Public · University

Harris-Stowe State University

Saint Louis, Missouri · Large city

#2 best value in Missouri
Admit rate
$9,922
Avg net price
28%
Graduation rate
$31,088
Median earnings

Harris-Stowe State University is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Saint Louis, Missouri (large city setting), enrolling 960 undergraduates. It is a Historically Black College or University (HBCU).

PublicSmall · 960 undergradsLarge cityNAIA Division ICold winters

About Saint Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. Due to numerous major earthworks within St. Louis boundaries, the city was nicknamed "Mound City". These mounds were mostly demolished during the city's development. Sugarloaf Mound in South St. Louis was repatriated to the Osage Nation in 2025. The same year as the 1904 World's Fair, the Strassberger Music Conservatory Building was constructed at 2300 Grand. Otto Wilhelmi was the architect. In 1911, the conservatory had over 1,100 students. The building is presently in the National Register of Historic Places. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large city
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
Nearest big city
1 mile to St. Louis, MO
To Great Lakes shore
256 miles
Nearest airport
11 miles to St. Louis Lambert (STL) · major hub

How Harris-Stowe State University compares

Graduation rate28%

Higher than 10% · #45 of 51 in Missouri

First-year retention68%

Higher than 26%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$31,088

Higher than 3% · #52 of 53 in Missouri

Average net price$9,922

Cheaper than 91% · #2 cheapest of 51 in Missouri

Median debt at graduation$25,930

Lower than 26%

Student–faculty ratio12 : 1

Lower than 59%

Undergraduate enrollment960

Larger than 36%

Percentiles compare Harris-Stowe State University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Missouri.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

960undergrads
  • Women64367%
  • Men31733%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White3.0%
  • Black82%
  • Hispanic2.5%
  • Other or multiracial13%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
960
Student–faculty ratio
12 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
74%
First-generation students
47%
Students over 25
15%
Median family income
$17,752
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$49,167
Endowment
$3,394,575

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 260 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Missouri62%
  • Other U.S. states33%
  • International4.6%

A regional draw: about 62% of first-years come from Missouri, the rest from elsewhere.

5% came from outside the U.S. Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Cost

In-state tuition
$7,008
Out-of-state tuition
$11,640
Room & board
$10,728
Books & supplies
$800
Total cost of attendance
$21,493
Average net price
$9,922

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)
28%
Graduated on time (4 years)
12%
First-year retention
68%
Transferred to another college
28%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$26,634
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$31,088
Median debt at graduation
$25,930
Students with federal loans
61%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
15%

About 16% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
12%
First-generation
17%

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
426
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
44%
Housing charge (year)
$7,224
Meal plan (year)
$2,860
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NAIA Division I
Varsity athletes
167 (93 men · 74 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 (6)

Soccer60
Basketball29
Baseball27
Volleyball18
Track and Field (Outdoor)17
Softball16

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
11.0 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
15
Property offenses (2022–2024)
18

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,002 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.

11reported offenses a year
5.0 violent a year6.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
4.0
Fondling
2.3
Motor vehicle theft
2.0
Aggravated assault
1.7
Rape
0.7
Robbery
0.3

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.

< $30k
$9,827
$30–48k
$10,963
$48–75k
$9,814
$75–110k
$8,563
$110k+
$6,238

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.

Est. total to a degree
$47,776

$9,814/year × about 4.9 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.

72%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$6,664
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 72% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $6,664. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

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 230 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)
$31,088
Typical debt at graduation
$25,930
Debt vs. one year's pay
83%
Out-earn a HS grad
35%

Typical debt would take roughly 8.3 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Weigh it value

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.

Women
$30,864
Men
$32,181

Men out-earn women by $1,317 (4%) 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
90°F
Winter low
25°F
Annual rain
43.9″
Annual snow
13.8″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.54.9JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, ST Louis Sci Ctr, MO US station (2.5 mi from campus).

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 Harris-Stowe State University

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Harris-Stowe State University side by side →

Colleges near Harris-Stowe State University

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.