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The University of Montana: Missoula, MT — University of Montana (2021-08-08), 01
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National university

The University of Montana

Missoula, MT · Public · 4-year

Your real cost

Average price after aid $16,784 a year

Median debt at graduation: $22,400 (all students)

Estimate your own price · the college’s net price calculator

Academic Excellence

BAcademic Excellence: Good (grade B): 70 to 100 points out of 100, from federal data.
Good
From federal data, on fixed published scales.

Each measure counts for the share shown.

  • Graduation rate 35% of scoreThis measure counts for 35% of the Academic Excellence score.48%
  • First-year retention 20% of scoreThis measure counts for 20% of the Academic Excellence score.75%
  • Entering students' test scores 15% of scoreThis measure counts for 15% of the Academic Excellence score.SAT 1,190 · ACT 25.5
  • Student-to-faculty ratio 15% of scoreThis measure counts for 15% of the Academic Excellence score.17 to 1
  • Instructional spending per student 15% of scoreThis measure counts for 15% of the Academic Excellence score.$10,436

Bars show points on each measure’s scale. How Academic Excellence is computed.

Source: College Scorecard (College Scorecard, most recent cohorts (data release 06/10/2026))

What families pay, by income

Average yearly price after grants and scholarships, for students who receive federal aid.

Average net price by family income
Family incomePrice after aid
Up to $30,000$13,960
$30,001–$48,000$14,892
$48,001–$75,000$17,180
$75,001–$110,000$19,269
Over $110,000$20,930

Full cost of attendance before aid: $23,570 a year.

Use the college’s net price calculator for your own estimate.

Cost and value

Federal data: what families pay after aid, what graduates earn, and what they owe.

Value and outcomes
Undergraduate students
Fall enrollment (IPEDS)
7,570
Men and women
Undergraduates, fall 2023 (College Scorecard)
Men 43% · Women 57%
First-generation students
Share of students who are first-generation, by the College Scorecard’s definition
30%
Total students10,327
Average net price (per year)
After grants and scholarships, for students receiving federal aid
$16,784
Cost of attendance (per year)$23,570
Median federal debt at graduation$22,400
Graduation rate
First-time, full-time students finishing within 150% of normal time
48%
Graduation rate for Pell grant recipients
Finishing within 6 years (College Scorecard)
31%
Graduation rate for first-generation students
Finishing within 6 years (College Scorecard)
31%
Borrowers paying down their loans within 3 years
Borrowers who repaid at least $1 of principal within 3 years (College Scorecard)
58%
First-year retention75%
Median earnings 10 years after entry$44,511
Admission rate96%
Application fee
Undergraduate application fee, 2023–24 (IPEDS)
$30
Students receiving Pell grants28%
Admitted students’ middle range:ACT 23–28
Admission test scores (middle 50% of admitted students who submitted scores)
Average SAT1190
SAT reading & writing—
SAT math—
ACT composite23–28
Test policyConsidered but not required

Value: Good (how it’s computed)

Sources: College Scorecard · IPEDS College Navigator · Net price calculator
College Scorecard, most recent cohorts (data release 06/10/2026); IPEDS 2024-25 directory and institutional characteristics; fall 2023 enrollment.

Earnings by major

Median earnings of bachelor’s graduates a few years after finishing, by major (College Scorecard).

Median earnings by major
MajorMedian earnings
Computing and information science$91,943
Management information systems$73,149
Accounting$61,408
Forestry$60,526
Business administration$57,892
Communication studies$54,300
Sociology$51,708
Secondary education$51,540
Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Facilities Management$51,426
Political science$47,341
Social work$46,459
History$46,408
Journalism$46,267
Psychology$46,192
Speech-language pathology$43,929
Natural resources and conservation$43,813
Teacher education$43,347
Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management$43,286
English$41,634
Anthropology$40,550
Biology$37,771
Film and video$36,169
Fine arts$29,606

Also offered (no earnings published yet): Allied health, Area studies, Biochemistry, Biological and physical sciences, Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology, Botany/Plant Biology, Broadcasting, Chemistry, Classics, Clinical laboratory science, Computer science, Dance, East Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, Economics, Education (general), Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy, Ethnic and gender studies, Finance, Geography, Geology and earth science, German, Information science, Information technology, Interdisciplinary studies, International business, Kinesiology and exercise science, Liberal arts, Linguistics, Marketing, Mathematics, Mathematics and Computer Science, Microbiological Sciences and Immunology, Music, Neuroscience, Other business, management, marketing, and related support services, Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration, Philosophy, Physics, Physiology and pathology, Pre-health, Public health, Romance languages, Slavic, Baltic and Albanian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, Sustainability Studies, Theatre, Visual and performing arts, Writing and rhetoric.

What students study most

Share of bachelor’s degrees by field, first majors in 2023–24 (IPEDS).

Most common bachelor’s fields
FieldShare of degrees
Business13%
Natural resources12%
Social sciences10%
Psychology9%
Visual and performing arts9%

Campus life

School colors
SettingCity
Part-time undergraduates14%
Undergraduates aged 25 and older20%
On-campus room and board (per year)$12,804
SportsNCAA Division I · Big Sky Conference
ROTCArmy
Study abroadOffered
Students per faculty member17 to 1
Faculty who are full-time69%Of instructional faculty, fall 2023 (College Scorecard)
Endowment per student$30,249Endowment at the end of fiscal year 2023, per full-time-equivalent student (IPEDS)
Dorm spaceFor about 40% of studentsCampus beds divided by undergraduate enrollment. Not how many students live on campus (IPEDS)
Nearest airport with scheduled flightsMissoula Montana Airport (MSO)About 6 miles away in a straight line (OurAirports)
Town population76,5142020–2024 five-year estimate (U.S. Census Bureau)
Nearest city of 250,000 people or moreSeattleAbout 396 miles away in a straight line (U.S. Census Bureau)
Average temperature in January27°F1991–2020 normal, from MISSOULA 2 NE, MT US, about 3 miles away (NOAA)
Average temperature in July69°F1991–2020 normal, from MISSOULA 2 NE, MT US, about 3 miles away (NOAA)

Federal data (IPEDS and College Scorecard), except school colors.

Campus safety reports

On-campus crimes reported in 2024, per 1,000 students.

On-campus crimes per 1,000 students
CategoryThis campusU.S. rate
Rape0.230.07
Robbery0.000.01
Aggravated assault0.050.04
Burglary0.250.08
Motor vehicle theft0.050.15

Numbers reflect what each campus reported. They differ with campus size and how reporting is done, so compare with care. U.S. rate: total reported offenses divided by total students at every institution in the report.

Source: Official data: U.S. Department of Education

Questions families ask

What is the University of Montana’s Compass Score?
Good (grade B-). The grade comes from outcomes (40%: graduation, retention and earnings), entering students (40%: test scores and selectivity), cost (15%: debt and price after aid) and teaching (5%: class size), all from federal data.
How much does the University of Montana cost after financial aid?
The average net price is $16,784 a year for students who receive federal aid, after grants and scholarships. What your family pays depends on income; the college’s net price calculator gives your own estimate.
How hard is it to get into the University of Montana?
The University of Montana admitted 96% of applicants in the most recent federal data.
How do the University of Montana’s graduates do?
48% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years; the median earnings of former students ten years after entry are $44,511; the median federal debt at graduation is $22,400.

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