Bowdoin College is a private nonprofit institution offering bachelor's degrees based in Brunswick, Maine. It enrolls 1,873 students (a mid-sized student body), according to IPEDS 2023-24 data. Every figure on this page is reported by the federal government, not supplied by the college, so it can be compared like for like against anywhere else you are looking.
AccreditorNew England Commission on Higher Education
Academic CalendarSemester
How It Measures Up
These four scores answer one question: compared with similar colleges, is this one worth the money? Each runs 0 to 100 and is judged only against its peer group (4-Year Selective), so a community college is never marked down for not being Harvard. Everything is computed from federal data. Nobody can pay to move a score, and a pillar with missing data is left unscored rather than guessed.
Excellent
90/100
UCD Score · 4-Year Selective
Outcomes98
Value94
Affordability45
Selectivity98
Admissions & Acceptance Rate
Bowdoin College admits 7.1% of applicants, which makes it a reach for almost everyone, so treat it as one option among several.
Acceptance Rate
7.1%
Highly Selective
SAT Range (25th–75th)
1470 – 1550
Reading + Math combined
ACT Range (25th–75th)
33 – 35
Cumulative composite
Test PolicyNot ConsideredStandardized test scores are not used in admissions decisions.
5-Year Admission Trend
Acceptance rate over the last five admission cycles. The trend tells you whether Bowdoin College is getting harder, easier, or staying about the same.
Stable ↓
1.0 pts
since 2019
Cost & Financial Aid
Ignore the sticker price. What matters is the net price, which is what a typical family pays here after grants and scholarships come off. At $14,398 a year on average, it sits below what private nonprofit colleges charge nationally. That still leaves most families a gap to cover, but a manageable one. Figures are College Scorecard 2023-24.
Published cost of attendance, the sticker price before grants and scholarships. Most students underestimate room & board and other expenses.
Tuition & Fees
$67,832
Room & Board (on-campus)
$18,488
Books & Supplies
$840
Other Expenses (on-campus)
$1,660
Total Cost of Attendance
$85,100
Application fee: $65 (one-time, due at submission)
Net Price by Family Income
Aid is need-based, so net price varies by family income. Here's what each bracket typically pays after grants and scholarships.
Under $30,000
$3,145
$30,001 – $48,000
$2,800
$48,001 – $75,000
$9,007
$75,001 – $110,000
$13,801
Over $110,000
$35,196
Debt at Graduation
Cumulative federal-loan debt across the full borrowing distribution. The 10th and 90th percentiles bracket the typical range; the median sits in the middle.
$4,50010%percentile
$8,45425%percentile
$18,500Medianpercentile
$27,00075%percentile
$31,50090%percentile
Median Debt by Student Type
Median federal-loan debt at graduation broken down by demographic. Each slice's size is proportional to the dollar amount that group typically borrows.
GroupDebtvs Median
Pell recipients $13,161
↓ $5,339
No Pell $12,000
↓ $6,500
Female students $13,000
↓ $5,500
Male students $12,000
↓ $6,500
Worth knowing:
Students who don't finish leave with a median debt of $5,541, less than completers ($18,500), but still a meaningful obligation without a degree in hand.
Graduation Rate & Retention
97% come back after first year. Students who arrive tend to stay, which is usually a good sign. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Completion and earnings carry the most weight in this college's score, and how the UCD Score weighs each measure sets out exactly how they are combined.
6-Year Graduation Rate
—
Of students who graduate within six years
First-Year Retention
97%
Returning for their second year
What this means:
High first-year retention. Students who arrive tend to stay.
After Graduation: Earnings & Outcomes
Ten years after starting here, the median student earns $82,735 a year, well above the national median. Strong earnings, though the field studied drives much of that. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Median Earnings (10 yrs)
$82,735
Earning > $25K
88%
10 yrs after entry
Earnings Growth After Graduation
Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.
Earnings by Demographic
Mean annual earnings 10 years after entry, segmented by demographic. Reveals gaps the headline median can't show.
By Gender
Female graduates
$71,500
Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Male graduates
$93,100
Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.
The gender gap:
Male graduates earn $21,600, about 23% more than female graduates ten years out. The gap reflects industry mix, role choice, and structural pay differences that exist across most US colleges.
What this means:
Strong return on investment. Every dollar of net annual cost is matched by ~$5.7 of median earnings 10 years out.
Who Studies Here
Who you would actually be sitting next to: 1,873 students, a mid-sized community.
Total Enrolled
1,873
Part-Time
0%
First-Generation
19%
Race & Ethnicity Breakdown
Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.
GroupShareStudents
White 52.7%987
Hispanic 14.5%272
Asian 11.2%209
Other 9.1%171
International 6.8%128
Black 5.4%101
Student Life & Campus Culture
Where students live, learn, and connect at Bowdoin College. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.
Bowdoin College offers
a varied set of programs:
32 distinct programs across
15 majors.
Below are its strongest majors, each with flagship programs and typical earnings.
Open a major to explore it in depth, or browse the full program catalog.
There are 9 students for every instructor here: small classes, and staff who are likely to know your name.
Student : Faculty
9:1
Students per instructional faculty member
Endowment
$2.6B
Strong financial cushion supports aid and stability
Avg Faculty Salary
$126,527
9-month equivalent across all ranks
Faculty by Rank
220 instructional faculty across 4 ranks.
The rank mix shows how many senior faculty are teaching versus contingent or junior staff, with average salary equated to a 9-month contract.
Rank
Faculty Count
Share
Avg Salary
Full Professors
67
30%
$166,743
Associate Professors
60
27%
$129,818
Assistant Professors
71
32%
$95,072
Lecturers
22
10%
$96,593
Pros & Cons of Bowdoin College
No college is right for everyone. Here is where Bowdoin College is likely to suit you and where it may not, based on the same figures shown above.
Highly competitive admissions, many strong applicants are rejected
Very high published cost of attendance (full-pay families pay much more than the net-price average)
Predominantly serves middle- and upper-income families
No graduate programs offered at this institution
Best for:
Based on the data, Bowdoin College is a fit for
students prioritizing post-graduation earnings; students seeking a highly selective peer group.
Frequently Asked Questions about Bowdoin College
The questions families ask most about Bowdoin College, answered straight from the federal data rather than from the college's own marketing.
Is Bowdoin College hard to get into?
Yes. Bowdoin College is among the most selective colleges in the United States, with an acceptance rate of 7.1%. Successful applicants typically have top-decile test scores and strong academic, extracurricular, and recommendation profiles.
What is the acceptance rate at Bowdoin College?
7.1% of applicants are admitted. Roughly one applicant in ten gets in, so apply only alongside options you are more likely to win. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
What SAT score do you need for Bowdoin College?
Aim for 1550 or better. Half of admitted students scored between 1470 and 1550 (Reading plus Math), so anything above the top of that range makes you competitive and anything below the bottom means the rest of your application has to carry more weight. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What ACT score do you need for Bowdoin College?
Aim for 35 or better. Half of admitted students scored between 33 and 35 on the composite, so the upper half of that band is where you want to land. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
How much does Bowdoin College cost?
Budget around $14,398 a year. That is the net price, what families typically pay once grants and scholarships come off, not the sticker price. Your own figure depends on household income, so treat this as a midpoint rather than a quote. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Bowdoin College worth it?
On the numbers, yes: strong return on investment. Ten years in, the median graduate earns $82,735 a year against a net price of $14,398, about 5.7 dollars of earnings for every dollar of annual cost. That ratio ignores whether you finish and what you study, which matter just as much. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
What is Bowdoin College known for?
Mostly Economics, Political Science, Biology. Those are the fields where it awards the most degrees, which is a better guide to where the teaching strength sits than any reputation ranking. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What do Bowdoin College graduates earn?
About $82,735 a year, measured ten years after students first enrolled. Half earn more and half earn less, and what you study moves that figure far more than where you study. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Bowdoin College accredited?
Yes. Bowdoin College is accredited by the New England Commission on Higher Education.
How many students attend Bowdoin College?
1,873 students. Small enough that you will recognize faces across campus, and small enough that course choice can be limited. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Is Bowdoin College a public or private college?
It is Private Nonprofit. Private nonprofit, so the sticker price is higher but institutional aid is often larger too.
Where is Bowdoin College located?
Bowdoin College is located in Brunswick, Maine.
What programs does Bowdoin College offer?
32 different programs, most commonly Economics, Political Science, Biology. If the subject you want is not among them, check the full list before applying rather than assuming it is offered.
What is the student-to-faculty ratio at Bowdoin College?
9 students per instructor. Low enough that staff are likely to know who you are. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Related Colleges in Maine
Other colleges in Maine share the same applicant pool, regional economy, and academic landscape. Comparing nearby options puts admissions, costs, and outcomes in context, useful when weighing your fit against local alternatives.
Free, data-backed guides to help you decide, built on the same federal data as this profile.
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Original data analyses built on the same federal data as this profile. Rankings, outliers, and patterns, no opinions.
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