University of Puget Sound

Overview

Rankings

• #9 Best Communications Colleges in Washington
• #11 Best Biology Colleges in Washington
• #12 Best Colleges in Washington
• #12 Best Bachelor's Programs in Washington
• #13 Best Business Colleges in Washington
• #15 Best Computer Science Colleges in Washington
• #15 Best Psychology Colleges in Washington
• #15 Best Data Science Colleges in Washington

Academics & Admissions

Is It Hard to Get Into University of Puget Sound? Acceptance Rate & Requirements

As a private institution in Tacoma, Washington, University of Puget Sound admits most of the students who apply; the acceptance rate is roughly 72%. Admitted students typically arrive with an average SAT score near 1,296. The graduation rate is roughly 68%.

Acceptance Rate

72%

Retention Rate

84%

SAT Average

1296

ACT Midpoint

29

SAT Range

1170–1380

ACT Range

27–31

Full-Time Faculty

75%

Faculty Salary (mo)

$10,726

Student–Faculty Ratio

9:1

Diversity Index

0.54

First-Gen Students

12%

Applicants

5,345

Admitted

4,418

Inside the Admissions Office

School-reported Common Data Set · 2024-25

The acceptance rate tells you how hard University of Puget Sound 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. 11% of admitted students go on to enroll here, making it a school most admitted students ultimately pass on.

Yield Rate

11%

of admits enroll

Submitted SAT

31%

of enrolled freshmen

Submitted ACT

10%

of enrolled freshmen

Early Decision Admit Rate

84.4%

vs 72.2% overall

Cost & Financial Aid

How Much Does It Cost to Attend University of Puget Sound? Tuition, Net Price & Aid

Published tuition at University of Puget Sound is $62,898, 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 $38,394. Students from families earning under $30,000 typically pay closer to $23,643 after need-based grants. The median graduate leaves with about $25,000 in federal student loans.

In-State Tuition

$62,898

Out-of-State

$62,898

Avg Net Price

$38,394

Median Debt

$25,000

Pell Grant Rate

17%

Federal Loan Rate

43%

Students Like You

Tell us a little about yourself to see what students like you have typically experienced at University of Puget Sound — 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 University of Puget Sound Worth It? Graduate Earnings & ROI

Ten years out, alumni of University of Puget Sound earn a median of $69,594, roughly in line with the national average for college graduates.

6 Years After Entry

$46,802

8 Years

$55,567

10 Years

$69,594

Debt-to-Earnings

0.36x

Earning > $25K

69%

Social Mobility

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

Does University of Puget Sound Drive Upward Mobility? Economic Mobility & Low-Income Outcomes

University of Puget Sound 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 0.74%, in line with strong performers nationally. Access is narrower: only about 2.3% of students come from the bottom income quintile, typical of more selective, higher-income institutions. Among bottom-quintile students who attend, roughly 32.3% go on to reach the top of the income ladder. The median family income of students sits near $129,700, a snapshot of the campus's socioeconomic mix.

Mobility Rate

0.74%

Bottom 20% → Top 20%

Success Rate

32.3%

If bottom 20% get in

From Bottom 20%

2.3%

Share of students

Parent Median Income

$176,217

today's $ (2015 cohort data)

Social Capital

Data: Opportunity Insights Social Capital Atlas

How Connected Is University of Puget Sound? Social Capital & Cross-Class Networks

Social capital, the web of cross-class friendships that researchers link to long-run upward mobility, runs high at University of Puget Sound. Its economic connectedness score is 1.82, 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 13% of students take part in civic and volunteering activity.

Economic Connectedness

1.82

Cross-class friendships

Friending Bias

-0.01

Lower = more inclusive

Volunteering Rate

13.3%

Support Ratio

1.00

Community support

Innovation & Knowledge Creation

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

University of Puget Sound produces inventors at a measurable rate, with 28 patents tied to its graduates.

Inventor Rate

0.72%

Top 32% nationally

Patents Produced

28

Linked to graduates

Institutional Finances

Data: NCES IPEDS

Federal Grants

$6,484,000

Investment Income

$-29,568,000

Top Programs

The fields University of Puget Sound 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.

• Social Sciences 15% $49,387 early-career
• Business & Marketing 12% $49,653 early-career
• Visual & Performing Arts 8% $31,787 early-career
• Biology & Biomedical 7% $45,495 early-career
• Psychology 7% $38,417 early-career
• English & Literature 6% $37,842 early-career
• Communications 5% $40,390 early-career
• Computer Science & IT 4% $49,387 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.