of Connecticut-Stamford
Stamford, CT
2,432 students · 65 apart
Mountainland Technical College
Lehi, UT
2,774 students · 407 apart
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Berks
Reading, PA
1,872 students · 495 apart
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Abington
Abington, PA
2,877 students · 510 apart
Similar Reported Net Price
Other Public institutions with the nearest reported average net price.
Similar 2013–2023 Net-Price Trend
Same-sector institutions with the same direction and nearest fitted annual change; only series with R² of at least 0.40 qualify.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the acceptance rate at Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona? ▼
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona is a public institution in Altoona, Pennsylvania. The acceptance rate is 98.1%. The average SAT score is 1,187. Undergraduate enrollment is 2,367 students.
How much do Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $63,435 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $55,620.
How much does Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona cost? ▼
The average net price at Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona is $22,213. In-state tuition is $15,972 and out-of-state tuition is $26,958. Median student debt at graduation is $25,000.
What is the graduation rate at Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona? ▼
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona has a 17.2% 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 79.5%.
Is Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona is $25,000, while former students earn a median of $63,435 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 39% of those annual earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 79.3% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $265.
Sources & methodology
Public-college profiles lean on IPEDS enrollment and Scorecard Title-IV outcomes. State appropriations are outside this page; the figures below are the federal cohort measures only.
Every number is read live from the Mar–Jul 2026 Scorecard/IPEDS retrievals. Public institutions often enroll large Title-IV cohorts, so medians can be stable — still cohort averages, never a personal forecast. 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).
What this means for Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona
- Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona's reported 10-year former-student earnings land in the 88th percentile among reporting colleges.
- The average net price after aid is $22,213 - compare it against schools with similar outcomes but a lower cost.Find similar schools that cost less
- See how this school compares to every other college in Pennsylvania.Browse Pennsylvania
Public-college Scorecard figures are historical Title-IV cohort averages — confirm current tuition, aid, and admissions rules with the institution before deciding.
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. Public-institution profiles compile Scorecard Title-IV earnings, IPEDS enrollment/admissions, and Treasury linkage 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.