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College Ledger

Statement · East Lansing, MI

Michigan State University

Public4-year · Bachelor's degreesCompare with other schools →

  1. Families earning under $30k paid $7,068 a year after grants and aid, against a published cost of $32,198.

  2. Students who received federal aid earned a median $67,253 ten years after entering, the 88th percentile among public 4-years.

  3. 81% of students finish within 150% of normal time.

Founded
1855
Enrollment, 2023
54,390
Website
msu.edu
Campus of Michigan State University

No machine-readable author provided. Lovelac7~commonswiki assumed (based on c… · CC BY-SA 3.0

AboutPublic university in East Lansing, Michigan, US. Wikipedia ↗

Read the Wikipedia extract

Michigan State University is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the country. After the introduction of the Morrill Act in 1862, the state designated the college a land-grant institution in 1863, making it the first of the land-grant colleges in the United States. The college became coeducational in 1870. Michigan State has facilities across the state, and over 550,500 alumni.

From the Wikipedia article “Michigan State University”, revision 1363473298, used under CC BY-SA 4.0.

What it costs

The published sticker cost is $32,198 a year; after grants, families who received aid paid between $7,068 and $28,546 a year depending on income at Michigan State University.

Statement of cost · Michigan State University

Family income (per year)
Sticker costPublished yearly cost of attendance, all students
$32,198
What families earning under $30k paidYearly net price after grants, for students receiving federal aid
$7,068
Average net price, all incomesAided students, all family incomes
$19,680
In-state tuition & feesLatest reported, 2024
$16,458

Each figure is reported separately; none is computed from another.

Net price by family income

Pick an income bracket above; the marked point follows. Dollars are what aided families paid each year after grants.

Yearly net price by family income, in dollars

under $30k: $7,068; $30–48k: $10,830; $48–75k: $16,521; $75–110k: $22,703; over $110k: $28,546. Shaded band: middle half of public 4-years, from $8,778 to $16,425; dotted line at the median, $12,780.
  • Shaded: the middle half of public 4-years (all incomes), $8,778 to $16,425. Dotted line: the median, $12,780.
Table of the same numbers
Average yearly net price by family income bracket
Family incomePaid per year
Under $30k$7,068
$30k–$48k$10,830
$48k–$75k$16,521
$75k–$110k$22,703
Over $110k$28,546

College Scorecard, 2023–24 aid cohort (students who received federal aid)

What graduates earn and owe

Ten years after entry, the median federally aided student here earns $67,253; the median graduate who borrowed owes $23,250.

Statement, continued

Earnings, 6 years after entryFederally aided (Title IV) students only. Median.
$55,084
Earnings, 8 years after entryFederally aided (Title IV) students only. Median.
$62,777
Median earnings 10 years after entryFederally aided (Title IV) students only. Median.
88th percentile among public 4-years
$67,253
Median debt, graduatesStudents who finished and borrowed federal loans.
81st percentile among public 4-years
$23,250
Median debt, all who borrowedEveryone who borrowed, whether or not they finished.
$19,500

Earnings and debt come from federal aid records, so students who never received federal aid are not counted.

Earnings after entry

The shaded band is the middle half of public 4-years at 10 years: $42,655 to $60,720.

6 yrs after entry: $55,084; 8 yrs after entry: $62,777; 10 yrs after entry: $67,253. Median graduate debt: $23,250. Shaded band: middle half of public 4-years at 10 years, from $42,655 to $60,720; dotted line at the median, $50,178.
  • Shaded: middle half of public 4-years, 10 years out ($42,655 to $60,720); dotted line is the median.
  • Dashed: median graduate debt, $23,250.

Earnings cover federally aided (Title IV) students only. Hollow marks are rungs with no reported value, not zero.

Table of the same numbers
Earnings after entry and graduate debt
MeasureDollars
Median earnings, 6 yrs after entry$55,084
Median earnings, 8 yrs after entry$62,777
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry$67,253
Median graduate debt$23,250

College Scorecard, federal tax and aid records

What programs pay

Median earnings five years after completing, by field of study. Small programs are privacy-suppressed and shown as not reported, never zero.

What programs pay at Michigan State University
ProgramCredentialGraduatesEarnings, 5 yrsMedian debt
Biology, GeneralBachelor's Degree516$66,211$26,849
Psychology, GeneralBachelor's Degree496$56,392$25,250
MedicineFirst Professional Degree463$208,932not reported
Business Administration, Management and OperationsBachelor's Degree448$90,299$23,250
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied CommunicationBachelor's Degree444$71,448$23,899
Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralBachelor's Degree372$105,539$24,022
Finance and Financial Management ServicesBachelor's Degree350$99,263$23,250
Communication and Media StudiesBachelor's Degree348$66,407$26,750
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/FitnessBachelor's Degree298$68,711$26,000
Mechanical EngineeringBachelor's Degree279$99,381$24,000
EconomicsBachelor's Degree274$81,373$24,250
MarketingBachelor's Degree255$88,000$23,896
Show all 26 programs
Remaining programs
ProgramCredentialGraduatesEarnings, 5 yrsMedian debt
Neurobiology and NeurosciencesBachelor's Degree247$64,682$25,020
Criminal Justice and CorrectionsBachelor's Degree232$66,284$26,000
LawFirst Professional Degree231$91,995not reported
Business Administration, Management and OperationsMaster's Degree214$129,236not reported
Management Sciences and Quantitative MethodsMaster's Degree201$124,994not reported
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingBachelor's Degree189$79,580$28,500
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied ProfessionsMaster's Degree167$61,065not reported
Engineering-Related FieldsBachelor's Degree160$96,014$23,756
Business/Commerce, GeneralMaster's Degree112$162,832not reported
Veterinary MedicineFirst Professional Degree112$124,687not reported
Human Resources Management and ServicesMaster's Degree51$119,367not reported
Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralMaster's Degree34not reportednot reported
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingMaster's Degree10$121,949not reported
ChemistryDoctoral Degree28not reportednot reported

Source: College Scorecard field-of-study data.

Who goes here

Michigan State University: 40,922 undergraduates; 20% of students receive Pell grants; 85% of applicants are admitted.

Admission rate

85%

53rd percentile among public 4-years

Undergraduates

40,922

98th percentile among public 4-years

Pell share

20%

of undergraduates receive Pell grants

17th percentile among public 4-years

Completion

81%

finish within 150% of normal time

95th percentile among public 4-years

First-generation

21%

parents did not attend college

Median family income

$70,982

92nd percentile among public 4-years

Students by family income

Share of students in each family-income bracket, for students who received federal aid.

  • Under $30k23%
  • $30k–$48k11%
  • $48k–$75k13%
  • $75k–$110knot reported
  • Over $110knot reported
Show as a table
Students by family income
Family incomeShare of students
Under $30k23%
$30k–$48k11%
$48k–$75k13%
$75k–$110knot reported
Over $110knot reported

Who Wikipedia remembers

Wikidata records 5,542 people who studied at Michigan State University, most often in science & academia (53%). That is the archive's memory, not a census.

What the recorded alumni are remembered for

Share of recorded people by field, in a fixed order so schools compare.

Fields of the people the archive recorded for this school, in a fixed order: science & academia 53% (2,591 people); medicine 1.1% (55 people); law 1.8% (88 people); politics & gov 5.6% (276 people); business 2.0% (98 people); engineering & tech 2.0% (98 people); writing & journalism 4.6% (225 people); film & stage 2.1% (103 people); music 1.8% (91 people); visual arts 1.3% (65 people); sports 24% (1,179 people); religion 0.4% (18 people); military 0.5% (25 people). These are shares of people recorded in Wikidata, the archive's memory, not a census of alumni.
Table of the same numbers
Fields of the people the archive recorded for this school (the archive's memory, not a census)
FieldPeople recordedShare
science & academia2,59152.8%
medicine551.1%
law881.8%
politics & gov2765.6%
business982.0%
engineering & tech982.0%
writing & journalism2254.6%
film & stage1032.1%
music911.8%
visual arts651.3%
sports1,17924.0%
religion180.4%
military250.5%

Source: Wikidata, via the archive's memory (not a census).

most recorded occupationsresearcher (1,766) · basketball player (560) · university teacher (459) · American football player (386) · politician (258) · writer (125) · mathematician (101) · economist (98)

Women among recorded alumni, by birth decade

Counts reflect who the archive records, not a census.

Share of women among recorded alumni, from 7% for the 1860s to 37% for the 2000s. Decades with fewer than 5 recorded people are not drawn, and 3 decades are marked not reported for women. The line breaks at every decade not drawn.

Counts only people the archive records with a gender. Hollow marks are decades with no women reported or fewer than 5 recorded, not zero.

Table of the same numbers
Recorded alumni by birth decade
BornWomenMenShare women
1830snot reported1not reported
1840snot reported6not reported
1850snot reported11not reported
1860s1137%
1870s31517%
1880s61529%
1890s1224%
1900s3437%
1910s87610%
1920s2214513%
1930s2925210%
1940s5027315%
1950s6223321%
1960s4718221%
1970s4116520%
1980s3717218%
1990s2513416%
2000s264537%

Source: Wikidata, via the archive's memory (not a census).

Wikipedia attention, by month

Wikipedia attention

monthly views

Monthly Wikipedia article views from 2015-07 to 2026-06; peak 85,283 in 2023-02.
Table of the same numbers
Wikipedia article views by month
MonthViews
2026-0612,471
2026-0514,190
2026-0415,332
2026-0317,604
2026-0213,886
2026-0116,852
2025-1218,390
2025-1118,464
2025-1018,244
2025-0919,353
2025-0817,401
2025-0714,402
2025-0614,476
2025-0515,645
2025-0417,719
2025-0329,502
2025-0218,374
2025-0121,133
2024-1220,783
2024-1121,888
2024-1023,390
2024-0924,692
2024-0822,410
2024-0719,493
2024-0615,739
2024-0519,688
2024-0421,395
2024-0328,300
2024-0224,107
2024-0133,783
2023-1225,977
2023-1128,926
2023-1027,293
2023-0932,237
2023-0826,200
2023-0723,633
2023-0620,416
2023-0526,379
2023-0422,161
2023-0333,760
2023-0285,283
2023-0124,030
2022-1224,916
2022-1130,665
2022-1029,975
2022-0926,579
2022-0824,319
2022-0721,757
2022-0618,915
2022-0520,313
2022-0422,192
2022-0325,911
2022-0223,007
2022-0129,300
2021-1231,223
2021-1131,196
2021-1032,147
2021-0925,387
2021-0821,785
2021-0721,693
2021-0615,101
2021-0516,887
2021-0418,289
2021-0322,843
2021-0217,682
2021-0120,037
2020-1221,967
2020-1124,431
2020-1024,926
2020-0918,303
2020-0819,936
2020-0717,983
2020-0617,518
2020-0524,445
2020-0428,323
2020-0323,783
2020-0225,105
2020-0127,454
2019-1230,097
2019-1130,070
2019-1030,714
2019-0930,716
2019-0825,257
2019-0720,560
2019-0620,332
2019-0523,216
2019-0434,527
2019-0337,334
2019-0222,988
2019-0132,647
2018-1233,309
2018-1136,733
2018-1039,844
2018-0935,137
2018-0832,724
2018-0727,459
2018-0625,393
2018-0533,814
2018-0429,189
2018-0336,627
2018-0229,331
2018-0147,699
2017-1225,238
2017-1130,195
2017-1029,511
2017-0926,941
2017-0823,340
2017-0720,211
2017-0619,761
2017-0522,998
2017-0423,314
2017-0334,226
2017-0226,504
2017-0128,700
2016-1227,223
2016-1131,344
2016-1033,470
2016-0934,736
2016-0825,602
2016-0722,652
2016-0620,683
2016-0525,511
2016-0424,779
2016-0331,364
2016-0227,650
2016-0132,278
2015-1233,087
2015-1136,150
2015-1041,105
2015-0932,662
2015-0823,839
2015-0721,647

Source: Wikimedia pageviews.

Nobel laureates who studied here

  • Alfred Hershey Medicine 1969

The portrait wall

Ordered by Wikipedia footprint (language editions).

Show all 15 portraits

Similar schools

These are the nearest neighbors in the same sector. The list is not an ordering.

Sources & caveats

Figures come from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Built 2026-07-17.

not reported
Not reported: suppressed for privacy or never collected. It is not zero, and nothing has been filled in.
Percentiles
A percentile compares this school with others in its own sector (for example, public 4-year schools). It describes position, not quality.
Earnings
Earnings cover students who received federal (Title IV) aid, measured from the year they entered. Students who never received federal aid are not included.
Provenance notes
  • U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard, 2026-06 release. Earnings cover federally aided (Title IV) students only. Suppressed values are null, never imputed.
  • Annual Scorecard files 1996-2026. A null in early years usually means the measure was not yet collected, not zero.
  • Coordinates and locale describe the campus address, not where students live.
  • Wikidata is not an alumni census: a person appears only when volunteer editors record them. Counts measure the archive's memory - access x achievement x documentation - never placement rates or institutional quality.
  • Images are from Wikimedia Commons under free licenses. Render the credit line (artist + license) with every image.

Lead text from Wikipedia (revision 1363473298), licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.