Columbia College Chicago
Chicago, Illinois · Website
$42,195
median earnings, 10 years after starting
$42,195
median earnings, 10 years after starting
Columbia College Chicago is a private nonprofit 4-year college in Chicago, Illinois with 5,368 undergraduates and 148 graduate students. Its average net price after grants is $26,598 a year (tuition and fees $34,088). It admits 89% of applicants and 52% of students finish within 6 years. Former students earn a median $42,195 a year 10 years after they started, and graduates leave with a median $25,000 in federal student loans.
Updated Oct 10, 2026 · June 2026 data
Net price
$26,598
US median $17,138
Tuition and fees
$34,088
US median $11,837
Admission rate
89%
US median 78%
Completion rate
52%
Within 6 years, US 58%
Median debt
$25,000
About $265 a month
Earnings at 10 years
$42,195
Rank 2,337 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
- $26,598
- Tuition and fees
- $34,088
- Cost of attendance
- $51,889
- Students with a need-based grant
- 46%
- Students with federal loans
- 56%
- Net price, family income under $30K
- $20,924
- Net price, family income $30K to $48K
- $21,423
- Net price, family income $48K to $75K
- $25,590
- Net price, family income $75K to $110K
- $31,677
- Net price, family income over $110K
- $36,436
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 $24,344 in 2015-16 to $34,088 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
- 89%
- Undergraduates
- 5,368
- Graduate students
- 148
- Part-time students
- 4.1%
- Women
- 60%
- Students per teacher
- 15
- Completion rate
- 52%
- Retention rate
- 66%
- Highest degree
- Graduate degree
- Programs
- 39
- Endowment
- $192.0M
- Other
- Hispanic-serving
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 2,337 of 5,094 US colleges and 84 of 189 in Illinois (1 = highest).
| Measure | College | IL median | Same kind | US median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net price | $26,598 | $15,156 | $22,320 | $17,138 |
| Tuition in-state | $34,088 | $13,291 | $31,170 | $11,837 |
| Admission rate | 89% | 77% | 74% | 78% |
| Completion rate | 52% | 59% | 57% | 58% |
| Retention rate | 66% | 72% | 77% | 75% |
| Median debt | $25,000 | $10,297 | $24,287 | $13,271 |
| Earnings after 6 years | $32,596 | $34,234 | $44,392 | $35,656 |
| Earnings after 10 years | $42,195 | $39,544 | $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. 46% of borrowers lowered their balance within 3 years. 54% earn more than a typical high school graduate 6 years after starting.
Programs
39 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design and Applied ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 258 | $24,500 | $29,630 | $48,601 | $51,490 |
| Graphic CommunicationsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 212 | $20,000 | $26,309 | $43,970 | $43,283 |
| Film/Video and Photographic ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 162 | $25,000 | $23,905 | $41,200 | $43,765 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and StagecraftBachelor's | Bachelor's | 140 | $25,500 | $17,929 | $39,986 | $39,775 |
| Arts, Entertainment, and Media ManagementBachelor's | Bachelor's | 90 | $25,000 | $23,844 | $50,592 | $48,240 |
| MusicBachelor's | Bachelor's | 53 | $25,625 | $19,943 | $40,734 | $42,892 |
| Fine and Studio ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 52 | $25,000 | $22,765 | $42,176 | $41,367 |
| MarketingBachelor's | Bachelor's | 47 | $25,250 | $36,386 | $65,686 | $69,303 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 46 | $27,000 | $25,060 | $39,751 | $48,471 |
| Radio, Television, and Digital CommunicationBachelor's | Bachelor's | 42 | $23,400 | $24,191 | $54,357 | $50,497 |
| PhysicsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 30 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $76,786 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing StudiesMaster's | Master's | 29 | $48,604 | $33,972 | $57,240 | $55,035 |
| JournalismBachelor's | Bachelor's | 27 | $24,525 | $31,369 | $51,639 | $56,278 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied CommunicationBachelor's | Bachelor's | 27 | $24,225 | $39,794 | $66,798 | $63,560 |
| Audiovisual Communications Technologies/TechniciansBachelor's | Bachelor's | 24 | $26,250 | $20,927 | $43,731 | $44,889 |
| Communication and Media StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 20 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $56,359 |
| American Sign LanguageBachelor's | Bachelor's | 19 | $26,000 | $33,775 | $45,619 | $45,044 |
| Arts, Entertainment, and Media ManagementMaster's | Master's | 16 | Withheld | Withheld | $60,136 | $59,685 |
| DanceBachelor's | Bachelor's | 15 | $27,000 | Withheld | $41,842 | $39,980 |
| Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, OtherBachelor's | Bachelor's | 14 | $26,000 | $25,999 | $49,593 | $55,693 |
| MusicMaster's | Master's | 14 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $48,285 |
| Film/Video and Photographic ArtsMaster's | Master's | 10 | $83,900 | $35,483 | $53,147 | $51,486 |
| Business/Corporate CommunicationsMaster's | Master's | 10 | - | - | Withheld | - |
| Fine and Studio ArtsMaster's | Master's | 8 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $49,079 |
| Computer ProgrammingBachelor's | Bachelor's | 7 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $83,439 |
In the area
- Jobs, pay and new homes: the county of Chicago and Illinois on Local Economy
- More colleges: All colleges in Illinois
- Homes: Homes for sale in Illinois
Questions and answers
How much does Columbia College Chicago cost?
$26,598 a year is the average net price at Columbia College Chicago after grants and scholarships. Tuition and fees are $34,088, and the full cost of attendance with housing, food and books is $51,889. Families earning under $30,000 pay $20,924 on average.
What is the acceptance rate at Columbia College Chicago?
89% of applicants are admitted to Columbia College Chicago. The median admission rate of colleges in Illinois is 77%.
How much do Columbia College Chicago graduates earn?
$42,195 a year is the median pay of former Columbia College Chicago students who work, 10 years after they started ($32,596 after 6 years). That ranks 2,337 of 5,094 US colleges and 84 of 189 in Illinois. Its best-paid program one year after graduation is Movement and Mind-Body Therapies and Education (Master's) at $47,970.
How much student debt do Columbia College Chicago graduates have?
$25,000 is the median federal student loan debt of Columbia College Chicago graduates, about $265 a month over 10 years. The median across US colleges is $13,271. 56% of undergraduates take out federal loans.
What is the graduation rate at Columbia College Chicago?
52% of first-time, full-time students at Columbia College Chicago finish within 6 years. 66% 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 Columbia College Chicago?
Design and Applied Arts (258 bachelor's graduates), Graphic Communications (212 bachelor's graduates), Film/Video and Photographic Arts (162 bachelor's graduates) had the most graduates in the newest year, out of 39 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.