by our College Data Analytics TeamMichigan State University is a public institution in East Lansing, Michigan enrolling 40,922 undergraduates. It accepts 85% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 81%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #118 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 2%), 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.
Michigan State University ranks #118 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 2%.
In its yearly rankings, College Factual analyzes over 2,000 colleges and universities to determine which ones are the best in a variety of categories, such as overall value, quality, diversity, which schools are the best for each major, and much more.
Michigan State University was awarded 832 badges in the 2027 rankings.
Michigan State University is ranked #118 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 5% of all schools in the nation.
Michigan State University is also ranked #2 on the Best Colleges in Michigan list.
See all of the rankings for Michigan State University.
The acceptance rate at Michigan State University is 85%. That’s higher than the rate at many schools, but still low enough to be considered somewhat selective. If you want to get in, you’ll need good grades and to be able to show that Michigan State University is a good fit for you.
About 39% of students accepted to Michigan State University submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 590 and 680. Math scores were between 590 and 680.
Michigan State University received ACT scores from 7% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 25 and 31.
Learn more about Michigan State University admissions.
The student to faculty ratio at Michigan State University is about average at 17 to 1. This ratio is often used to gauge how many students might be in an average class and how much time professors will have to spend with their students on an individual level. The national average for this metric is 15 to 1.
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 Michigan State University is 86%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.
The freshmen retention rate of 90% tells us that most first-year, full-time students like Michigan State University enough to come back for another year. This is a fair bit higher than the national average of 68%. That’s certainly something to check off in the good column about the school.
Students are considered to have graduated on time if they finish their studies within four years. At Michigan State University the on-time graduation rate of first-time, full-time students is 81%. That is great when compared to the national average of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Michigan State University.
The current enrollment includes 40,922 undergraduates at Michigan State University.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at Michigan State University.
The typical net cost at Michigan State University 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.
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $7,068 | $10,830 | $16,521 | $22,703 | $28,546 |
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 Michigan State University, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
It’s not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At Michigan State University, approximately 34% of students took out student loans averaging $6,308 a year. That adds up to $25,232 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 4.6%. 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 Michigan State University.
The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University make about $67,253 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. That’s great news for Michigan State University students since it is 37% more than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year.
See which majors at Michigan State University make the most money.
Michigan State University is a public institution located in East Lansing, Michigan. The surrounding area of the school is a good match for students who enjoy city life. Get more details about the location of Michigan State University.
Get in touch with Michigan State University can be found below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Phone: | 5173551855 |
| Website: | www.msu.edu |
| Wikipedia: | en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_State_University |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/spartans.msu |
| Twitter: | twitter.com/michiganstateu |
In the latest year of available data, students from 30 majors graduated from Michigan State 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 | 13,616 | NA |
| Business Administration & Management | 663 | $74,489 |
| Public Relations & Advertising | 636 | $38,973 |
| General Biology | 632 | $23,885 |
| General Psychology | 591 | $29,227 |
| Computer Information Systems | 548 | $76,292 |
| Medicine | 485 | $56,501 |
| Finance & Financial Management | 399 | $61,907 |
| Health & Physical Education | 368 | $28,385 |
| Economics | 342 | $48,199 |
23,812 students took at least one online class at Michigan State University.
Online learning is becoming popular at even the oldest colleges and universities in the United States. Not only are online classes great for returning adults with busy schedules, they are also frequented by a growing number of traditional students.
Learn more about online learning at Michigan State University.
Interested in comparing Michigan State University? Compare them side by side using College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.
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.
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