Auburn University: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Auburn, Alabama · Public · Moderately selective · CDS 2024-2025
Auburn University is a public university in Auburn, Alabama that admits about 50% of applicants, making it a moderately selective school. The average family pays about $23,897 a year after financial aid, which matters more than the published sticker price. It is best known for Business Administration, Management and Operations, Biology, General and Finance and Financial Management Services, its largest undergraduate programs by number of graduates. About 82% of students graduate within six years. Its most recent Clery Act report shows roughly 2.8 criminal offenses per 1,000 students.
Auburn University is a public institution located in Auburn, Alabama with a moderately selective admissions profile. For the most recent reporting cycle, Auburn University admits about half to three-quarters of applicants, with an overall admission rate of 50%. Admitted students typically post an average SAT around 1318. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $23,897 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether Auburn University is realistic for their teenager, the most useful planning step is comparing your child's current GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against these admitted-student ranges — not the headline acceptance rate alone.
What GPA does my child need for Auburn University?
Auburn University admits students with a wide GPA range, but most successful applicants present an unweighted GPA of 3.3 or higher with a college-prep curriculum. Parents tracking their child's GPA toward this tier of school can use Solyo's free calculator to see weighted, unweighted, and college-recalculated numbers side by side.
What does Auburn University weight in admissions?
Auburn University reports the following factor importance in its Common Data Set (2024-2025). These are the criteria the admissions committee weighs when reviewing applications.
- • Academic GPA
- • Standardized test scores
- • Application essay
- • Rigor of secondary school record
- • Extracurricular activities
- • Talent/ability
- • Character/personal qualities
- • First generation status
- • Alumni/ae relation
- • Geographical residence
- • State residency
- • Volunteer work
- • Work experience
- • Level of applicant's interest
- • Recommendations
- • Class rank
- • Interview
- • Religious affiliation/commitment
SAT and ACT scores Auburn University typically admits
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 610–690, with an EBRW midpoint near —. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 25–31. A score at or above this school's 75th percentile materially improves your child's odds, particularly when paired with a rigorous course load.
| 25th percentile | 1260 |
| 50th percentile | 1320 |
| 75th percentile | 1380 |
| % submitting SAT | 16% |
| 25th percentile | 26 |
| 50th percentile | 29 |
| 75th percentile | 31 |
| % submitting ACT | 76% |
- • Test-optional: Standardized test scores are not required, but may be submitted and considered.
- • Policy detail: Considered if submitted
Where admitted students ranked in their high school class
Class rank distribution gives parents a clear sense of how academically dominant a typical admitted student was within their own high school cohort — often a more meaningful signal than absolute GPA.
| Top 10% of class | 35% |
| Top 25% of class | 67% |
| Top 50% of class | 93% |
| % submitting class rank | 42% |
How much does Auburn University actually cost?
Published tuition is $12,536 for in-state students and $33,944 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $15,396 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $23,897 per year — the number that actually matters for budgeting. Roughly 12% of students receive Pell Grants, a useful indicator of how much need-based aid the school distributes.
| In-state tuition | $11,016 |
| Out-of-state tuition | $33,048 |
| Room and board | $16,626 |
| Average net price (after aid) | $23,897 |
| Application fee | $50 (waivers available) |
Application deadlines and early decision data for Auburn University
| Regular deadline | February 1 |
| Notification date | March 1 |
| Reply deadline | May 1 |
| Rolling admissions | Yes |
| Offers Early Action | Yes |
| EA deadline | November 1 |
Will my child graduate from Auburn University?
Retention and graduation rates are the most overlooked numbers in college planning, but they predict actual outcomes far better than acceptance rate. They tell you whether admitted students stay and finish on time.
Most popular majors at Auburn University
The most popular undergraduate programs at Auburn University, measured by the number of students who actually graduate each year, are Business Administration, Management and Operations, Biology, General and Finance and Financial Management Services. Across all programs, Auburn University confers roughly 2,237 bachelor's degrees a year. Graduates of its Business Administration, Management and Operations program report a median income of about $76,513 five years after entering college. Major popularity is a practical signal of where a school concentrates its teaching strength and where your child will find the deepest course offerings and peer community.
| Major | Graduates / year | Median earnings (5 yrs out) |
|---|---|---|
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 545 | $76,513 |
| Biology, General | 315 | $78,788 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services | 313 | $83,481 |
| Marketing | 250 | $67,766 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 238 | $91,940 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | 215 | $71,237 |
| Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences | 202 | — |
| Psychology, General | 159 | $48,338 |
Is Auburn University safe? Campus crime & safety
In its most recent Clery Act report (2024), Auburn University disclosed 75 total criminal offenses across its campus and surrounding public property, about 2.8 per 1,000 students. That figure includes 20 violent offenses and 6 reported sexual assaults or VAWA offenses. Per-1,000-student rates matter more than raw counts when comparing schools, because larger universities mechanically report more incidents. Under the federal Clery Act, every college that receives federal aid must publish these numbers annually.
What is campus life like at Auburn University?
About 18% of undergraduates at Auburn University live in campus housing, so a meaningful share of students commute or live off campus. In Greek life, 30% of men join a fraternity and 58% of women join a sorority. Residential rate and Greek participation shape day-to-day social life and are worth weighing alongside academics and cost.
Other colleges in Alabama parents ask about
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like Auburn University
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like Auburn University recalculate it, and ask an AI college counselor specific questions about their teen's odds. The platform is built for parents — not students — and turns what's usually a fragmented planning process into a single dashboard.
Common questions parents ask about Auburn University
What GPA do I need for Auburn University?
Auburn University admits students with a wide GPA range, but most successful applicants present an unweighted GPA of 3.3 or higher with a college-prep curriculum.
What SAT or ACT score does Auburn University typically admit?
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 610–690, with an EBRW midpoint near —. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 25–31.
How much does Auburn University actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at Auburn University after grants and scholarships is $23,897 per year. That figure is more useful for budgeting than the published sticker price, because it reflects what families actually pay after aid is applied.
Is Auburn University realistic for my child?
Compare your teen's current unweighted GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against the ranges above. If both numbers fall inside the school's middle-50, Auburn University is a target school. If both fall below the 25th-percentile mark, treat it as a reach and balance the application list accordingly.
What is the acceptance rate at Auburn University?
Auburn University accepts about 50% of applicants out of roughly 55,056 who apply each year. That makes it a moderately selective school.
Is Auburn University test-optional?
Yes. Auburn University is test-optional, so SAT and ACT scores are not required, but strong scores can still be submitted and will be considered.
What is the graduation rate at Auburn University?
About 82% of students at Auburn University graduate within six years. 95% of freshmen return for sophomore year. Graduation rate predicts real outcomes better than acceptance rate.
What does Auburn University look for in applicants?
Auburn University rates GPA, test scores and the application essay as "very important" in its Common Data Set. These are the factors the admissions committee weighs most heavily when reviewing an application.
Is Auburn University a public or private school, and where is it located?
Auburn University is a public institution located in Auburn, Alabama.
What are the most popular majors at Auburn University?
The largest undergraduate majors at Auburn University by annual graduates are Business Administration, Management and Operations, Biology, General and Finance and Financial Management Services. The school awards about 2,237 bachelor's degrees a year in total. These figures come from federal IPEDS completion data.
Is Auburn University safe? What is its campus crime rate?
Auburn University reported 75 total criminal offenses in its most recent Clery Act disclosure (2024), roughly 2.8 per 1,000 students. Compare the per-1,000 rate rather than the raw total, since larger schools report more incidents.
What is campus life like at Auburn University?
At Auburn University, 18% of undergraduates live on campus, 30% of men are in fraternities, 58% of women are in sororities, according to its most recent Common Data Set.
Data sourced from the 2024-2025 Common Data Set submitted by Auburn University, the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS, and Clery Act campus safety disclosures. Solyo extracts admissions data from official Common Data Set publications and refreshes it annually.