Emerson College
Boston, Massachusetts · Also known as Emerson · Website
$62,832
median earnings, 10 years after starting
$62,832
median earnings, 10 years after starting
Emerson College is a private nonprofit 4-year college in Boston, Massachusetts with 3,870 undergraduates and 1,355 graduate students. Its average net price after grants is $49,180 a year (tuition and fees $57,056). It admits 51% of applicants and 77% of students finish within 6 years. Former students earn a median $62,832 a year 10 years after they started, and graduates leave with a median $23,000 in federal student loans.
Updated Oct 10, 2026 · June 2026 data
Net price
$49,180
US median $17,138
Tuition and fees
$57,056
US median $11,837
Admission rate
51%
US median 78%
Completion rate
77%
Within 6 years, US 58%
Median debt
$23,000
About $244 a month
Earnings at 10 years
$62,832
Rank 636 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
- $49,180
- Tuition and fees
- $57,056
- Cost of attendance
- $80,399
- Students with a need-based grant
- 16%
- Students with federal loans
- 43%
- Net price, family income under $30K
- $32,650
- Net price, family income $30K to $48K
- $32,621
- Net price, family income $48K to $75K
- $41,927
- Net price, family income $75K to $110K
- $46,252
- Net price, family income over $110K
- $57,288
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 $41,052 in 2015-16 to $57,056 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
- 51%
- Average SAT
- 1,358
- SAT reading, middle
- 665
- SAT math, middle
- 635
- ACT, middle
- 30
- Undergraduates
- 3,870
- Graduate students
- 1,355
- Part-time students
- 1.0%
- Women
- 66%
- Students per teacher
- 14
- Completion rate
- 77%
- Retention rate
- 87%
- Highest degree
- Graduate degree
- Programs
- 25
- Endowment
- $264.7M
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 636 of 5,094 US colleges and 36 of 106 in Massachusetts (1 = highest).
| Measure | College | MA median | Same kind | US median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net price | $49,180 | $24,402 | $22,320 | $17,138 |
| Tuition in-state | $57,056 | $34,256 | $31,170 | $11,837 |
| Admission rate | 51% | 71% | 74% | 78% |
| Completion rate | 77% | 69% | 57% | 58% |
| Retention rate | 87% | 79% | 77% | 75% |
| Median debt | $23,000 | $21,882 | $24,287 | $13,271 |
| Earnings after 6 years | $42,799 | $46,320 | $44,392 | $35,656 |
| Earnings after 10 years | $62,832 | $53,104 | $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. 78% of borrowers lowered their balance within 3 years. 64% earn more than a typical high school graduate 6 years after starting.
Programs
25 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Communication Disorders Sciences and ServicesMaster's | Master's | 309 | $54,435 | $61,401 | $74,005 | $67,030 |
| Film/Video and Photographic ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 298 | $23,250 | $27,032 | $49,951 | $43,765 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and StagecraftBachelor's | Bachelor's | 102 | $25,000 | $19,560 | $44,760 | $39,775 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 92 | $23,776 | $33,441 | $51,742 | $48,471 |
| JournalismBachelor's | Bachelor's | 68 | $23,610 | $39,703 | $63,337 | $56,278 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing StudiesMaster's | Master's | 67 | $61,500 | $40,714 | $56,485 | $55,035 |
| Business/Commerce, GeneralBachelor's | Bachelor's | 50 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $68,407 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied CommunicationBachelor's | Bachelor's | 44 | $23,719 | $28,606 | $59,301 | $63,560 |
| MarketingBachelor's | Bachelor's | 41 | $21,500 | $41,651 | $76,623 | $69,303 |
| MarketingMaster's | Master's | 35 | $41,000 | $67,474 | $93,412 | $79,106 |
| PublishingMaster's | Master's | 33 | $44,360 | $44,046 | $61,304 | $63,992 |
| Communication and Media StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 24 | $23,717 | $44,108 | $59,202 | $56,359 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject AreasMaster's | Master's | 22 | $41,000 | $40,575 | $57,493 | $63,707 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and StagecraftMaster's | Master's | 21 | $41,000 | $39,309 | $53,881 | $49,978 |
| Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, OtherBachelor's | Bachelor's | 19 | $23,500 | $39,183 | $49,381 | $55,693 |
| Communication and Media StudiesMaster's | Master's | 17 | Withheld | Withheld | $46,040 | $71,953 |
| JournalismMaster's | Master's | 17 | Withheld | $43,011 | $48,294 | $69,034 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied CommunicationMaster's | Master's | 11 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $80,125 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject AreasBachelor's | Bachelor's | 11 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $51,389 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and ServicesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 9 | $26,000 | Withheld | $61,496 | $58,928 |
| Radio, Television, and Digital CommunicationMaster's | Master's | 6 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $75,972 |
| MusicBachelor's | Bachelor's | 2 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | - |
| Radio, Television, and Digital CommunicationBachelor's | Bachelor's | 1 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $50,497 |
| Graphic CommunicationsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 0 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | - |
| Business/Corporate CommunicationsMaster's | Master's | 0 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $83,290 |
In the area
- Jobs, pay and new homes: the county of Boston and Massachusetts on Local Economy
- More colleges: All colleges in Massachusetts
- Homes: Homes for sale in Massachusetts
Questions and answers
How much does Emerson College cost?
$49,180 a year is the average net price at Emerson College after grants and scholarships. Tuition and fees are $57,056, and the full cost of attendance with housing, food and books is $80,399. Families earning under $30,000 pay $32,650 on average.
What is the acceptance rate at Emerson College?
51% of applicants are admitted to Emerson College. The average SAT score of admitted students is 1,358 and the middle ACT score is 30. The median admission rate of colleges in Massachusetts is 71%.
How much do Emerson College graduates earn?
$62,832 a year is the median pay of former Emerson College students who work, 10 years after they started ($42,799 after 6 years). That ranks 636 of 5,094 US colleges and 36 of 106 in Massachusetts. Its best-paid program one year after graduation is Marketing (Master's) at $67,474.
How much student debt do Emerson College graduates have?
$23,000 is the median federal student loan debt of Emerson College graduates, about $244 a month over 10 years. The median across US colleges is $13,271. 43% of undergraduates take out federal loans.
What is the graduation rate at Emerson College?
77% of first-time, full-time students at Emerson College finish within 6 years. 87% 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 Emerson College?
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (309 master's graduates), Film/Video and Photographic Arts (298 bachelor's graduates), Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (102 bachelor's graduates) had the most graduates in the newest year, out of 25 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.