Public · University
University of Southern Maine
Portland, Maine · Small city
- 79.2%
- Admit rate
- $13,596
- Avg net price
- 40%
- Graduation rate
- $49,958
- Median earnings
University of Southern Maine is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Portland, Maine (small city setting), enrolling 4,222 undergraduates.
Will you get in?
See where your numbers land against University of Southern Maine's admitted students.
- Admit rate
- 79.2%
- SAT (mid 50%)
- 990–1250
- Avg GPA (est.)
- 3.22
Enter a test score to see where you land against University of Southern Maine's admitted students.
A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and University of Southern Maine's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.
About Portland, Maine
Portland is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine. The original Algonquin-speaking Eastern Abenaki residents called the Portland peninsula Machigonne ("great neck"). It is also called Məkíhkanək ("at the fish hook") in Penobscot. Portland has a long history of prominence in the arts, peaking the first time in the early 19th century, when the city was "a rival, and not a satellite of either Boston or New York." In that period, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow got his start as a poet and John Neal held a central position in leading American literature toward its great renaissance, having founded Maine's first literary periodical, The Yankee, in 1828. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Small city
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 1 mile to Portland, ME
- To the ocean
- 1 mile
- Nearest airport
- 2 miles to Portland International Jetport (PWM) · major hub
How University of Southern Maine compares
More selective than 46% · #7 most selective of 15 in Maine
Higher than 34%
Higher than 23% · #14 of 17 in Maine
Higher than 42%
Higher than 39% · #8 of 17 in Maine
Cheaper than 78% · #4 cheapest of 17 in Maine
Lower than 79%
Lower than 42%
Larger than 75%
Percentiles compare University of Southern Maine with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Maine.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate4,22267%
- Graduate2,07933%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women2,56661%
- Men1,65639%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White75%
- Black8.6%
- Hispanic4.5%
- Asian2.8%
- Other or multiracial9.0%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 4,222
- Graduate enrollment
- 2,079
- Student–faculty ratio
- 14 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 28%
- First-generation students
- 33%
- Students over 25
- 20%
- Median family income
- $35,814
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $93,780
- Endowment
- $51,167,000
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 718 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Maine66%
- Other U.S. states32%
- International1.8%
A regional draw: about 66% of first-years come from Maine, the rest from elsewhere.
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
- 79.2%
- Test scores
- Required
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- 990–1250
- SAT average
- 1116
- SAT reading
- 500–650
- SAT math
- 490–600
- ACT composite
- 24–28
- Average GPA (estimated)
- 3.22
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $11,284
- Out-of-state tuition
- $27,944
- Room & board
- $12,280
- Books & supplies
- $1,000
- Total cost of attendance
- $23,717
- Average net price
- $13,596
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)
- 40%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 26%
- First-year retention
- 74%
- Transferred to another college
- 27%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $47,107
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $49,958
- Median debt at graduation
- $19,060
- Students with federal loans
- 35%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 58%
About 15% 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)
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
- 1,760
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 42%
- Housing charge (year)
- $6,130
- Meal plan (year)
- $5,520
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NCAA Division III without football
- Varsity athletes
- 609 (337 men · 272 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 (12)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- B
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 1.8 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 37
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 5
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 4 campuses (7,604 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.
$12,550/year × about 4.6 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.
Modest institutional aid: 91% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $6,701. 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 729 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)
- $49,958
- Typical debt at graduation
- $19,060
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 38%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 60%
Typical debt would take roughly 3.8 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
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.
Men out-earn women by $7,536 (16%) 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
- 80°F
- Winter low
- 16°F
- Annual rain
- 48.1″
- Annual snow
- 68.7″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Portland Intl Jetport, ME US station (1.6 mi from campus).
What University of Southern Maine 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 University of Southern Maine
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare University of Southern Maine side by side →
Winthrop University
Rock Hill, South Carolina · Small city · 22 mi to Charlotte
- Students
- 3,523
- Admission
- 79%
- Net price
- $15k
- SAT
- 1139
- GPA
- 3.3
- Earnings
- $47k
University of Louisiana at Monroe
Monroe, Louisiana · Small city · 98 mi to Shreveport
- Students
- 5,022
- Admission
- 85%
- Net price
- $13k
- SAT
- 1116
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $47k
McNeese State University
Lake Charles, Louisiana · Small city · 72 mi to Lafayette
- Students
- 5,005
- Admission
- 78%
- Net price
- $12k
- SAT
- 1087
- GPA
- 3.1
- Earnings
- $46k
Purdue University Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne, Indiana · Large city · 3 mi to Fort Wayne
- Students
- 5,484
- Admission
- 84%
- Net price
- $13k
- SAT
- 1100
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $46k
Northwest Missouri State University
Maryville, Missouri · Remote town · 83 mi to Omaha
- Students
- 4,378
- Admission
- 86%
- Net price
- $16k
- SAT
- 1119
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $48k
University of Wisconsin-Parkside
Kenosha, Wisconsin · Fringe rural · 27 mi to Milwaukee
- Students
- 2,844
- Admission
- 75%
- Net price
- $12k
- SAT
- 1090
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $51k
Colleges near University of Southern Maine
Maine College of Art & Design
Portland, ME · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 415 students
Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts
Portland, ME · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Southern Maine Community College
South Portland, ME · Public · Associate · 5,675 students
Spa Tech Institute-Westbrook
Westbrook, ME · Private for-profit · Certificate · 263 students
Northeast Technical Institute
Scarborough, ME · Private for-profit · Certificate · 74 students
University of New England
Biddeford, ME · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,135 students
Saint Joseph's College of Maine
Standish, ME · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 964 students
Unity Environmental University
New Gloucester, ME · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 6,483 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.












