Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus
University Park, Pennsylvania
- Public
- City
- 42,284 undergrads
- Admit rate
- 61%Source: College Scorecard
- Average net price
- $33,675per year, after grantsSource: College Scorecard
- Graduation rate
- 86%within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $71,76210 years after startingSource: College Scorecard
What's special
Through the 2+2 Plan, many students start at another Penn State campus and move to the campus that offers their major for the last two years, without reapplying. Major entrance requirements are the same wherever you start.
Source: Penn State, 2+2 Plan
Getting in
- Admit rate
- 61%About 6 in 10 applicants get in.Source: College Scorecard
- Test policy
- Test-optionalScores are considered if you send them, but not required.Source: College Scorecard
- SAT (middle 50%)
- 1240–1420Reading + math, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
- ACT (middle 50%)
- 27–32Composite, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
From Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus's own report
These numbers come from the school's Common Data Set for 2025–26, a standard report colleges publish about their applicants and first-year students. Open the report.
46% had a 3.75 or higher. The average was 3.67. Schools count GPA differently (weighted or not), so compare ranges loosely.
- Admit rate in this report
- 55%58,952 admitted of 106,547 first-year applicants
- Off the wait list
- 4%46 admitted of 1,153 who stayed on the wait list (2,109 were offered a spot)
- SAT, middle 50%
- 1280–141029% of first-years sent SAT scores
- ACT, middle 50%
- 28–325% of first-years sent ACT scores
- Top 10% of their class
- 37%74% were in the top quarter. Based on the 33% whose school ranks.
Where you'd stand
Enter your numbers to see where they'd fall among Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus's first-year students. This isn't a prediction: it shows how you compare with students who enrolled, using the sources linked below.
Leave out anything you don't have. Your numbers stay in this browser and fill in on other school pages. See my list
Sources: Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus Common Data Set 2025–26. Test ranges describe enrolled students who sent scores.
What it really costs
Most families pay less than the sticker price. Net price is what's left after grants and scholarships.
- Average net price
- $33,675full-time first-years who got grant aidSource: College Scorecard
- Total cost of attendance
- $41,003sticker price incl. housing, per yearSource: College Scorecard
- Tuition, in-state
- $21,098Source: College Scorecard
- Tuition, out-of-state
- $43,490Source: College Scorecard
After you enroll
- Graduation rate
- 86%first-time, full-time students finishing within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Came back for year two
- 93%full-time first-year studentsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $71,76210 years after starting, for students who got federal aidSource: College Scorecard
- Median debt at graduation
- $24,500federal loans, students who finishedSource: College Scorecard
Students
- Undergraduates
- 42,284Source: College Scorecard
- Receive Pell grants
- 16%a sign of economic diversitySource: College Scorecard
- First-generation students
- 29%parents didn't go beyond high schoolSource: College Scorecard
Similar schools
Similar, and easier to get into
- Temple University Philadelphia, PA — admits 80%
- Michigan State University East Lansing, MI — admits 85%
- University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN — admits 80%
- Indiana University-Bloomington Bloomington, IN — admits 78%
Also worth a look
- University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA — admits 58%
- Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ — admits 58%
- Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA — admits 55%
- University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, SC — admits 60%
- University of Massachusetts-Amherst Amherst, MA — admits 60%
- Texas A&M University-College Station College Station, TX — admits 57%
Where these numbers come from
Every number on this page comes from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard page for Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus, which draws on what the school reports to the federal government and on federal student aid and tax records. We last pulled the data on November 4, 2026. Different measures cover different years; here's how each one works.
Spot something wrong? Report a data error.