Admit rate has ranged 4%–6% over the last 5 years. Source: IPEDS via Urban Institute.
Acceptance & SAT from Common Data Set / IPEDS; net price, earnings & graduation from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Figures lag ~1–2 years — verify with the school.
Princeton University is the Ivy League's most undergraduate-focused research powerhouse, where Nobel laureates teach freshman seminars and 70% of students receive need-based aid. With a 4.4% acceptance rate and a $19,811 average net price, it combines extreme selectivity with surprising accessibility—its signature eating clubs dominate social life while its no-loan financial aid policy produces graduates with a 97% six-year graduation rate and median earnings of $80,236.
Admission requirements
Test-optional — scores considered if submitted
Required
High school transcript
Letters of recommendation
TOEFL (non-native English)
Considered (not required)
Grade point average
Class rank
Test scores (SAT/ACT)
College-prep program
Demonstrated competencies
Source: IPEDS Admissions survey (2022) via Urban Institute. Covers formal factors only — it does not reflect essays, extracurriculars, or other holistic criteria.
More details
Undergrad enrollment
5,709
In-state tuition
$62,688
Out-of-state tuition
$62,688
Acceptance Rate
4.38%
On-Campus Housing
95% of undergraduates
Most Popular Majors
Social Sciences (27%), Engineering (16%), Computer Science (10%)
Student-Faculty Ratio
5:1
Median Alumni Earnings
$80,236
Six-Year Graduation Rate
97.4%
First-Generation Students
16.7%
Need-Based Aid Recipients
70.5%
Outcomes & value
Outcomes & value
Median earnings (10 yr)
$110,066
Value (earnings ÷ net price)
18.0×
Median debt at graduation
$10,320
Graduation rate
98%
First-year retention
98%
Reducing loan balance (3 yr)
86%
Pell (lower-income) share
81%
First-generation share
28%
Endowment / student
$5,850,738
Financial health
2.2 / 3.0Meets the federal financial-responsibility standard
U.S. Dept. of Education Financial Responsibility Composite Score (FY2022-23). Scale −1.0 to 3.0; ≥1.5 meets the standard. Reported for private nonprofit & for-profit institutions only — public universities are state-backed and not scored, so this is a stability signal, not a ranking.
Top-earning majors
Median earnings by field of study (highest credential), ~2 years after completion.
Computer Engineering$103,078
Economics$103,078
Public Policy Analysis$62,012
English Language and Literature, General$47,260
Political Science and Government$47,260
Sociology$44,942
History
Campus & location
Campus safety
On-campus violent crimes (2024)
10
Per 1,000 students
1.75
On-campus criminal offenses classed as violent (murder/non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) for the most recent reported year. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education Campus Safety and Security (Clery Act). Counts reflect what’s reported to the school, and urban campuses often report more partly due to non-student incidents nearby — read alongside campus size and setting, not as a standalone safety verdict.
Climate
Pleasant days / yr
89
Summer high
85°F
Winter low
29°F
Annual rain
51.4"
Annual snow
16.9"
Natural-hazard risk
Relatively High
Pleasant days counts days per year with a mean temperature of 55–75°F, a high at or below 90°F, a low at or above 45°F, and little precipitation — a transparent comfort measure, not a weighting we invented. Computed from Open-Meteo ERA5 daily history (2019–2023). Natural-hazard risk is the county’s composite rating from the FEMA National Risk Index.
Deep dive — research, future-scholar output & economic mobility▾
Research output
Institutional h-index
1,542
Scholarly works
211,765
Institutional research volume and impact from OpenAlex. The h-index reflects large research universities and will be low for teaching-focused liberal-arts colleges — not a measure of undergraduate quality.
Share of this school’s graduates who go on to earn research doctorates (2010–20), by national rank and per-capita yield (NSF institutional-yield ratio). A signal of a research-oriented student culture — not a causal promise, since it partly reflects who enrolls. Only top producers appear. Source: NSF NCSES, Baccalaureate Origins of U.S. Research Doctorate Recipients.
Economic mobility
Quick answers
What is the acceptance rate at Princeton University?
Princeton University's acceptance rate is approximately 5% (Princeton, NJ), based on the most recent figures we compiled from public and primary sources.
What SAT score do you need for Princeton University?
Admitted students at Princeton University typically score 1510–1580 on the SAT (the middle-50% range). Scores outside this band are still admitted, especially with strong applications.
How much does Princeton University cost?
At Princeton University, the average net price (after aid) is about $6,128 per year. Actual cost varies with financial aid and residency.
How many undergraduates attend Princeton University?
Princeton University enrolls approximately 5,709 undergraduate students.
Where is Princeton University located?
Princeton University is located in Princeton, NJ.
Admissions
Princeton's admissions process is among the most selective in the world, with a 4.38% Acceptance rateThe share of applicants a college admits in a given year. A 10% acceptance rate means it admits about 1 in 10 applicants. for the Class of 2026. The middle 50% SAT range is 1490-1580, while ACT scores fall between 33-35. Notably, 16.7% of admitted students are First-generation (first-gen)A student who would be the first in their immediate family to earn a four-year college degree. Many colleges consider this in context. college attendees, and the university maintains a near-even gender split (51% female, 49% male). Transfer admissions are particularly brutal—only 18 of 1,350 applicants were accepted in 2022 (1.3% rate). The admissions office weighs academic rigor most heavily, followed by extracurricular impact and character/personal qualities.
Princeton uniquely merges a liberal arts college's intimacy with a research university's resources—its 5:1 student-faculty ratio means undergraduates regularly take seminars with Nobel Prize winners. The university offers 37 concentrations across four divisions, with social sciences (27%), engineering (16%), and computer science (10%) being most popular. Unlike peer institutions, Princeton mandates a senior thesis for all majors, often resulting in publishable research. The curriculum emphasizes breadth through distribution requirements while allowing deep specialization, with 70% of students completing independent work by graduation.
Earnings = median of students working ~10 years after entry; debt = median of graduates. Value divides 10-yr earnings by one year’s net price — read it as earnings per dollar of annual cost, not a full lifetime ROI; it favors lower-cost schools. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Figures lag ~2 years and reflect all students, not your intended major.
$43,798
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology$37,568
Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (field-of-study earnings). Figures cover graduates who received federal aid and lag ~2 years; not all programs report data.
Mobility rate
1.3%
Bottom → top quintile
66%
From bottom quintile
2%
Mobility rate = the share of students who both start in the bottom household-income quintile and reach the top quintile; bottom → top is that chance conditional on starting at the bottom. Source: Opportunity Insights Mobility Report Cards (Chetty, Friedman, Saez, Turner & Yagan). Reflects 1980–82 birth cohorts, so it’s directional, not current.
Key academic differentiators:
All faculty, including star researchers, teach undergraduate courses
No graduate students teach classes (unlike Harvard/Yale)
Junior independent work and senior thesis requirements across all majors
Campus culture orbits around Princeton's distinctive eating clubs—11 selective social organizations where 70% of upperclassmen take meals and host parties. Unlike Greek life at peer schools, these clubs are Princeton-exclusive institutions with Gothic mansions lining Prospect Avenue. Residential colleges house 95% of undergraduates, fostering tight-knit communities through faculty-led seminars and intramural competitions. While academic pressure is intense (students report pulling regular all-nighters), the culture leans collaborative rather than cutthroat—the Honor Code allows self-scheduled exams.
Social highlights:
Annual Lawnparties bring major musical acts to campus
500+ student organizations, including the nation's oldest college debating union
'Princeton Preview' for admitted students features a cannon-leaping tradition
Princeton's outcomes are staggering: 97.4% of the Class of 2023 graduated within six years, and alumni median earnings reach $80,236—nearly double the national average for bachelor's holders. The university's focus on undergraduate research pays off—25% of seniors publish their theses, while 60% of STEM majors enter PhD programs. Long-term data shows 73% of alumni have children by 18 years post-graduation, reflecting stable career trajectories. Notably, Princeton's no-loan financial aid policy means graduates enter the workforce with minimal debt compared to peer institutions.
Princeton revolutionized Ivy League affordability by replacing loans with grants—families earning under $100,000 pay nothing, while those up to $250,000 get significant aid. The average Net priceWhat a family actually pays after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the sticker price — usually far less than the published cost. is $18,698, with 70.5% of students receiving Need-based aidFinancial aid awarded based on your family's ability to pay, as measured by forms like the FAFSA, rather than on achievements. averaging $61,731. The university meets 100% of demonstrated need without loans, making it cheaper than many state schools for middle-income families. Even high-net-worth families benefit from Princeton's endowment-subsidized tuition, which covers 60% of the actual cost per student.
Princeton dominates higher education's sweet spot—offering Caltech-level STEM rigor, Yale-esque humanities prestige, and Dartmouth-like undergraduate focus, all while maintaining the lowest student debt burden among Ivies. Its eating clubs create a distinctive social scene, while the senior thesis requirement produces graduates with rare research chops. The university's $35 billion endowment allows unparalleled resources: from funding summer research for any interested student to maintaining a 5:1 student-faculty ratio despite its research output. For students who thrive under intense academic pressure within a Gothic-walled community, Princeton offers perhaps the most transformative undergraduate experience in America.
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