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Cost & financial aid brief

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# Fort Hays State University Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid

Updated October 1, 2026

[Overview](/school/fort-hays-state-university/)Cost & aid[Outcomes](/school/fort-hays-state-university/outcomes/)[Admissions](/school/fort-hays-state-university/admissions/)[Majors](/school/fort-hays-state-university/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/fort-hays-state-university/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much does Fort Hays State University cost after financial aid?

Affordability is a relative strength at Fort Hays State University: its published cost of attendance is $19,909. Within that sticker budget, in-state tuition and fees are $5,923, room and board are $9,120, and out-of-state tuition and fees are $17,741.

These published components are the starting price before grants and scholarships. For aid recipients, average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/), what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $12,569, with aid reducing the published cost by $7,340 on average.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $14,068; this university is $1,499 below that figure. Azimuth ranks Fort Hays State University #207 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. Its lower peer price and affordability rank point in the same direction.

The average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) at Fort Hays State University is $12,569. The average net price sits $1,499 below the $14,068 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth places the university in the 85th percentile for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. Aid recipients in the lowest income band average $7,661, while those in the highest income band average $16,641.

Borrowers who complete a degree hold a median of $21,000 in federal student loans, $229 below the $21,229 peer median.

Family income has a clear association with average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) here. The lowest family-income band averages $7,661, followed by $9,776 in the next-lowest band, $11,941 in the middle band, $14,266 in the next-highest band, and $16,641 in the highest band.

Pell Grants reach 22.8% of undergraduates, providing financial-access context for the lowest band. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $8,980.

Average net price by family income

**$0–30K**
$7,661

**$30–48K**
$9,776

**$48–75K**
$11,941

**$75–110K**
$14,266

**$110K+**
$16,641

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Overall average annual net price: **$12,569**. After grants and scholarships, including living costs. [Source and coverage](#cost-data-notes).

Average aid recipients receive a visible reduction from published charges: aid covers about 37% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. This is an average across recipients, not a promise for any household, and it describes grants and scholarships against the standard budget.

Across the income bands, lower-income families have lower average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/)s and upper-income families have higher ones, with the middle bands between those endpoints. That pattern shows aid reaching further at lower family incomes, without establishing what a particular package will contain.

The aid share and income pattern point toward lower average prices at lower incomes.

Fort Hays State University lists a published cost of attendance of $19,909, and aid-recipient prices differ across family-income bands. Average [net price](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) is $7,661 for the lowest band, $9,776 for the lower-middle band, $11,941 for the middle band, $14,266 for the upper-middle band, and $16,641 for the highest band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $8,980. Azimuth ranks the public university #207 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 37% of the published cost, an average reduction of $7,340. Across all aid recipients, the average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $12,569.

That is $1,499 below the peer median of $14,068 for comparable institutions (same type and size). Published tuition is $5,923 for in-state students and $17,741 for out-of-state students, alongside $9,120 for room and board.

Lower-than-peer net price and the affordability ranking point in the same direction. Among borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $21,000, and 84.8% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.

That median is $229 below the $21,229 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size). The median [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) borrowing for parent borrowers is $11,833.

The median federal debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $239 a month if repaid over ten years.

## Student loans: what does repayment look like?

At Fort Hays State University, federal borrowing reaches 84.8% of federal aid recipients, so loan use is common. The peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size) is $21,229, with Fort Hays sitting $229 below that mark.

Separate parent borrowers have median [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) borrowing of $11,833.

Fort Hays State University shows its clearest financial strength in affordability, while its return measures remain close to peer and model benchmarks. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $56,419 four years after completion, placing them in Azimuth’s 37th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

[Earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/), the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, stay near the model’s mark. Graduates earn about $422 more than the model expects for similar students, effectively at the expected level.

Azimuth places that measure in the 56th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios range from $48,455 in a downside case to $70,465 in an upside case, with $56,419 as the typical scenario.

Median federal student loan debt is $21,000, which is $229 below the $21,229 peer median. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $239 a month if repaid over ten years.

Earnings close to both benchmarks and debt below peers leave an even investment picture.

For the separate parent-borrower population, median [Parent PLUS](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) borrowing is $11,833. For student borrowers, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $239 a month if repaid over ten years.

[Repayment figures](#combined-borrowing) are in the Financial GPS card below. [Borrowing populations and model assumptions](#cost-data-notes).

## Parent loans: what can the family afford?

[How Parent PLUS borrowing affects families](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/)

**Median Parent PLUS debt**
$11,833

**Estimated parent payment**
$150/mo

Modeled Parent PLUS pressure by income

| Income | Risk level |
| --- | --- |
| $35,000 | High pressure |
| $50,000 | High pressure |
| $75,000 | Caution |
| $100,000 | Safe |
| $150,000 | Safe |
| $200,000 | Safe |

The model holds the parent balance fixed and varies parent income. [Read the assumptions and limits](#cost-data-notes).

## Student and parent loans: the monthly payments

Financial GPS

### What does repayment look like?

**Institution median student debt**
$21,000

**Institution Parent PLUS debt**
$11,833

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

**Estimated student payment · monthly**
$239/mo

**Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly**
$150/mo

**Modeled student + parent payments**
$389/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

#### Student payment as a share of available income

At median graduate earnings of $56,419, with a $22,590 annual allowance for basic expenses:

**8.5%** of income above the allowance · Good

1.  Excellent Under 8%
2.  Good 8–under 12% · selected scenario
3.  Concerning 12–20%
4.  High risk Over 20%

How this estimate works

These are modeled earnings scenarios, not observed earnings percentiles. Annual student payments ÷ (earnings − basic-expense allowance). The starting allowance, $22,590, uses the published framework’s 2024 baseline; it is not a current local living-cost estimate. Change it for your budget, including taxes and other obligations. This combines school-level figures for illustration, not a typical individual’s budget or an official school rating. Parent PLUS is separate.

[Read the framework and its limits](/analysis/financial-gps-framework/).

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

[Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS](/financial-gps/?tool=student&school=fort-hays-state-university#student-tool)

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).

**Net price and borrowing.** The 2023–24 income-band averages include living costs and cover eligible first-time, full-time aid recipients; public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. They are not individual aid offers. Peer matching supplies overall net prices, not matched income-band averages. [College Scorecard data and documentation](https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/).

A personal student-risk assessment also needs your major and borrowing plan; these school-level illustrations do not assign you a personal risk zone.

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates. Private-loan figures from the Common Data Set are separate from these federal repayment illustrations.