College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

Clarkson University: Rankings, Admissions, Cost & Majors

46 awards Ranking Badges
Fair Price Value for Your Money
77% Acceptance Rate

Clarkson University is a private not-for-profit institution in Potsdam, New York enrolling 2,196 undergraduates. It accepts 77% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 75%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #332 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 6%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.

Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.

How Is Clarkson University Ranked?

Clarkson University ranks #332 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 6%.

#332 Best Colleges in Nation
#33 Best Colleges in NY
Clarkson University ranking badge

2027 Rankings

College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.

Clarkson University was awarded 46 badges in the 2027 rankings.

Overall Quality

Clarkson is ranked #332 out of 5,159 schools in the nation for overall quality on College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges list. This puts it in the top 10% of all schools in the nation.

Within the state, Clarkson holds the #33 spot on the Best Colleges in New York ranking.

See all of the rankings for Clarkson University.

Is It Hard to Get Into Clarkson University?

77% Acceptance Rate
75% Of Accepted Are Women
51% Submit SAT Scores

Acceptance Rate

Clarkson University has an acceptance rate of 77%, which makes it somewhat selective. Make sure it’s not the only school you apply to, even if it’s your school of choice. Whether you get in or not will largely depend on how you compare to other applicants.

Average Test Scores

About 51% of students accepted to Clarkson submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 590 and 690. Math scores were between 610 and 700.

SAT Reading and Writing Scores for Clarkson University  ( 590 to 690 )
200
800
SAT Math Scores for Clarkson University  ( 610 to 700 )
200
800

Clarkson received ACT scores from 11% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 25 and 32.

ACT Composite Scores for Clarkson University  ( 25 to 32 )
1
36

Learn more about Clarkson University admissions.

What Is the Student-to-Faculty Ratio at Clarkson University?

13 to 1 Student to Faculty
78% Full Time Teachers

Student to Faculty Ratio

With a student to faculty ratio of 13 to 1, Clarkson University is about average in this regard as the nationwide rate is 15 to 1. While this does not translate directly to class size, it’s a good indicator of how much time professors will have to spend with their students on a one-on-one basis.

Percent of Full-Time Faculty

In addition to the student to faculty ratio, some people look at what percentage of faculty members are full-time as a sign of how much time professors will be able to spend with their students. This is because part-time teachers may not be on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.

The full-time faculty percentage at Clarkson University is 78%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.

Full-Time Faculty Percent  78 out of 100
0
100

What Are the Graduation and Retention Rates at Clarkson University?

85% Freshmen Retention
75% On-Time Graduation Rate

Freshmen Retention Rate

Clarkson University has a freshmen retention rate of 85%. That’s a good sign that full-time students like the school and their professors enough to want to stick around for another year. It’s also a sign that the admissions team did a good job in choosing applicants who were a good fit for the school.

Freshmen Retention Rate  85 out of 100
0
100

Graduation Rate

Students are considered to have graduated on time if they finish their studies within four years. At Clarkson the on-time graduation rate of first-time, full-time students is 75%. That is great when compared to the national average of 33.3%.

On-Time Graduation Rate  75 out of 100
0
100

Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Clarkson University.

How Diverse Is Clarkson University?

2,196 Undergraduate Students
21.1% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
30.8% Percent Women

During the most recent academic year, there were 2,196 undergraduates at Clarkson.

Get more detailed information on the diversity at Clarkson University.

How Much Does Clarkson University Cost?

$17,140 Net Price
62% Take Out Loans
$25,120 Total Student Loans

The average net price of Clarkson is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.

Net Price by Income Group for Clarkson

$0-30 K $30K-48K $48-75 $75-110K $110K +
$21,335 $19,934 $23,321 $30,990 $35,757

The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of Clarkson, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.

Student Loan Debt

Almost 66% of college students who graduated with the class of 2018 took out student loans, but that percentage varies from school to school. At Clarkson, approximately 62% of students took out student loans averaging $6,280 a year. That adds up to $25,120 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 2.0%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you’ll be able to pay back your student loans. Get more details about paying for Clarkson University.

How Much Do Clarkson University Graduates Earn?

$89,696 Avg Salary of Grads
High Earnings Boost

The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Clarkson University make about $89,696 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. This is good news for future Clarkson University graduates since it is 82% more than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. Average Salary for Clarkson University Graduates

See which majors at Clarkson University make the most money.

Where Is Clarkson University Located?

New York State
2,196 Undergraduate Students
Town Campus Setting

Clarkson University is a private not-for-profit institution found in Potsdam, New York. Potsdam is a good match for students who enjoy small-town life. Get more details about the location of Clarkson University.

Location of Clarkson University

Get in touch with Clarkson University are given below.

Contact Details
Address: 8 Clarkson Ave, Potsdam, NY 13699
Phone: 3152686400
Website: www.clarkson.edu
Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarkson_University
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ClarksonUniversity
Twitter: twitter.com/ClarksonUniv

What Majors Does Clarkson University Offer?

17 Majors With Completions
2,464 Undergraduate Degrees

During the most recent year for which we have data, students from 17 majors graduated from Clarkson University. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.

Most Popular Majors Completions Average Salary of Graduates
Multi-Disciplinary Studies 1,232 NA
Mechanical Engineering 170 $68,663
Electrical Engineering 106 $79,427
Business Administration & Management 104 $62,280
Data Science. 87 NA
Engineering-Related Fields 79 $73,179
Civil Engineering 77 $61,598
Computer Science 71 $67,495
Aeronautical Engineering 52 $65,036
Chemical Engineering 49 $58,898

Learn more about the majors offered at Clarkson University along with which ones have the highest average starting salaries.

Does Clarkson Offer Online Classes?

13% Take At Least One Class Online
0% Take All Classes Online

291 students took at least one online class at Clarkson University.

Online courses are a great option for busy, working students as well as for those who have scheduling conflicts and want to study on their own time. As time goes by, expect to see more and more online learning options become available.

Learn more about online learning at Clarkson University.

Interested in comparing Clarkson? Match them up using College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.

Notes and References

Footnotes

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

References

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options