College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

Tufts University

MAMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #297 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth places Tufts University in the 80th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

Tufts University is a private nonprofit university in Medford, Massachusetts, whose degree mix is led by Social Sciences, Engineering, and Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies. Return is among the highest we track, the strongest of the four , while affordability is below the levels seen at many peers.

Graduates earn less than predicts for students like them. The model attributes the gap to a remainder it does not explain, which subtracts, while the factors it measures—field of study, enrollment and the local labor market—adds to expected earnings.

Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study, so the four-year earnings figure captures most outcomes. The price case turns on income: the lowest income band pays well below the published cost, while the highest band pays closer to it.

Pell students complete below the overall rate, and mobility is well above average. The admission rate is below the median for comparable schools.

A student drawn to the social sciences should go in knowing that the largest departments are not the best-paid ones.

Tufts University at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
11.5%
Six-year completion[2]
93.5%
Four-year earnings[3]
$97,474

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$14,923
Median student debt[4]
$16,250
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$38,325

Tufts University rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

Tufts University is a private nonprofit university in Medford, Massachusetts, enrolling 7,061 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits near the top of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions, with return strong and affordability weak.

The university admits 11.5% of applicants, a rate far below the 71.2% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Among full-time first-year students, 95.5% return for a second year, against a peer median of 83.4%.

The six-year graduation rate is 93.5%, well above the peer median of 68.8%. An estimated 6.5% of undergraduates arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year rate describes a large majority of the student body.

The four pillars sit far apart. Return is the strongest and affordability the weakest, with mobility and access falling between them.

The profile is one where strong outcomes and a selective admissions process coexist with a high net price.

Return is the clearest strength in Tufts University’s Azimuth profile, standing in the 92nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth puts mobility in the 83rd percentile and access in the 71st percentile, while affordability is the weakest pillar at the 10th percentile.

The profile pairs strong return and mobility measures with a much lower affordability measure.

12.0% of undergraduates at Tufts University receive Pell Grants. Those Pell recipients complete at a rate of 86.1%, 7.4 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate.

Azimuth ranks the university #425 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Tufts University #256 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $7,804 less than the model expects for similar students.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

Tufts University rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#297
Massachusetts#15
Northeast#75

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 83
Access & reach
National percentile: 71
Affordability
National percentile: 10
Return on investment
National percentile: 92

Top-ranked majors

  1. Research and Experimental Psychology#3
  2. Natural Resources Conservation and Research#4
  3. Cognitive Science#4

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / Tufts University briefing

Tufts University cost & financial aid[6][7]

The published annual cost at Tufts University is high even after the average aid recipient’s discount. The university’s published cost of attendance is $88,300, an average across living arrangements.

On-campus tuition and fees are $70,704 and room and board is $18,588. For aid recipients, the average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $39,998.

Financial aid offsets $48,302 of the published cost on average. At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median net price is $27,371; Tufts sits $12,627 above that figure.

Azimuth ranks Tufts University #1,275 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. The higher and the peer comparison both point to a costly price picture.

At Tufts University, the published cost of attendance is $88,300 (an average across living arrangements), so aid makes a large difference to the price families face. Average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $11,284 for families earning under thirty thousand dollars; $9,811 for families earning from thirty thousand and one dollars through forty-eight thousand dollars; $14,923 for families earning from forty-eight thousand and one dollars through seventy-five thousand dollars; $23,311 for families earning from seventy-five thousand and one dollars through one hundred ten thousand dollars; and $58,570 for families earning over one hundred ten thousand dollars.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $47,286, and Azimuth ranks the university #1,275 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. Aid covers about 55% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, offsetting $48,302 against the sticker price and leaving an average net price of $39,998 across aid recipients.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $27,371; the university’s average is $12,627 above that figure. Published tuition and fees are $70,704, with room and board at $18,588.

Aid reduces the listed price substantially, yet the average price for aid recipients remains above the comparable-school median. Among federal-loan borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $16,250, and 74.6% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.

The median at comparable institutions (same type and size) is $24,199, placing the university $7,949 below that figure. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $185 a month if repaid over ten years.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing among parent borrowers is $38,325.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$14,923

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Tufts University

Federal borrowing at Tufts University ends below the comparable-institution benchmark for completers. Median federal student loan debt at completion is $16,250, which is $7,949 below the $24,199 peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Federal loans are used by 74.6% of federal aid recipients. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $38,325.

In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported that 26% of graduates borrowed from any source, with average cumulative borrowing of $25,584 per borrower. That figure includes 25% of graduates with federal loans, averaging $15,190 per federal borrower.

It also includes 4% of graduates with private loans, averaging $64,668 per private borrower.

Tufts University presents a mixed return picture: observed earnings are high, while the model result is less favorable. Graduates working and not enrolled have median earnings of $97,474 four years after completion.

Azimuth places that earnings figure in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, offers a separate model-based measure.

Graduates earn about $7,804 less than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth places that measure in the 26th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios place earnings at $60,388 in a downside case, $97,474 in a typical case, and $138,417 in an upside case. Median federal debt is $16,250, compared with $24,199 at comparable institutions (same type and size); it is $7,949 below the peer median.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $185 a month if repaid over ten years. High observed earnings and lower debt point one way, but point another.

Among the separate population of Parent PLUS parent borrowers, median borrowing was $38,325. For student borrowers at the median federal debt level, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $185 a month if repaid over ten years.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$16,250
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$38,325

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$185/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$487/mo

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

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
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / Tufts University briefing

Tufts University career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Tufts University pairs earnings above comparable institutions with earnings that fall short of the model’s expectations for similar students. Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $97,474 four years after completion, placing the figure in the 96th percentile.

Graduates earn about $7,804 less than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is in the 26th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $6,700. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $14,504.

Azimuth places the return pillar in the 92nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $68,250, with Tufts $29,224 above it.

The return picture is mixed: earnings exceed peers but fall below the model’s expectation.

A high four-year median gives Tufts University graduates a strong earnings starting point: federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled earn $97,474 four years after completion. This measure draws on an earnings cohort of 1,328 completers.

Azimuth places that median in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Scenarios modeled from the program mix range from $60,388 in the downside case to $138,417 in the upside case, with the typical earnings scenario matching the observed median.

Graduates earn about $7,804 less than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations is the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students; this result sits in the 26th percentile.

An estimated 36.7% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. High observed earnings and below-expected modeled earnings give the return picture mixed signals.

Among federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled, Tufts University completers earn a median of $97,474 four years after finishing a bachelor's degree. That median sits in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, $29,224 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks Tufts University #122 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $7,804 less than the model expects for similar students.

That places the earnings gap at the 26th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $6,700.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $14,504. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $4,952, and the mix spans social sciences, engineering, computer science, and biological sciences, with psychology, interdisciplinary study, and international affairs represented here.

Estimated earnings scenarios from the program mix run from $60,388 on the downside to $138,417 on the upside. An estimated 36.7% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix, rather than entering the workforce immediately.

The modeled spread at Tufts University is wide enough that field selection changes the earnings picture. Scenarios based on the program mix run from $60,388 on the downside to $138,417 on the upside, rather than describing observed groups of graduates.

Four years after completion, median program earnings are $156,343 in Computer Science, $130,801 in Cognitive Science, and $123,809 in Economics. Those field-level results help explain the range represented by the scenarios.

The cost picture is uneven: Tufts University has an average net price of $39,998, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships. That average is above the $27,371 peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size), by $12,627.

Aid covers about 55% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $47,286, a difference of averages rather than what any family pays.

Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $16,250, below the $24,199 peer median by $7,949. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $185 a month if repaid over ten years.

Graduates earn about $7,804 less than the model expects for similar students. Higher net price and lower borrower debt pull the cost picture in different directions.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$6,700
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$14,504
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
-$7,804

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / Tufts University briefing

Tufts University acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, Tufts University reported 33,949 first-year applicants and 3,915 admitted applicants. Federal data put the admission rate at 11.5%, below the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Applicants should place the university’s published score ranges and academic record alongside their own when building an application list. These measures describe recent admissions outcomes, not an individual decision.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
11.5%
25th percentile
1480
Median
1510
75th percentile
1540

CDS 2024-25 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / Tufts University briefing

What are the largest majors at Tufts University?[12]

The largest programs at Tufts University span a wide earnings range. Economics awards 198 degrees a year, and its graduates earn a median of $123,809 four years after completion.

Azimuth ranks it #24 nationally in its field. Computer Science is the highest-earning program, with 171 degrees awarded and median earnings of $156,343.

Azimuth ranks it #22 nationally. Biology, the third-largest at 138 degrees, sits at the lower end of the range at $76,782, though Azimuth still ranks it #15 nationally.

A smaller program, Cognitive Science, posts the second-highest earnings at $130,801 from just 39 degrees a year. Azimuth ranks it #4 nationally.

The contrast between the largest programs and the highest-earning ones is worth noting: the fields that pay the most are not always the ones awarding the most degrees.

The return picture at Tufts University is strongest in the programs that award the most degrees. Economics is the largest, with 198 degrees awarded and median earnings of $123,809 four years after completion.

Azimuth ranks it #24 nationally within its field. Computer Science is close behind at 171 degrees awarded, and its graduates earn a median of $156,343, the highest on campus.

Azimuth ranks it #22 nationally. The best-ranked program is Research and Experimental Psychology, at #3 nationally and #1 in Massachusetts.

It awarded 90 degrees and its completers earn a median of $79,571. Across all fields, Azimuth ranks 15 of the university's programs nationally.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Economics 198 degrees awarded
$123,809
Computer Science 171 degrees awarded
$156,343
Biology, General 138 degrees awarded
$76,782
International Relations and National Security Studies 133 degrees awarded
$77,998
Research and Experimental Psychology 90 degrees awarded
$79,571
Political Science and Government 71 degrees awarded
$78,180

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / Tufts University briefing

How does Tufts University serve students from different backgrounds?

Return is the strongest pillar at Tufts University, but the mobility picture is mixed. For the first-time full-time cohort, the six-year graduation rate is 93.5%; Pell recipients complete within six years at 86.1%, below the overall rate by 7.4 percentage points.

Azimuth places the mobility pillar in the 83rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, are negative here.

Graduates earn about $7,804 less than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth puts that measure in the 26th percentile nationally.

Strong completion and lower-than-expected earnings pull the mobility picture in different directions.

Entry to Tufts University is limited, with an admission rate of 11.5%. Pell Grant recipients account for 12.0% of 7,061 undergraduates, and the estimated share of entrants outside the first-time, full-time group is 6.5%.

Azimuth assigns the access pillar a 71st percentile position among nonprofit four-year institutions. The constrained admitted share sits alongside Pell participation and transfer entry within the undergraduate population.

06 / Tufts University briefing

What colleges are similar to Tufts University?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with Tufts University.

Admissions peerWellesley College14.1% admitted
Comparison with Tufts University
MeasureTufts UniversityWellesley College
Peer earnings · 4 years$97,474$72,449-$25,025 vs Tufts University
Average annual net price$39,998$25,496-$14,502 vs Tufts University · lower cost
Admission rate11.5%14.1%
Explore Wellesley College →
Higher-admission alternativeWentworth Institute of Technology91.2% admitted
Comparison with Tufts University
MeasureTufts UniversityWentworth Institute of Technology
Peer earnings · 4 years$97,474$95,027-$2,447 vs Tufts University
Average annual net price$39,998$34,170-$5,828 vs Tufts University · lower cost
Admission rate11.5%91.2%
Explore Wentworth Institute of Technology →
Nearby alternativeCollege of the Holy CrossNearby option · MA
Comparison with Tufts University
MeasureTufts UniversityCollege of the Holy Cross
Peer earnings · 4 years$97,474$84,553-$12,921 vs Tufts University
Average annual net price$39,998$38,782-$1,216 vs Tufts University · lower cost
Admission rate11.5%17.6%
Explore College of the Holy Cross →
Higher-earnings alternativeBabson College$117,794 earnings
Comparison with Tufts University
MeasureTufts UniversityBabson College
Peer earnings · 4 years$97,474$117,794+$20,320 vs Tufts University
Average annual net price$39,998$40,514+$516 vs Tufts University · higher cost
Admission rate11.5%17.1%
Explore Babson College →
Lower-cost alternativeBrown University$25,184 average net price
Comparison with Tufts University
MeasureTufts UniversityBrown University
Peer earnings · 4 years$97,474$94,678-$2,796 vs Tufts University
Average annual net price$39,998$25,184-$14,814 vs Tufts University · lower cost
Admission rate11.5%5.4%
Explore Brown University →
Similar profileBrown UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with Tufts University
MeasureTufts UniversityBrown University
Peer earnings · 4 years$97,474$94,678-$2,796 vs Tufts University
Average annual net price$39,998$25,184-$14,814 vs Tufts University · lower cost
Admission rate11.5%5.4%
Explore Brown University →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

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

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings