Earlham College: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Terre Haute, Indiana · Private nonprofit · Moderately selective · CDS 2025-2026
Earlham College is a private nonprofit university in Terre Haute, Indiana that admits about 73% of applicants, making it a moderately selective school. The average family pays about $40,665 a year after financial aid, which matters more than the published sticker price. It is best known for Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science and Computer Engineering, its largest undergraduate programs by number of graduates. About 74% of students graduate within six years. Its most recent Clery Act report shows roughly 0.0 criminal offenses per 1,000 students.
Earlham College is a private institution located in Terre Haute, Indiana with a moderately selective admissions profile. For the most recent reporting cycle, Earlham College admits about half to three-quarters of applicants, with an overall admission rate of 73%. Admitted students typically post an average SAT of 1389 and an ACT composite around 31. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $40,665 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether Earlham 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 Earlham College?
Earlham College 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 Earlham College weight in admissions?
Earlham College reports the following factor importance in its Common Data Set (2025-2026). These are the criteria the admissions committee weighs when reviewing applications.
- • Rigor of secondary school record
- • Academic GPA
- • Extracurricular activities
- • Character/personal qualities
- • Application essay
- • Recommendations
- • Class rank
- • Standardized test scores
- • Interview
- • Talent/ability
- • Volunteer work
- • Work experience
- • First generation status
- • Alumni/ae relation
- • Geographical residence
- • State residency
- • Religious affiliation/commitment
- • Level of applicant's interest
SAT and ACT scores Earlham College typically admits
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 660–760, with an EBRW midpoint near 665. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 29–34. 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 | 1270 |
| 50th percentile | 1380 |
| 75th percentile | 1450 |
| % submitting SAT | 35.7% |
| 25th percentile | 28 |
| 50th percentile | 31 |
| 75th percentile | 34 |
| % submitting ACT | 16.5% |
- • 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 | 59.2% |
| Top 25% of class | 85.9% |
| Top 50% of class | 97.8% |
| % submitting class rank | 38% |
How much does Earlham College actually cost?
Published tuition is $56,674 for in-state students and $56,674 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $17,718 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $40,665 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 | $56,910 |
| Room and board | $17,427 |
| Average net price (after aid) | $40,665 |
| Application fee | $65 (waivers available) |
Application deadlines and early decision data for Earlham College
| Regular deadline | February 1 |
| Notification date | March 15 |
| Reply deadline | May 1 |
| Offers Early Action | Yes |
| EA deadline | November 1 |
Will my child graduate from Earlham 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 Earlham College
The most popular undergraduate programs at Earlham College, measured by the number of students who actually graduate each year, are Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science and Computer Engineering. Across all programs, Earlham College confers roughly 428 bachelor's degrees a year. Graduates of its Mechanical Engineering program report a median income of about $93,120 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) |
|---|---|---|
| Mechanical Engineering | 120 | $93,120 |
| Computer Science | 94 | $155,655 |
| Computer Engineering | 61 | $123,554 |
| Chemical Engineering | 43 | $106,661 |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering | 39 | $98,012 |
| Mathematics | 32 | $122,674 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering | 20 | $93,920 |
| Civil Engineering | 19 | $89,394 |
Is Earlham College safe? Campus crime & safety
In its most recent Clery Act report (2024), Earlham College disclosed 0 total criminal offenses across its campus and surrounding public property, about 0.0 per 1,000 students. That figure includes 0 violent offenses and 0 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.
Other colleges in Indiana parents ask about
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like Earlham College
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like Earlham 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 Earlham College
What GPA do I need for Earlham College?
Earlham College 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 Earlham College typically admit?
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 660–760, with an EBRW midpoint near 665. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 29–34.
How much does Earlham College actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at Earlham College after grants and scholarships is $40,665 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 Earlham 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, Earlham 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 Earlham College?
Earlham College accepts about 73% of applicants out of roughly 5,991 who apply each year. That makes it a moderately selective school.
Is Earlham College test-optional?
Yes. Earlham 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 Earlham College?
About 74% of students at Earlham College graduate within six years. 92% of freshmen return for sophomore year. Graduation rate predicts real outcomes better than acceptance rate.
What does Earlham College look for in applicants?
Earlham College rates course rigor, GPA, extracurricular activities and character and personal qualities as "very important" in its Common Data Set. These are the factors the admissions committee weighs most heavily when reviewing an application.
Is Earlham College a public or private school, and where is it located?
Earlham College is a private nonprofit institution located in Terre Haute, Indiana.
What are the most popular majors at Earlham College?
The largest undergraduate majors at Earlham College by annual graduates are Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science and Computer Engineering. The school awards about 428 bachelor's degrees a year in total. These figures come from federal IPEDS completion data.
Is Earlham College safe? What is its campus crime rate?
Earlham College reported 0 total criminal offenses in its most recent Clery Act disclosure (2024), roughly 0.0 per 1,000 students. Compare the per-1,000 rate rather than the raw total, since larger schools report more incidents.
Data sourced from the 2025-2026 Common Data Set submitted by Earlham 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.