Cost & financial aid brief
Trine University Tuition, Costs & Financial Aid
How much does Trine University cost after financial aid?
On average, aid lowers the published cost by $25,754, covering about 50% of the sticker price for the average aid recipient. The pattern across income bands is flat rather than steeply progressive.
Average net prices range from $19,661 in the lowest income band to $29,066 in the highest, with $20,470, $19,463, and $24,031 in the bands between. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $9,405.
That narrow spread means families at different incomes face similar average costs after aid.
Trine University's published cost of attendance is $51,109, with tuition and fees of $36,560 and room and board at $13,120. After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $19,661; for the middle band, families earning $48,001–$75,000, it is $19,463; and for families earning over $110,000 it is $29,066.
The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $9,405. Azimuth ranks the university #1,068 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Aid covers about 50% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, a savings of $25,754 against the sticker price. The average net price across all aid recipients is $25,355, which sits below the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $2,016.
The median federal student debt at completion is $25,000, with 91.2% of federal aid recipients borrowing. That debt is above the peer median of $24,199 by $801.
The median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower figure, is $32,897. If repaid over ten years, the median federal debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $284 a month.
Student loans: what does repayment look like?
At Trine University, completers who borrowed through federal loan programs owe a median of $25,000 at completion. Federal loans reach 91.2% of federal aid recipients.
The peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size) is $24,199, and the university's median is $801 above that level. Parent borrowers, counted separately from students, hold a median Parent PLUS debt of $32,897.
Four years after completing a degree, Trine University graduates earn a median of $67,814. Graduates earn about $4,966 more than expects for similar students, an outcome at the 71st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, range from $49,052 in a downside case to $86,102 in an upside case. The typical earnings scenario sits at $67,814.
On the borrowing side, the median federal student debt at completion is $25,000, which is $801 above the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $284 a month if repaid over ten years.
The earnings picture and the debt picture point in different directions here: graduates out-earn the model's expectation, but they also carry slightly more federal debt than peers at similar schools.
Median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $32,897. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $284.
Repayment figures are in the Financial GPS card below. Borrowing populations and model assumptions.
Parent loans: what can the family afford?
How Parent PLUS borrowing affects families
- Median Parent PLUS debt
- $32,897
- Estimated parent payment
- $418/mo
| Income | Risk level |
|---|---|
| $35,000 | High pressure |
| $50,000 | High pressure |
| $75,000 | High pressure |
| $100,000 | High pressure |
| $150,000 | Safe |
| $200,000 | Safe |
The model holds the parent balance fixed and varies parent income. Read the assumptions and limits.
Student and parent loans: the monthly payments
Financial GPS
What does repayment look like?
- Institution median student debt
- $25,000
- Institution Parent PLUS debt
- $32,897
Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.
- Estimated student payment · monthly
- $284/mo
- Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
- $418/mo
- Modeled student + parent payments
- $702/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 $67,814, with a $22,590 annual allowance for basic expenses:
7.5% of income above the allowance · Excellent
- Excellent Under 8% · selected scenario
- Good 8–under 12%
- Concerning 12–20%
- 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.
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.
Data & methodology
Sources and reporting periods: methodology.
Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, 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.
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.
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.