Public · College

Massachusetts College of Art and Design

Boston, Massachusetts · Large city

76.3%
Admit rate
$24,100
Avg net price
69%
Graduation rate
$43,582
Median earnings

Massachusetts College of Art and Design is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Boston, Massachusetts (large city setting), enrolling 1,831 undergraduates.

PublicSmall · 1,831 undergradsLarge cityAccessible · 76% admitCold wintersSnowyNear the coast

About Boston, Massachusetts

Boston is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. In 1630, settlers led by John Winthrop arrived, and found Shawmut Peninsula nearly empty of Native people. Most had died of European diseases borne by earlier settlers and traders. Boston shares many cultural roots with greater New England, including a dialect of the non-rhotic Eastern New England accent known as the Boston accent and a regional cuisine with a large emphasis on seafood, salt, and dairy products. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
3 miles to Boston, MA
To the ocean
3 miles
Nearest airport
5 miles to Boston Logan (BOS) · major hub

How Massachusetts College of Art and Design compares

Selectivity76.3%

More selective than 52% · #38 most selective of 63 in Massachusetts

Graduation rate69%

Higher than 76% · #32 of 66 in Massachusetts

First-year retention89%

Higher than 85%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$43,582

Higher than 21% · #61 of 67 in Massachusetts

Average net price$24,100

Cheaper than 32% · #23 cheapest of 65 in Massachusetts

Median debt at graduation$25,755

Lower than 27%

Student–faculty ratio9 : 1

Lower than 83%

Undergraduate enrollment1,831

Larger than 55%

Percentiles compare Massachusetts College of Art and Design with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Massachusetts.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

1,949students
  • Undergraduate1,83194%
  • Graduate1186%

Undergraduates by gender

1,831undergrads
  • Women1,31672%
  • Men51528%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White55%
  • Black4.5%
  • Hispanic16%
  • Asian5.9%
  • Other or multiracial20%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,831
Graduate enrollment
118
Student–faculty ratio
9 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
30%
First-generation students
23%
Students over 25
11%
Median family income
$68,352
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$96,210
Endowment
$20,309,653

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 432 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Massachusetts72%
  • Other U.S. states25%
  • International3.2%

Most first-years stay in state — Massachusetts College of Art and Design draws overwhelmingly from Massachusetts.

3% 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.

Admissions

Admission rate
76.3%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$15,400
Out-of-state tuition
$43,400
Room & board
$19,412
Books & supplies
$2,000
Total cost of attendance
$34,239
Average net price
$24,100

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)
69%
Graduated on time (4 years)
48%
First-year retention
89%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$27,090
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$43,582
Median debt at graduation
$25,755
Students with federal loans
51%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
64%

About 20% 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
48%
Low-income (Pell)
68%
First-generation
68%

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
940
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
51%
Application fee
$70

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%.

Campus safety

Safety grade
B
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
1.7 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
6
Property offenses (2022–2024)
4

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,989 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.

3.3reported offenses a year
2.0 violent a year1.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
1.3
Rape
1.0
Fondling
1.0

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
$16,351
$30–48k
$17,636
$48–75k
$18,513
$75–110k
$26,265
$110k+
$31,882

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
$82,274

$18,513/year × about 4.4 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.

70%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$7,408
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 70% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $7,408. 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 406 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)
$43,582
Typical debt at graduation
$25,755
Debt vs. one year's pay
59%
Out-earn a HS grad
52%

Typical debt would take roughly 5.9 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.

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
$36,778
Men
$49,146

Men out-earn women by $12,368 (34%) 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
49.4″
Annual snow
49.2″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.55.1JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Jamaica Plain, MA US station (2.7 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 Massachusetts College of Art and Design

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Massachusetts College of Art and Design side by side →

Colleges near Massachusetts College of Art and Design

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.