Oregon State University

The published cost of attendance at Oregon State University is $31,653. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported in-state tuition of $13,440 and required fees of $2,592 for the 2026-27 academic year.

On-campus food and housing added $19,011 to the sticker price. Out-of-state students face a higher published tuition of $40,155.

50.5% of full-time undergraduates pay more than the base tuition and fees. After grants and scholarships, the average cost for aid recipients is $19,604, which is $3,970 above the middle value of $15,634 for comparable institutions.

Financial aid reduces the published cost by $12,049 on average. Azimuth ranks the university #614 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Family costs vary substantially by income band at Oregon State University, where the published cost of attendance is $31,653. Average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $12,107 in the lowest family-income band; $13,036 in the next band; $15,729 in the middle band; $20,262 in the next-highest band; and $27,459 in the highest family-income band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $15,352. Azimuth ranks the university #614 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid covers about 38% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, offsetting $12,049 against the sticker price. Across all aid recipients, the average net price is $19,604.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $15,634, placing the university's average $3,970 above that benchmark. Aid reduces the published cost, though the average price remains above the comparable-institution median.

Federal-loan borrowers who complete leave with median federal student loan debt of $21,221, and 86.0% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. That median is $1,145 above the $20,076 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Parent PLUS borrowers have median borrowing of $28,923. The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $241 a month if repaid over ten years.

For Oregon State University, four-year earnings sit above the peer median. Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $71,799 four years after completion.

That figure is in the 78th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. This is $6,189 above the peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), of $65,610.

Azimuth places the return pillar in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $2,285 more than the model expects for similar students.

That measure is in the 64th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $13,822.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $11,537. Above-peer earnings and above-expected earnings point the same way.

Among Oregon State University completers who are working and not enrolled four years after graduation, the median for those who received federal aid is $71,799. That is $6,189 above the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The median sits in the 78th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, drawn from an earnings cohort of 5,641 completers. Graduates earn about $2,285 more than the model expects for similar students.

That result compares observed pay to the model's expectation for similar students. That outcome falls at the 64th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix run from a downside of $49,915 to an upside of $111,911, with a typical level of $71,799. Based on the program mix, an estimated 27.2% of graduates continue to graduate study.

For Oregon State University, the earnings picture starts with median earnings of $71,799 four years after completion, in the 78th percentile. Comparable institutions (same type and size) have a peer median, the middle value for that group, of $65,610; the university's median is $6,189 above it.

Graduates earn about $2,285 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, sits in the 64th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $13,822. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $11,537.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $4,965. Grounded in the program mix, the downside and upside earnings scenarios are $49,915 and $111,911.

Azimuth places the return pillar in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Computer Science is the largest program, with 843 degrees awarded and median earnings of $121,405 four years after completion.

Azimuth ranks it #46 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. Construction Engineering has median earnings of $105,964 four years after completion, and Azimuth ranks it #1 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

Physics has median earnings of $103,167 four years after completion, or 1.34x the national median for its field.

Earnings vary widely across Oregon State University’s program mix, rather than clustering around a single outcome. Its earnings scenarios range from $49,915 on the downside to $111,911 on the upside, with $71,799 as the typical scenario.

At the upper end, Computer Science completers earn median $121,405 four years after completion; Construction Engineering reaches $105,964, and Electrical Engineering reaches $105,359. Those program figures show why the modeled range is broad.

At Oregon State University, borrowing is close to the peer level even as graduates earn more than the model expects. Graduates earn about $2,285 more than the model expects for similar students.

Borrowers who complete have median federal student loan debt of $21,221, $1,145 above the $20,076 median at comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $241 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parent PLUS borrowers, a separate population, have median debt of $28,923. Average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $19,604, $3,970 above the $15,634 peer median.

Across family-income bands, average net price is $12,107 in the lowest band, $13,036 in the next band, $15,729 in the middle band, $20,262 in the next-highest band, and $27,459 in the highest band. Higher-than-expected earnings sit alongside above-peer debt and above-peer aid-recipient prices.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 29,362 first-year applicants, 23,172 admitted applicants, and 4,452 enrolled students. Oregon State University admitted 77.3% of applicants, below the median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The admission rate describes an outcome across the applicant pool rather than an individual forecast.

The largest program, Computer Science, is also the highest-earning: 843 degrees awarded and median earnings of $121,405 four years after completion. Azimuth ranks it #46 nationally within its field.

Engineering fields dominate the upper end of the earnings range. Mechanical Engineering graduates earn a median of $93,740 from 315 degrees awarded, and Azimuth ranks the program #68 nationally.

Construction Engineering, a smaller program at 75 degrees, posts $105,964 and holds the top national rank in its field. At the more moderate-earning end, Psychology awards 275 degrees and shows median earnings of $57,650; Azimuth ranks it #67 nationally.

Human Development and Family Studies is similar in scale at 205 degrees awarded, with earnings of $53,109 and a national rank of #21. The spread between the highest- and moderate-earning programs is wide, and the institution's overall median sits between them.

Oregon State University has 49 bachelor’s programs with an Azimuth national rank, with 56 fields publishing earnings data. The ranked fields span sharply different degree volumes and earnings, making the intended major especially important here.

Azimuth ranks Construction Engineering #1 nationally within its field; it awarded 75 degrees and its completers had median earnings of $105,964 four years after completion. Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy ranks #6 nationally, with 114 degrees awarded and median earnings of $52,730 four years after completion.

Oregon State University awards bachelor's degrees across 49 ranked programs, with four-year earnings data published for 56. The degree mix leans heavily toward technical fields: Engineering accounts for 17.5% of bachelor's degrees awarded, and Computer & Information Sciences and Business are tied at 14.5% each.

The largest programs are Computer Science at 843 degrees awarded, Business Administration and Management at 452, and Mechanical Engineering at 315. Computer Science is also the highest-earning program, with a median of $121,405 four years after completion.

Azimuth ranks it #46 nationally within its field and #1 in Oregon. The highest-ranked program is Construction Engineering.

It awards 75 degrees a year and its completers earn a median of $105,964 four years after completion. Physics is another standout: with a benchmark ratio of 1.34x against the national median for its field, its completers earn $103,167 four years after completion.

Strength is concentrated in engineering and computer science, where the largest programs also post the highest earnings. Several smaller programs—Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management, Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences Business Services, and Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy—hold top-ten national ranks within their fields, showing that the university's reach extends well beyond its largest departments.

The earnings picture for fields where graduate study is common may understate later-career paths.