Denison University is a private nonprofit institution offering bachelor's degrees based in Granville, Ohio. It enrolls 2,380 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.
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.
Good
64/100
UCD Score · 4-Year Selective
Outcomes86
Value10
Affordability5
Selectivity92
Admissions & Acceptance Rate
Denison University admits 17.4% of applicants, which makes it genuinely competitive, so your application needs to be strong.
Acceptance Rate
17.4%
Very Selective
SAT Range (25th–75th)
1320 – 1490
Reading + Math combined
ACT Range (25th–75th)
30 – 33
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 Denison University is getting harder, easier, or staying about the same.
Getting more selective ↓
12.5 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 $40,007 a year on average, it sits above what private nonprofit colleges charge nationally. That is a serious number, so the earnings further down matter more here than usual. 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
$67,000
Room & Board (on-campus)
$16,400
Room & Board (off-campus)
$16,400
Books & Supplies
$1,000
Other Expenses (on-campus)
$2,500
Other Expenses (off-campus)
$2,500
Total Cost of Attendance
$81,900
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
$16,656
$30,001 – $48,000
$13,086
$48,001 – $75,000
$17,827
$75,001 – $110,000
$20,839
Over $110,000
$48,472
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.
$5,50010%percentile
$10,50025%percentile
$26,000Medianpercentile
$28,00075%percentile
$31,00090%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 $22,000
↓ $4,000
No Pell $20,500
↓ $5,500
Female students $23,250
↓ $2,750
Male students $19,500
↓ $6,500
Worth knowing:
Students who don't finish leave with a median debt of $12,000, less than completers ($26,000), but still a meaningful obligation without a degree in hand.
Graduation Rate & Retention
81% of students who start here finish within six years, and 89% come back after first year. Most people who start here leave with the degree they came for. 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
81%
Of students who graduate within six years
First-Year Retention
89%
Returning for their second year
What this means:
Strong completion signals. Most students who start, finish.
After Graduation: Earnings & Outcomes
Ten years after starting here, the median student earns $67,753 a year, above the national median. That is a healthy return for most cost levels. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Median Earnings (10 yrs)
$67,753
Earning > $25K
85%
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
$54,800
Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Male graduates
$61,500
Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.
By Family Income at Entry
Family income (lowest third)
$57,500
Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.
Family income (middle third)
$53,100
Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.
Family income (highest third)
$59,600
Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.
The gender gap:
Male graduates earn $6,700, about 11% more than female graduates ten years out. The gap reflects industry mix, role choice, and structural pay differences that exist across most US colleges.
Loan Repayment Progression
Share of completer-cohort borrowers paying down at least $1 of principal at the 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year mark. Climbing rates show graduates settling into careers and managing debt; flat or declining rates are a warning.
Climbing: graduates increasingly paying down debt ↑
9.8 pts
across 6 years
What this signals:
Excellent. 90% of graduates were paying down at least $1 of principal seven years out.
Who Studies Here
Who you would actually be sitting next to: 2,380 students, a mid-sized community.
Total Enrolled
2,380
Part-Time
0%
First-Generation
17%
Race & Ethnicity Breakdown
Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.
GroupShareStudents
White 60.3%1,436
International 17.5%416
Hispanic 7.3%174
Black 5.4%128
Asian 4.2%101
Other 4.0%95
Student Life & Campus Culture
Where students live, learn, and connect at Denison University. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.
Denison University offers
a varied set of programs:
37 distinct programs across
19 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
$1.3B
Strong financial cushion supports aid and stability
Avg Faculty Salary
$97,620
9-month equivalent across all ranks
Faculty by Rank
249 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
43
17%
$140,409
Associate Professors
85
34%
$104,095
Assistant Professors
107
43%
$77,614
Instructors
14
6%
$79,786
Pros & Cons of Denison University
No college is right for everyone. Here is where Denison University 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, Denison University is a fit for
students prioritizing post-graduation earnings; students seeking a highly selective peer group.
Frequently Asked Questions about Denison University
The questions families ask most about Denison University, answered straight from the federal data rather than from the college's own marketing.
Is Denison University hard to get into?
Denison University is highly selective. Its acceptance rate is 17.4%, so admitted students generally have strong grades, competitive test scores, and a well-rounded application.
What is the acceptance rate at Denison University?
17.4% of applicants are admitted. Fewer than a third of applicants get in, so treat it as a stretch rather than a safe bet. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
What SAT score do you need for Denison University?
Aim for 1490 or better. Half of admitted students scored between 1320 and 1490 (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 Denison University?
Aim for 33 or better. Half of admitted students scored between 30 and 33 on the composite, so the upper half of that band is where you want to land. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
How much does Denison University cost?
Budget around $40,007 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 Denison University worth it?
On the numbers, yes: moderate return on investment. Ten years in, the median graduate earns $67,753 a year against a net price of $40,007, about 1.7 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 Denison University known for?
Mostly Economics, Communication & Media, 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 Denison University graduates earn?
About $67,753 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 Denison University accredited?
Yes. Denison University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
How many students attend Denison University?
2,380 students. Big enough for a wide course catalogue without feeling anonymous. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What is the graduation rate at Denison University?
81% finish within six years. Most people who start here graduate, which is the signal you want. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Is Denison University 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 Denison University located?
Denison University is located in Granville, Ohio.
What programs does Denison University offer?
37 different programs, most commonly Economics, Communication & Media, 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 Denison University?
9 students per instructor. Low enough that staff are likely to know who you are. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Related Colleges in Ohio
Other colleges in Ohio 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.
Business Administration
Agricultural Business and Management
Kinesiology
Related Guides
Free, data-backed guides to help you decide, built on the same federal data as this profile.
H
How to Build Your College List Pillar
The full process of narrowing from 3,811 US colleges to a shortlist of ~10. Cost, location, size, selectivity, and fit factors that actually predict whether you'll thrive.
What actually makes a college work for first-generation students, the support and aid signals that predict success, and how to find the schools that deliver them using federal data.
How to find the colleges that deliver the strongest return on a STEM degree by weighing earnings outcomes against net cost, rather than chasing the most selective name.
Original data analyses built on the same federal data as this profile. Rankings, outliers, and patterns, no opinions.
American Colleges by the Numbers
One federal dataset, 3,811 colleges. The median school costs $16,296 a year, admits 78% of applicants, and enrolls 1,280 students. The shape of US higher ed.
Higher education data
Net price
College enrollment
Acceptance rate
College ownership
Do Selective Schools Actually Graduate More Students?
Across 1,645 four-year colleges, graduation rates climb steadily with selectivity, from 54% at open-admission schools to 93% at the most exclusive. The gap is real.
Graduation rate
Acceptance rate
Selectivity
Completion
College outcomes
For-Profit Colleges Charge the Most and Pay the Least
For-profit colleges post the highest median net price of any sector and the lowest graduate earnings. They cost more than private nonprofits and pay less than publics.
For-profit colleges
Net price
Earnings
College ROI
College ownership
Continue Exploring
Browse our full directory: every college, major, program, and career we track, all built from verified government data.
