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Purchase, NY · Public · 3,197 undergraduates · suburban

SUNY at Purchase College

Moderately selective

Purchase is built around the collision of conservatory arts training and liberal arts and sciences on one integrated SUNY campus.

Campus image / Publicly hosted campus image

Institutional profile

Well established Solid in mobility, and solid in affordability.
Academic Solid Affordability Solid Career Steady Mobility Solid Experience Solid
Academic standing Solid
Affordability Solid
Career outcomes Steady
Mobility Solid
Student experience Solid
Admission
72.8% admitted

7,221 applicants in the reported year

Price by income
Resident and nonresident prices differ

Compare recent average annual costs by household income

Completion
68%

$45,092 median earnings 10 years after enrollment

What sets SUNY at Purchase College apart

Academic design

Its conservatories and arts schools sit alongside humanities, liberal studies, and natural and social sciences, encouraging cross-disciplinary work.

Campus pattern

The Westchester campus is self-contained and arts-centered while keeping New York City's cultural and professional scene within reach.

Career & value signal

Every student completes a substantial Senior Project that can take the form of research, performance, exhibition, film or another original inquiry.

Can I get in?

72.8% admitted

Applicants to many visual and performing arts programs complete program-specific portfolio or audition steps in addition to the general application.

Recent applicant pool

7,221

About 73 in every 100 applicants were admitted.

Admission rate 72.8%
Entering class

Academic range

SAT middle 50%1178–1363
10601480
ACT middle 50%27–32
2435

Of admitted students, 10% submitted an SAT, and 2% submitted an ACT. Almost nobody admitted here sent a score, which leaves the SAT and ACT ranges standing on a handful of files.

Academic benchmarkModerately selective

In the season card

Where your GPA sits in the entering class

The full entering-class GPA distribution for SUNY at Purchase College, in nine bands from 4.0 down, with your own record marked on it.

See where I land

In the season card

What SUNY at Purchase College weighs when it reads a file

See how this college describes the role of grades, testing, essays, recommendations, activities, and demonstrated interest.

  • Course rigor  
  • GPA  
  • Test scores  
  • Essay  
  • Recommendations  
  • Extracurriculars  
  • Demonstrated interest  
See what counts here

What moves the application

The evidence that separates a strong file

01

Show preparation for this curriculum

Its conservatories and arts schools sit alongside humanities, liberal studies, and natural and social sciences, encouraging cross-disciplinary work.

02

Make institutional fit specific

Purchase is built around the collision of conservatory arts training and liberal arts and sciences on one integrated SUNY campus.

03

Use the application route carefully

Applicants to many visual and performing arts programs complete program-specific portfolio or audition steps in addition to the general application.

How to apply

Rounds, route, and required materials

Applicants to many visual and performing arts programs complete program-specific portfolio or audition steps in addition to the general application.

Regular Decisionrolling
Application routeSUNY application

$50 application fee

Major and program admission

Some fields have their own entry path.

The college admit rate above covers the university as a whole. These requirements apply only to the named program.

Performing and visual artsAdmits separately

What this program asks for, and when it closes.

Can I afford it?

Compare annual cost by household income.

Start with the average net price for your income range, then set that estimate beside your other realistic options.

Published annual cost$29,610
Average annual cost after aid, in-state$19,000
Affordability profileSolid

In the season card

Average annual cost by household income at SUNY at Purchase College

Compare recent average net prices across five federal income ranges and estimate a 4-year cost for yours.

  • $0–30k 
  • $30–48k 
  • $48–75k 
  • $75–110k 
  • $110k+ 
Open the price by income

Is it worth it?

Completion, debt, and earnings

Read completion, borrowing, field mix, and earnings together. One university-wide earnings figure does not describe every student path.

Complete within 8 years68%

Degree completion across the reported entering cohort

Return after year one79.7%

First-year students who return for year two

Median federal debtWhat students owe on the way out

And what that comes to against what they earn.

Median earnings$45,092

Reported 10 years after enrollment

Academic portfolio

Largest bachelor’s fields

How many students finish in each field, and median earnings four years after completing the program.

Psychology, General

Recent graduates61
Median earnings$47,022

Communication and Media Studies

Recent graduates59
Median earnings$46,596

Admits separately

Music

Recent graduates49
Median earnings$41,926

Admits separately

What is campus life like?

SUNY at Purchase College beyond the classroom

The Westchester campus is self-contained and arts-centered while keeping New York City's cultural and professional scene within reach.

Academics

A defining academic feature

Its conservatories and arts schools sit alongside humanities, liberal studies, and natural and social sciences, encouraging cross-disciplinary work.

Campus setting

What shapes an ordinary week

The Westchester campus is self-contained and arts-centered while keeping New York City's cultural and professional scene within reach.

Career & value

Where the degree can lead

Every student completes a substantial Senior Project that can take the form of research, performance, exhibition, film or another original inquiry.

3,197 undergraduatesMid-Atlanticsuburban settingCampus housing available