Bates College
Lewiston, Maine · Also known as Bates · Website
$69,498
median earnings, 10 years after starting
$69,498
median earnings, 10 years after starting
Bates College is a private nonprofit 4-year college in Lewiston, Maine with 1,760 undergraduates. Its average net price after grants is $29,351 a year (tuition and fees $66,590). It admits 13% of applicants and 90% of students finish within 6 years. Former students earn a median $69,498 a year 10 years after they started, and graduates leave with a median $14,275 in federal student loans.
Updated Oct 10, 2026 · June 2026 data
Net price
$29,351
US median $17,138
Tuition and fees
$66,590
US median $11,837
Admission rate
13%
US median 78%
Completion rate
90%
Within 6 years, US 58%
Median debt
$14,275
About $151 a month
Earnings at 10 years
$69,498
Rank 390 of 5,094 in the US
Cost
What a year costs: posted prices and the average after grants
Net price by family income
Average yearly cost after grants, for students who get aid
- Net price
- $29,351
- Tuition and fees
- $66,590
- Cost of attendance
- $83,532
- Students with a need-based grant
- 12%
- Students with federal loans
- 14%
- Net price, family income under $30K
- $2,397
- Net price, family income $30K to $48K
- $8,958
- Net price, family income $48K to $75K
- $11,336
- Net price, family income $75K to $110K
- $19,468
- Net price, family income over $110K
- $45,886
Net price is what students who get aid pay on average after grants.
Tuition and net price by year
School years 2015-16 to 2024-25. The year on the chart is the year the school year starts.
Yearly cost
Tuition and fees went from $48,435 in 2015-16 to $66,590 in 2024-25.
Admission, completion and retention
Share of applicants admitted, of students who finish and of first-year students who come back
Admission and students
- Admission rate
- 13%
- Average SAT
- 1,468
- Undergraduates
- 1,760
- Part-time students
- 0%
- Women
- 52%
- Students per teacher
- 9
- Completion rate
- 90%
- Retention rate
- 91%
- Highest degree
- Bachelor's degree
- Programs
- 32
- Endowment
- $446.8M
Earnings and debt
Compared with the medians of the colleges of its state, of colleges of the same kind and of all US colleges
Median earnings 10 years after starting rank 390 of 5,094 US colleges and 5 of 32 in Maine (1 = highest).
| Measure | College | ME median | Same kind | US median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net price | $29,351 | $17,510 | $22,320 | $17,138 |
| Tuition in-state | $66,590 | $12,983 | $31,170 | $11,837 |
| Admission rate | 13% | 80% | 74% | 78% |
| Completion rate | 90% | 55% | 57% | 58% |
| Retention rate | 91% | 74% | 77% | 75% |
| Median debt | $14,275 | $19,328 | $24,287 | $13,271 |
| Earnings after 6 years | $59,202 | $40,444 | $44,392 | $35,656 |
| Earnings after 10 years | $69,498 | $43,890 | $52,928 | $40,813 |
Best-paid programs
Median earnings 1 year after graduation
Same kind: US private nonprofit 4-year colleges. Earnings and debt are medians of former students who received federal student aid. 88% of borrowers lowered their balance within 3 years. 85% earn more than a typical high school graduate 6 years after starting.
Programs
32 fields of study and credentials, with graduates, debt and earnings
| Field of study | Graduates | Median debt | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yr | US median 4 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EconomicsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 65 | $13,000 | $71,187 | $110,880 | $82,686 |
| Political Science and GovernmentBachelor's | Bachelor's | 54 | $11,532 | $41,055 | $80,714 | $63,293 |
| Research and Experimental PsychologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 50 | $13,750 | $47,376 | Withheld | - |
| Natural Resources Conservation and ResearchBachelor's | Bachelor's | 49 | $9,614 | $38,437 | Withheld | $55,012 |
| Biology, GeneralBachelor's | Bachelor's | 43 | $12,850 | $30,613 | Withheld | $57,214 |
| MathematicsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 29 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $69,562 |
| SociologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 28 | $13,442 | $42,170 | Withheld | $52,657 |
| Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular BiologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 26 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $65,466 |
| English Language and Literature, GeneralBachelor's | Bachelor's | 25 | Withheld | $40,233 | $62,082 | $48,590 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and LinguisticsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 17 | Withheld | $40,395 | Withheld | $55,000 |
| Neurobiology and NeurosciencesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 17 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $62,451 |
| PhysicsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 16 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $76,786 |
| HistoryBachelor's | Bachelor's | 16 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $50,680 |
| AnthropologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 12 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $46,676 |
| Fine and Studio ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 11 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $41,367 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 10 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $48,471 |
| Religion/Religious StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 10 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $41,390 |
| Area StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 9 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $56,625 |
| Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 8 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $51,710 |
| PhilosophyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 8 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $54,455 |
| Geological and Earth Sciences/GeosciencesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 7 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $60,190 |
| ChemistryBachelor's | Bachelor's | 6 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | - |
| Classical and Ancient StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 4 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $50,477 |
| DanceBachelor's | Bachelor's | 4 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $39,980 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and StagecraftBachelor's | Bachelor's | 3 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $39,775 |
In the area
- Jobs, pay and new homes: the county of Lewiston and Maine on Local Economy
- More colleges: All colleges in Maine
- Homes: Homes for sale in Maine
Questions and answers
How much does Bates College cost?
$29,351 a year is the average net price at Bates College after grants and scholarships. Tuition and fees are $66,590, and the full cost of attendance with housing, food and books is $83,532. Families earning under $30,000 pay $2,397 on average.
What is the acceptance rate at Bates College?
13% of applicants are admitted to Bates College. The average SAT score of admitted students is 1,468. The median admission rate of colleges in Maine is 80%.
How much do Bates College graduates earn?
$69,498 a year is the median pay of former Bates College students who work, 10 years after they started ($59,202 after 6 years). That ranks 390 of 5,094 US colleges and 5 of 32 in Maine. Its best-paid program one year after graduation is Economics (Bachelor's) at $71,187.
How much student debt do Bates College graduates have?
$14,275 is the median federal student loan debt of Bates College graduates, about $151 a month over 10 years. The median across US colleges is $13,271. 14% of undergraduates take out federal loans.
What is the graduation rate at Bates College?
90% of first-time, full-time students at Bates College finish within 6 years. 91% of first-year students come back for a second year. The median of private nonprofit 4-year colleges is 57%.
What are the most popular majors at Bates College?
Economics (65 bachelor's graduates), Political Science and Government (54 bachelor's graduates), Research and Experimental Psychology (50 bachelor's graduates) had the most graduates in the newest year, out of 32 programs.
Official public data, June 2026 release. Net price is for first-time, full-time students who get aid. Completion counts first-time, full-time students who finish within 150% of the normal time. Debt and earnings are medians of students who received federal student aid, measured a few years after they left, in the dollars of the year measured; earnings count former students who work and are not enrolled, including those who did not finish.