by our College Data Analytics TeamThis guide covers the real cost of attending Saint Mary’s College of California, including attendance costs, projected four- and two-year degree costs, average net price, debt outcomes, and how aid is distributed across income levels.
If you want to dig into a particular figure, jump to any section below:
The total published cost of attendance at Saint Mary’s College of California is about $73,655.00 for a single academic year.
Here the cost is broken out three ways: no aid, average aid, and the aid a low-income student typically receives.
| Tuition and fees | $57,803.00 |
| + Room, board & other expenses | $15,852.00 |
| Total cost | $73,655.00 |
| That is 125% above the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $73,655.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$47,281.00 |
| Net price | $26,374.00 |
| That is 20% below the national average net price. |
| Total cost | $73,655.00 |
| − Grants and scholarships | −$58,197.00 |
| Net price | $15,458.00 |
| That is 53% below the national average net price. | |
| Go deeper on the components with tuition and fees and room and board. |
The reported cost series has been increasing by around 3.7% per year; the projections below compound that across a degree. Below, the cost is projected across a degree for three students at once — low-income with aid, average aid, and no aid. The loan rows amortise the projected total over a ten-year, 6.8% repayment.
| Projected 4-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 3.7% | 3.7% | 3.7% |
| Freshman year | $16,037.00 | $27,362.00 | $76,415.00 |
| Senior year | $17,908.00 | $30,554.00 | $85,330.00 |
| Total 4-year net price | $67,845.00 | $115,755.00 | $323,270.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $25,846.00 | $44,098.00 | $123,154.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $781.00 | $1,332.00 | $3,720.00 |
| Total amount paid | $93,691.00 | $159,854.00 | $446,425.00 |
| Projected 2-year net costs | Low Income w/ Aid | w/ Average Aid | No Aid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual growth rate | 3.7% | 3.7% | 3.7% |
| Freshman year | $16,037.00 | $27,362.00 | $76,415.00 |
| Senior year | $16,638.00 | $28,387.00 | $79,278.00 |
| Total 2-year net price | $32,675.00 | $55,750.00 | $155,692.00 |
| 10-year loan interest @ 6.8% | $12,448.00 | $21,239.00 | $59,313.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $376.00 | $642.00 | $1,792.00 |
| Total amount paid | $45,123.00 | $76,988.00 | $215,006.00 |
See the full net-price breakdown in the net-price section.
The net price is the real out-of-pocket cost — what families pay after grant and scholarship aid is applied. This is the more honest cost figure for most families, since it accounts for institutional and federal aid.
| Average net price (on-campus) | $30,378.00 |
| Average net price (off-campus) | $31,198.00 |
Net price varies sharply by family income, dropping as need-based aid grows. Below, average net price is broken out by family income:
| Family income | Average net price |
|---|---|
| Under $30,000 | $17,981.00 |
| $30,000 to $48,000 | $17,139.00 |
| $48,001 to $75,000 | $24,408.00 |
| $75,001 to $110,000 | $28,746.00 |
| Over $110,000 | $39,616.00 |
Use Saint Mary’s College of California Net Price Calculator, or get in touch with the financial aid office.
For the grant-and-scholarship detail behind these figures, see the financial aid breakdown.
Typical debt at graduation from Saint Mary’s College of California comes to $19,500.00, which the Department of Education classifies as a Low ($10-20k) debt-load classification.
Across borrowers, debt at graduation distributes like this:
| Percentile | Debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| 10th | $5,500.00 |
| 25th | $12,000.00 |
| Median (50th) | $19,500.00 |
| 75th | $27,000.00 |
| 90th | $32,000.00 |
How far apart the 10th and 90th percentiles sit tells you how uneven debt outcomes are.
For the full borrowing and repayment picture, see the student loan debt detail.
Debt at graduation is far from uniform across income levels. The breakdown below segments borrowers by family income at entry:
| Family income | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| Low income | $23,000.00 |
| Middle income | $20,500.00 |
| High income | $19,500.00 |
Borrowers from lower-income families leave school with $3,500.00 more than graduates from high-income families.
First-generation college students often carry different debt loads than their continuing-generation peers.
| Student group | Median debt at graduation |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $20,500.00 |
| Continuing-generation students | $19,500.00 |
First-generation graduates of Saint Mary’s College of California leave with $1,000.00 more median debt than continuing-generation peers.
The Pell Grant is the largest federal grant for undergraduates from low-income families. Contrasting Pell and non-Pell borrowers shows how need shapes debt.
The Pell-versus-non-Pell median debt difference at Saint Mary’s College of California comes to $3,593.00. The Department of Education flags this school for a Pell-debt-inequity pattern.
The Department of Education default-rate tier for Saint Mary’s College of California is Low (<5%).
| Window | Cohort default rate |
|---|---|
| 2-year | 3.0% |
For scale, federal Stafford loan disbursements at Saint Mary’s College of California reach $314,663,791.00 across 12,177 loan recipients.
Veterans and active-duty servicemembers can tap dedicated federal aid programs like the Post-9/11 GI Bill and DoD tuition assistance.
| GI Bill recipients | 34 |
| Avg GI Bill amount | $21,906.00 |
Dig into veteran education benefits on the veterans benefits detail.
The data above is a foundation; round it out by asking yourself about Saint Mary’s College of California, think through the questions below:
Each page below covers one part of paying for college in more detail:
Data sources. Figures on this page draw from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), and MediaFactual editorial review. Net-price calculator and financial-aid office links are taken from the institution’s own published data.