Private nonprofit · College

Saint Mary's College

Notre Dame, Indiana · Large suburb

76.0%
Admit rate
$25,292
Avg net price
69%
Graduation rate
$59,354
Median earnings

Saint Mary's College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Notre Dame, Indiana (large suburb setting), enrolling 1,458 undergraduates. It is a women's college. It has a Roman Catholic religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 1,458 undergradsLarge suburbAccessible · 76% admitCold wintersSnowy

Will you get in?

See where your numbers land against Saint Mary's College's admitted students.

Admit rate
76.0%
SAT (mid 50%)
1130–1325
Avg GPA (est.)
3.53

Enter a test score to see where you land against Saint Mary's College's admitted students.

A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and Saint Mary's College's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.

About Notre Dame, Indiana

Notre Dame is a census-designated place and unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend in St. Joseph County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. Notre Dame is split between Clay and Portage townships. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Graduate
To Great Lakes shore
24 miles
Nearest airport
3 miles to South Bend (SBN)

How Saint Mary's College compares

Selectivity76.0%

More selective than 53% · #18 most selective of 42 in Indiana

SAT average1246

Higher than 69%

Graduation rate69%

Higher than 77% · #11 of 45 in Indiana

First-year retention88%

Higher than 83%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$59,354

Higher than 66% · #12 of 44 in Indiana

Average net price$25,292

Cheaper than 28% · #39 cheapest of 45 in Indiana

Median debt at graduation$27,000

Lower than 11%

Student–faculty ratio9 : 1

Lower than 83%

Undergraduate enrollment1,458

Larger than 48%

Percentiles compare Saint Mary's College with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Indiana.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

1,554students
  • Undergraduate1,45894%
  • Graduate966%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White74%
  • Black2.2%
  • Hispanic16%
  • Asian1.5%
  • Other or multiracial5.6%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,458
Graduate enrollment
96
Student–faculty ratio
9 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
24%
First-generation students
20%
Students over 25
1%
Median family income
$87,888
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$71,415
Endowment
$321,859,342

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 420 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Indiana34%
  • Other U.S. states64%
  • International1.7%

A national draw — only 34% of first-years come from Indiana; 64% arrive from other states.

2% 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
76.0%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
1130–1325
SAT average
1246
SAT reading
580–680
SAT math
550–645
ACT composite
26–30
Average GPA (estimated)
3.53

Cost

In-state tuition
$53,230
Room & board
$14,260
Books & supplies
$300
Total cost of attendance
$66,478
Average net price
$25,292

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)
64%
First-year retention
88%
Transferred to another college
19%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$53,470
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$59,354
Median debt at graduation
$27,000
Students with federal loans
56%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
85%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
64%
Low-income (Pell)
70%
First-generation
72%

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
1,395
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
96%
Application fee
Free

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
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.4 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
2
Property offenses (2022–2024)
0

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,601 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.

0.7reported offenses a year
0.7 violent a year0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
0.7

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
$16,760
$30–48k
$18,152
$48–75k
$21,014
$75–110k
$23,680
$110k+
$30,443

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
$86,552

$21,014/year × about 4.1 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.

100%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$33,033
average award, among those who get one

Saint Mary's College discounts heavily: 100% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $33,033. For many families the real price lands well below sticker.

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 397 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)
$59,354
Typical debt at graduation
$27,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
45%
Out-earn a HS grad
80%

Typical debt would take roughly 4.5 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.

Campus climate

Summer high
83°F
Winter low
17°F
Annual rain
40.9″
Annual snow
64.5″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.14.3JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, S Bend, IN US station (0.6 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 Saint Mary's College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Saint Mary's College side by side →

Colleges near Saint Mary's College

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.