College of the Holy Cross: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Springfield, Massachusetts · Private nonprofit · Open access
College of the Holy Cross is a private nonprofit university in Springfield, Massachusetts that admits about 83% of applicants, making it a open access school. The average family pays about $31,170 a year after financial aid, which matters more than the published sticker price. It is best known for Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, Psychology, General and Mechanical Engineering, its largest undergraduate programs by number of graduates. Its most recent Clery Act report shows roughly 1.1 criminal offenses per 1,000 students.
College of the Holy Cross is a private institution located in Springfield, Massachusetts. For the most recent reporting cycle, College of the Holy Cross admits the majority of qualified applicants, with an overall admission rate of 83%. Admitted students typically post an average SAT of 1231 and an ACT composite around 28. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $31,170 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether College of the Holy Cross 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 College of the Holy Cross?
College of the Holy Cross has a broadly accessible admissions profile, and most students who complete a standard college-prep curriculum with a 3.0 GPA or higher are competitive for admission. 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 College of the Holy Cross typically admits
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 560–660, with an EBRW midpoint near 600. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 25–27. Many applicants here submit scores; even slightly below the average can be competitive when combined with a strong GPA and curriculum.
How much does College of the Holy Cross actually cost?
Published tuition is $46,430 for in-state students and $46,430 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $14,900 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $31,170 per year — the number that actually matters for budgeting. Roughly 25% of students receive Pell Grants, a useful indicator of how much need-based aid the school distributes.
Most popular majors at College of the Holy Cross
The most popular undergraduate programs at College of the Holy Cross, measured by the number of students who actually graduate each year, are Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, Psychology, General and Mechanical Engineering. Across all programs, College of the Holy Cross confers roughly 302 bachelor's degrees a year. 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) |
|---|---|---|
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness | 47 | — |
| Psychology, General | 43 | — |
| Mechanical Engineering | 42 | — |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | 42 | — |
| Marketing | 38 | — |
| Accounting and Related Services | 31 | — |
| Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General | 30 | — |
| Finance and Financial Management Services | 29 | — |
Is College of the Holy Cross safe? Campus crime & safety
In its most recent Clery Act report (2024), College of the Holy Cross disclosed 3 total criminal offenses across its campus and surrounding public property, about 1.1 per 1,000 students. That figure includes 0 violent offenses and 3 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 Massachusetts parents ask about
- Harvard University3% acceptance
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology5% acceptance
- Boston University11% acceptance
- Boston College16% acceptance
- Tufts University10% acceptance
- University of Massachusetts-Amherst85% acceptance
- University of Massachusetts-Boston58% acceptance
- Northeastern University6% acceptance
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like College of the Holy Cross
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like College of the Holy Cross 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 College of the Holy Cross
What GPA do I need for College of the Holy Cross?
College of the Holy Cross has a broadly accessible admissions profile, and most students who complete a standard college-prep curriculum with a 3.0 GPA or higher are competitive for admission.
What SAT or ACT score does College of the Holy Cross typically admit?
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 560–660, with an EBRW midpoint near 600. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 25–27.
How much does College of the Holy Cross actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at College of the Holy Cross after grants and scholarships is $31,170 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 College of the Holy Cross 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, College of the Holy Cross 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 College of the Holy Cross?
College of the Holy Cross accepts about 83% of applicants. It admits the majority of qualified applicants.
Is College of the Holy Cross a public or private school, and where is it located?
College of the Holy Cross is a private nonprofit institution located in Springfield, Massachusetts.
What are the most popular majors at College of the Holy Cross?
The largest undergraduate majors at College of the Holy Cross by annual graduates are Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness, Psychology, General and Mechanical Engineering. The school awards about 302 bachelor's degrees a year in total. These figures come from federal IPEDS completion data.
Is College of the Holy Cross safe? What is its campus crime rate?
College of the Holy Cross reported 3 total criminal offenses in its most recent Clery Act disclosure (2024), roughly 1.1 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 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.