Grand Valley State University

Overview

Rankings

• #3 Best Communications Colleges in Michigan
• #5 Best Business Colleges in Michigan
• #6 Best MBA Programs in Michigan
• #7 Best Biology Colleges in Michigan
• #8 Best Education Colleges in Michigan
• #9 Best Online Colleges in Michigan
• #10 Best Colleges in Michigan
• #10 Best Computer Science Colleges in Michigan

Academics & Admissions

Is It Hard to Get Into Grand Valley State University? Acceptance Rate & Requirements

Based in Allendale, Michigan, Grand Valley State University admits most of the students who apply; the acceptance rate is roughly 83%. Admitted students typically arrive with an average SAT score near 1,074. The graduation rate is roughly 68%.

Acceptance Rate

83%

Retention Rate

76%

SAT Average

1074

SAT Range

940–1190

ACT Range

22–30

Full-Time Faculty

66%

Faculty Salary (mo)

$10,156

Student–Faculty Ratio

15:1

Diversity Index

0.43

First-Gen Students

27%

Applicants

17,123

Admitted

15,474

Inside the Admissions Office

School-reported Common Data Set · 2025-26

The acceptance rate tells you how hard Grand Valley State University is to get into. Its Common Data Set tells you what happens once you are admitted: how many students say yes, how many arrived without test scores, and whether applying early tilts the odds. 17% of admitted students go on to enroll here, making it a school most admitted students ultimately pass on.

Yield Rate

17%

of admits enroll

Submitted SAT

54%

of enrolled freshmen

Submitted ACT

3%

of enrolled freshmen

Cost & Financial Aid

How Much Does It Cost to Attend Grand Valley State University? Tuition, Net Price & Aid

Published tuition at Grand Valley State University is $21,548, but few families pay that. The number to watch is net price, what students actually pay each year after federal grants and institutional scholarships. Here it averages about $16,317. Students from families earning under $30,000 typically pay closer to $12,272 after need-based grants. The median graduate leaves with about $24,500 in federal student loans.

In-State Tuition

$15,140

Out-of-State

$21,548

Avg Net Price

$16,317

Median Debt

$24,500

Pell Grant Rate

29%

Federal Loan Rate

50%

Students Like You

Tell us a little about yourself to see what students like you have typically experienced at Grand Valley State University — the net price for your income, your admission odds, and the outcomes that follow. These are patterns from federal data, not predictions.

Graduate Outcomes

Is Grand Valley State University Worth It? Graduate Earnings & ROI

Ten years out, alumni of Grand Valley State University earn a median of $56,118, roughly in line with the national average for college graduates.

6 Years After Entry

$47,840

8 Years

$51,712

10 Years

$56,118

Debt-to-Earnings

0.44x

Earning > $25K

69%

Social Mobility

Data: Raj Chetty's Mobility Report Card · 30M+ anonymized tax records

Does Grand Valley State University Drive Upward Mobility? Economic Mobility & Low-Income Outcomes

Grand Valley State University is a measurable contributor to upward mobility. Its mobility rate, the share of students who start in the bottom income quintile and climb to the top, is 0.79%, in line with strong performers nationally. Access is narrower: only about 3.4% of students come from the bottom income quintile, typical of more selective, higher-income institutions. Among bottom-quintile students who attend, roughly 23.3% go on to reach the top of the income ladder. The median family income of students sits near $96,400, a snapshot of the campus's socioeconomic mix.

Mobility Rate

0.79%

Bottom 20% → Top 20%

Success Rate

23.3%

If bottom 20% get in

From Bottom 20%

3.4%

Share of students

Parent Median Income

$130,974

today's $ (2015 cohort data)

Social Capital

Data: Opportunity Insights Social Capital Atlas

How Connected Is Grand Valley State University? Social Capital & Cross-Class Networks

Social capital, the web of cross-class friendships that researchers link to long-run upward mobility, runs high at Grand Valley State University. Its economic connectedness score is 1.70, where about 1.0 is the national norm. Its friending bias is low (-0.01), a sign that students from different economic backgrounds actually mix rather than self-segregate. Around 8% of students take part in civic and volunteering activity.

Economic Connectedness

1.70

Cross-class friendships

Friending Bias

-0.01

Lower = more inclusive

Volunteering Rate

8.1%

Support Ratio

0.98

Community support

Innovation & Knowledge Creation

Patents, inventors, and research influence · Opportunity Insights & Times Higher Education

Grand Valley State University produces inventors at a measurable rate, with 95 patents tied to its graduates.

Inventor Rate

0.37%

Top 58% nationally

Patents Produced

95

Linked to graduates

Patent Citations

454

Downstream influence

Institutional Finances

Data: NCES IPEDS

Investment Income

$-15,962,718

Top Programs

The fields Grand Valley State University awards the most degrees in, by share of completions. Where federal field-of-study data exists, we show what graduates in that major earned early in their careers. Each links to its degree guide — or see what someone with your income, scores, and major would pay and earn here in the Students Like You simulator.

• Business & Marketing 22% $65,530 early-career
• Health Professions 14% $68,363 early-career
• Biology & Biomedical 8% $46,733 early-career
• Education 6% $43,729 early-career
• Psychology 5% $35,410 early-career
• Communications 5% $44,143 early-career
• Computer Science & IT 4% $78,384 early-career
• Social Sciences 4% $50,714 early-career

Early-career median earnings by major (typically 1–2 years after completion, bachelor's level where available), in today's dollars (CPI-adjusted). Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard field of study. Distinct from the school-wide 10-year median; suppressed for small programs.