Public · University
Chicago State University
Chicago, Illinois · Large city
- 43.3%
- Admit rate
- $12,335
- Avg net price
- 15%
- Graduation rate
- $42,778
- Median earnings
Chicago State University is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Chicago, Illinois (large city setting), enrolling 1,384 undergraduates.
About Chicago, Illinois
Chicago is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. The first known permanent settler in Chicago was a trader, Jean Baptiste Point du Sable. Du Sable was of African descent, perhaps born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (Haiti), and he established the settlement in the 1780s. He is commonly known as the "Founder of Chicago". Chicago has the third-largest gross metropolitan product in the United States—about $670.5 billion according to September 2017 estimates. The city has also been rated as having the most balanced economy in the United States, due to its high level of diversification. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Large city
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 11 miles to Chicago, IL
- To Great Lakes shore
- 4 miles
- Nearest airport
- 9 miles to Chicago Midway (MDW) · major hub
How Chicago State University compares
More selective than 87% · #7 most selective of 58 in Illinois
Higher than 4% · #57 of 58 in Illinois
Higher than 11%
Higher than 19% · #62 of 66 in Illinois
Cheaper than 84% · #8 cheapest of 57 in Illinois
Lower than 4%
Lower than 83%
Larger than 47%
Percentiles compare Chicago State University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Illinois.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate1,38465%
- Graduate73735%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women97470%
- Men41030%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White2.7%
- Black77%
- Hispanic9.8%
- Asian1.1%
- Other or multiracial9.5%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,384
- Graduate enrollment
- 737
- Student–faculty ratio
- 9 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 58%
- First-generation students
- 42%
- Students over 25
- 43%
- Median family income
- $15,134
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $79,902
- Endowment
- $8,512,681
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Admissions
- Admission rate
- 43.3%
- Test scores
- Not considered
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- —
- SAT average
- —
- SAT reading
- —
- SAT math
- —
- ACT composite
- —
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $12,754
- Room & board
- $11,550
- Books & supplies
- $2,400
- Total cost of attendance
- $29,764
- Average net price
- $12,335
Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.
Outcomes
- Graduated (within 6 years)
- 15%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 8%
- First-year retention
- 57%
- Transferred to another college
- 37%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $33,805
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $42,778
- Median debt at graduation
- $30,625
- Students with federal loans
- 78%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 18%
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.
Campus life & athletics
- On-campus housing
- Yes
- Dorm capacity
- 275
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 20%
- Housing charge (year)
- $5,250
- Meal plan (year)
- $6,300
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NCAA Division I without football
- Varsity athletes
- 249 (119 men · 130 women)
Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.
Varsity sports (7)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- B
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 1.0 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 4
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 3
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (2,238 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.
Reported offenses in an average year
The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.
By offense type, per year
Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.
What you'll actually pay, by family income
Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.
College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.
Four-year (or more) true cost
Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.
$11,334/year × about 4.7 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.
Does the school pay you to attend?
Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.
A meaningful share of freshmen — 84% — get grant money from Chicago State University itself, averaging $10,522, which softens the sticker price.
Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 154 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.
Is it worth it?
A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.
- Median earnings (10 years)
- $42,778
- Typical debt at graduation
- $30,625
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 72%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 53%
Typical debt would take roughly 7.2 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.
Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.
The pay gap here
Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.
Men out-earn women by $6,808 (17%) a decade out.
Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.
Campus climate
- Summer high
- 85°F
- Winter low
- 19°F
- Annual rain
- 34.4″
- Annual snow
- 38.8″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Chicago Midway AP, IL US station (8.7 mi from campus).
What Chicago State University graduates study — and earn
Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.
Colleges similar to Chicago State University
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Chicago State University side by side →
Coppin State University
Baltimore, Maryland · Large city · 3 mi to Baltimore
- Students
- 1,844
- Admission
- 46%
- Net price
- $10k
- SAT
- 975
- GPA
- 2.9
- Earnings
- $46k
University of West Alabama
Livingston, Alabama · Remote rural · 102 mi to Birmingham
- Students
- 2,974
- Admission
- 43%
- Net price
- $13k
- SAT
- 1015
- GPA
- 3.0
- Earnings
- $44k
Alcorn State University
Alcorn State, Mississippi · Remote rural · 63 mi to Jackson
- Students
- 2,363
- Admission
- 45%
- Net price
- $13k
- SAT
- 904
- GPA
- 2.7
- Earnings
- $36k
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
Pine Bluff, Arkansas · Distant town · 38 mi to Little Rock
- Students
- 1,807
- Admission
- 41%
- Net price
- $13k
- SAT
- 922
- GPA
- 2.8
- Earnings
- $36k
Dickinson State University
Dickinson, North Dakota · Remote town · 95 mi to Bismarck
- Students
- 1,090
- Admission
- 37%
- Net price
- $14k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $51k
University of Montevallo
Montevallo, Alabama · Fringe town · 29 mi to Birmingham
- Students
- 2,151
- Admission
- 54%
- Net price
- $18k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $43k
Colleges near Chicago State University
City Colleges of Chicago-Olive-Harvey College
Chicago, IL · Public · Certificate · 1,661 students
Larry's Barber College
Chicago, IL · Private for-profit · Certificate · 68 students
Larry's Barber College
Chicago, IL · Private for-profit · Certificate · 29 students
City Colleges of Chicago-Kennedy-King College
Chicago, IL · Public · Certificate · 1,777 students
Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Bexley Hall Seabury Western Theological Seminary Federation Inc.
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Chicago Theological Seminary
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · Graduate
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 7,569 students
Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.













