A public R1 land-grant flagship in Corvallis, OR, admitting 77.30% of applicants with distinctive strengths in engineering, oceanography, forestry, and nuclear science in a Pacific Northwest college town.
Corvallis, Oregon
Oregon State University is a public R1 land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, founded in 1868 as the flagship institution of the Oregon University System. It enrolls approximately 30,743 undergraduates and 5,910 graduate students across twelve colleges, including the College of Engineering, the College of Business, the College of Science, the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, the College of Forestry, the College of Agricultural Sciences, the College of Pharmacy, and the College of Veterinary Medicine.
Engineering, business, social sciences, health sciences, and biological sciences account for the largest shares of bachelor's degrees. Oregon State University is accredited through the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). Oregon State University is test-optional; submitting SAT or ACT scores is not required. Oregon State is one of only two universities in the United States that holds land-grant, sea-grant, space-grant, and sun-grant designations, reflecting its research scope across terrestrial, ocean, space, and renewable energy sciences.
Official website: oregonstate.edu
UCD scores every college on four pillars: Outcomes, Value, Affordability, and Selectivity. Within peer group A (four-year selective institutions), Oregon State University scores 75.28 overall, rated Good. Outcomes (79.73) reflects a 70.11% six-year graduation rate and 87.62% first-year retention, both below the peer average for a flagship. Value scores 67.71, driven by ten-year earnings of $64,010 relative to an average net price of $19,604. Affordability scores 38.59. All scores use verified federal data only.
Oregon State University admits 77.30% of applicants, making it among the more accessible Pacific Northwest flagships. Oregon State is test-optional; submitting SAT or ACT scores is not required. Oregon State uses the Common App. The priority deadline for merit scholarship consideration is November 1; the regular decision deadline is September 1 (with rolling admission throughout). Oregon residents and students from Western states (Western Undergraduate Exchange) may qualify for reduced tuition rates. Admission to specific programs, including engineering and pharmacy, may require additional academic preparation.
Acceptance rate over the last five admission cycles. The trend tells you whether Oregon State University is getting harder, easier, or staying about the same.
Oregon State charges $14,400 in in-state tuition and $38,190 in out-of-state tuition, plus $16,386 in room and board, bringing the estimated in-state total cost of attendance to approximately $35,500 before aid. The average net price after all grants and scholarships is $19,604. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $12,107. For families earning between $30,001 and $48,000, the net price averages $13,036.
For families earning between $75,001 and $110,000, the net price averages $20,262. Students from Western states may qualify for the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE), which reduces out-of-state tuition to 150% of the in-state rate. The endowment stands at approximately $956 million. The federal loan rate of 32.55% and median debt of $21,221 are in the moderate-to-higher range for a public flagship.
Published cost of attendance, the sticker price before grants and scholarships. Most students underestimate room & board and other expenses.
Application fee: $65 (one-time, due at submission)
Aid is need-based, so net price varies by family income. Here's what each bracket typically pays after grants and scholarships.
Cumulative federal-loan debt across the full borrowing distribution. The 10th and 90th percentiles bracket the typical range; the median sits in the middle.
Median federal-loan debt at graduation broken down by demographic. Each slice's size is proportional to the dollar amount that group typically borrows.
Oregon State University completes a majority of students it enrolls, though completion rates are below the average for peer flagships. The six-year graduation rate is 70.11% for full-time, first-time bachelor's-seeking students, below the peer average. First-year retention stands at 87.62%, also below the peer average. The federal loan rate of 32.55% and median debt of $21,221 are in the moderate-to-higher range. Oregon does not have a state merit scholarship program equivalent to Florida's Bright Futures or Georgia's HOPE, which limits state-level financial aid support.
Oregon State University graduates enter careers in engineering, technology, forestry, agriculture, healthcare, and oceanography, primarily in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. Median earnings are $50,843 six years after first enrolling and $64,010 at ten years. At the ten-year mark, 83.36% of former students earn more than a typical high school graduate.
Portland, approximately 85 miles north of Corvallis, is a major technology hub with significant presence from Intel, Nike, Adidas, and a growing semiconductor manufacturing corridor (Intel's major fabrication facilities are in the Hillsboro, Oregon area). Oregon State engineering and computer science graduates are recruited by Intel and other semiconductor companies in the Portland metro at competitive salaries. The College of Forestry, the oldest forestry school in the Pacific Northwest, produces graduates for timber, forest management, environmental consulting, and related industries across the region.
Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.
Mean annual earnings 10 years after entry, segmented by demographic. Reveals gaps the headline median can't show.
Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.
Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.
Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.
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.
Oregon State University enrolls approximately 30,743 undergraduates on its main campus in Corvallis, Oregon, a college city of approximately 60,000 in the Willamette Valley, approximately 85 miles south of Portland. White students account for 63.43% of undergraduates; Hispanic 13.16%, Asian 8.08%, and Black 2.17%. Approximately 22.77% of undergraduates receive Pell grants, and 31.37% are first-generation college students.
Corvallis is one of the smaller major college towns in the Pacific Northwest; it is a walkable, bikeable city with a strong outdoor culture and access to the Oregon Coast (50 miles west), the Cascade Mountains (2 hours east), and the Willamette Valley wine country. Oregon State Beavers athletics compete in the Pac-12 Conference; the Oregon-Oregon State rivalry (the Civil War Game) is the defining contest of Oregon college sports.
Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.
Where students live, learn, and connect at Oregon State University. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.
Oregon State University offers an extensive catalog of programs: 221 distinct programs across 25 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.
Oregon State University operates at a student-to-faculty ratio consistent with large public research universities. 78.38% of instruction is delivered by full-time faculty. Instructional spending per full-time equivalent student is $12,607 per year, below the peer average for a land-grant flagship. The endowment stands at approximately $956 million.
Oregon State is one of only two universities in the US with land-grant, sea-grant, space-grant, and sun-grant status, enabling research programs in ocean science (the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences operates the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, Oregon), terrestrial science, renewable energy, and space technology. The College of Forestry is the oldest and one of the most respected forestry programs in the Pacific Northwest. The Department of Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Health Physics is among the nationally recognized programs in its field.
1,303 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 | 321 | 25% | $149,769 |
| Associate Professors | 333 | 26% | $114,381 |
| Assistant Professors | 212 | 16% | $95,541 |
| Instructors | 437 | 34% | $65,258 |
Oregon State University's defining strengths are its UCD 75.28 Good score, test-optional admissions, unique quad-grant designation (land, sea, space, sun), distinctive programs in forestry, oceanography, and nuclear engineering, and access to Portland's technology and semiconductor corridor for engineering graduates. UCD 75.28 Good.
The considerations: the 70.11% six-year graduation rate and 87.62% first-year retention are below the peer average for a flagship; the net price of $19,604 is moderate rather than exceptional; Oregon has no major state merit scholarship program; out-of-state tuition at $38,190 is high; and Corvallis is a small college city without major immediate metro employment access. Best fit for Oregon residents and Western states students (WUE) who want a land-grant flagship with distinctive environmental, oceanic, and engineering programs in a Pacific Northwest setting.
The questions below address what students and families most commonly search about Oregon State: what the quad-grant designation means, how the Portland tech job market connects to Corvallis, how OSU compares to University of Oregon, and what Corvallis offers as a college town.
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