Scripps College: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Santa Clara, California · Private nonprofit · Selective · CDS 2025-2026
Scripps College is a private nonprofit university in Santa Clara, California that admits about 44% of applicants, making it a selective school. The average family pays about $50,959 a year after financial aid, which matters more than the published sticker price. It is best known for Finance and Financial Management Services, Communication and Media Studies and Psychology, General, its largest undergraduate programs by number of graduates. About 87% of students graduate within six years. Its most recent Clery Act report shows roughly 4.0 criminal offenses per 1,000 students.
Scripps College is a private institution located in Santa Clara, California with a selective admissions profile. For the most recent reporting cycle, Scripps College admits between a quarter and half of applicants, with an overall admission rate of 44%. Admitted students typically post an average SAT of 1417 and an ACT composite around 32. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $50,959 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether Scripps College 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 Scripps College?
Admitted students at Scripps College typically present unweighted GPAs in the 3.6–3.9 range with several honors or AP courses. 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.
SAT and ACT scores Scripps College typically admits
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 680–770, with an EBRW midpoint near 685. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 30–33. 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 | 1330 |
| 50th percentile | 1410 |
| 75th percentile | 1470 |
| % submitting SAT | 29% |
| 25th percentile | 29 |
| 50th percentile | 31 |
| 75th percentile | 33 |
| % submitting ACT | 9% |
- • 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 | 47% |
| Top 25% of class | 74% |
| Top 50% of class | 91% |
| % submitting class rank | 3% |
How much does Scripps College actually cost?
Published tuition is $59,241 for in-state students and $59,241 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $18,984 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $50,959 per year — the number that actually matters for budgeting. Roughly 11% of students receive Pell Grants, a useful indicator of how much need-based aid the school distributes.
| In-state tuition | $64,956 |
| Room and board | $21,234 |
| Average net price (after aid) | $50,959 |
| Application fee | $75 |
Application deadlines and early decision data for Scripps College
| Regular deadline | January 7 |
| Notification date | Late March |
| Reply deadline | May 1 |
| Offers Early Decision | Yes |
| ED deadline | November 1 |
| ED acceptance rate | 76% |
| Offers Early Action | Yes |
| EA deadline | November 1 |
Will my child graduate from Scripps College?
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 Scripps College
The most popular undergraduate programs at Scripps College, measured by the number of students who actually graduate each year, are Finance and Financial Management Services, Communication and Media Studies and Psychology, General. Across all programs, Scripps College confers roughly 877 bachelor's degrees a year. Graduates of its Finance and Financial Management Services program report a median income of about $127,056 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) |
|---|---|---|
| Finance and Financial Management Services | 160 | $127,056 |
| Communication and Media Studies | 137 | $74,671 |
| Psychology, General | 122 | $77,958 |
| Economics | 108 | $128,642 |
| Mathematics and Computer Science | 107 | — |
| Computer Engineering | 83 | $191,635 |
| Biology, General | 81 | $70,331 |
| Marketing | 79 | $100,123 |
Is Scripps College safe? Campus crime & safety
In its most recent Clery Act report (2024), Scripps College disclosed 26 total criminal offenses across its campus and surrounding public property, about 4.0 per 1,000 students. That figure includes 6 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 Scripps College?
About 51% of undergraduates at Scripps College live in campus housing, making it a largely residential campus. Residential rate and Greek participation shape day-to-day social life and are worth weighing alongside academics and cost.
Other colleges in California parents ask about
- Stanford University4% acceptance
- University of California-Berkeley12% acceptance
- University of California-Los Angeles9% acceptance
- University of Southern California10% acceptance
- University of California-Davis42% acceptance
- University of California-Irvine26% acceptance
- University of California-San Diego25% acceptance
- University of California-Santa Barbara63% acceptance
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like Scripps College
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like Scripps College 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 Scripps College
What GPA do I need for Scripps College?
Admitted students at Scripps College typically present unweighted GPAs in the 3.6–3.9 range with several honors or AP courses.
What SAT or ACT score does Scripps College typically admit?
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 680–770, with an EBRW midpoint near 685. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 30–33.
How much does Scripps College actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at Scripps College after grants and scholarships is $50,959 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 Scripps College 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, Scripps College 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 Scripps College?
Scripps College accepts about 44% of applicants out of roughly 20,032 who apply each year. That makes it a selective school.
Is Scripps College test-optional?
Yes. Scripps College 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 Scripps College?
About 87% of students at Scripps College graduate within six years. 93% of freshmen return for sophomore year. Graduation rate predicts real outcomes better than acceptance rate.
Does applying Early Decision improve my chances at Scripps College?
Scripps College's Early Decision acceptance rate is about 76%, compared with its overall rate of 44%. Applying ED can meaningfully improve admission odds, but it is a binding commitment to enroll if accepted.
Is Scripps College a public or private school, and where is it located?
Scripps College is a private nonprofit institution located in Santa Clara, California.
What are the most popular majors at Scripps College?
The largest undergraduate majors at Scripps College by annual graduates are Finance and Financial Management Services, Communication and Media Studies and Psychology, General. The school awards about 877 bachelor's degrees a year in total. These figures come from federal IPEDS completion data.
Is Scripps College safe? What is its campus crime rate?
Scripps College reported 26 total criminal offenses in its most recent Clery Act disclosure (2024), roughly 4.0 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 Scripps College?
At Scripps College, 51% of undergraduates live on campus, according to its most recent Common Data Set.
Data sourced from the 2025-2026 Common Data Set submitted by Scripps College, 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.