University of Houston

Houston, TX · Public · 38,380 undergrads (large, city) · website ↗

38% Hispanic undergrads
Test-optional
$75 application fee

What you'll actually pay

Average net price per year — tuition, fees, room & board minus grant and scholarship aid — for in-state students by household income.

Household income	Avg net price / year
Under $30,000	$10,929
$30,000 – $48,000	$10,220
$48,000 – $75,000	$12,528
$75,000 – $110,000	$19,197
Over $110,000	$23,811
All incomes (average)	$14,276

Sticker tuition and fees: $9,717 in-state, $22,547 out-of-state — before aid, from the same earlier College Scorecard release as the net prices above.

These are averages. For an estimate for your family, use University of Houston's own net price calculator — every college that takes federal student aid must publish one.

Net price calculator ↗

Other costs of attendance, 2025–26

The college's own estimate for a full-time undergraduate for the year, before aid, from the October 2026 College Scorecard. It is a newer year than the tuition and net prices above, so don't add the two together.

Housing and meals, on campus	$11,286
Housing and meals, off campus (not with family)	$11,234
Books and supplies	$1,430
Other expenses, on campus	$5,328
Other expenses, off campus	$6,522

Grants and loans for first-year students, 2022–23

What the college reported for its full-time, first-time students (5,102 of them) in 2022–23; 83% got some kind of aid, loans included. Each average is over the students who received that kind of aid, not over everyone. It is an older year than the 2025–26 costs above.

Type of aid	Students awarded	Average amount
Any grant or scholarshipFederal, state, local and the college's own	74%	$11,551
Federal Pell GrantNeed-based, from the federal government	45%	$5,737
The college's own grants and scholarshipsNeed- or merit-based, funded by the college	56%	$5,252
Federal student loansBorrowed by the student; repaid with interest. No Parent PLUS or private loans	35%	$4,971

IPEDS, U.S. Department of Education, Student Financial Aid 2022–23 (SFA2223, provisional release); full-time, first-time degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates; public domain.

Admissions & outcomes

Acceptance rate: 74%
Average SAT: 1250
Median ACT: 26
Students with Pell grants: 42%
Graduation rate (6yr): 65%
Freshman retention: 87%
Median earnings @ 10yr: $62,377
Median debt at graduation: $18,194
International undergrads: 1,991 (5.2%)

For comparison, the median across all 1,596 four-year colleges on this site: graduation rate 56%, earnings ten years after entering $54,869, debt at graduation $23,250.

Admission policy, test scores and teaching

SAT/ACT policy: Test-optional
Application fee: $75
Students per faculty member: 22 to 1
Faculty who are full-time: 80%
Open admission: No

Middle 50% of test scores, fall 2024

25th to 75th percentile of enrolled first-year students who submitted scores. A quarter scored below the first figure and a quarter above the second. Section ranges can't be added together into a total-score range.

SAT Reading and Writing: 590–670
SAT Math: 570–670
ACT composite: 23–29

What the college considers in admission decisions, fall 2023

How the college said it used each item when deciding on first-time, degree- or certificate-seeking applicants for fall 2023. For SAT and ACT scores, see the fall 2024 policy above.

High school GPA	Required
High school class rank	Required
High school record	Required
Completion of a college-preparatory program	Required
Recommendations	Considered if submitted
Formal demonstration of competencies (e.g. portfolio)	Considered if submitted
English proficiency test (for applicable students)	Required
Other test (Wonderlic, WISC-III, etc.)	Not considered
Work experience	Considered if submitted
Personal statement or essay	Considered if submitted
Legacy status	Not considered

First-time applicants: 30,327
Admitted: 21,087
Enrolled: 5,652

Counts of first-time, degree- or certificate-seeking students, including early decision and early action. The acceptance rate higher up this page comes from a different College Scorecard release, so it may not match these counts.

IPEDS, U.S. Department of Education, Admissions 2023–24 (ADM2023, provisional release), fall 2023; open admission from IPEDS Institutional Characteristics 2023–24 (revised); public domain.

Most popular fields of study

Share of bachelor's degrees awarded.

Business29%

Computer Science10%

Psychology9%

Engineering7%

Biology & Life Sciences6%

Health & Nursing5%

Social Sciences5%

Communications & Media4%

Kinesiology & Sports Science4%

Visual & Performing Arts3%

Earnings and debt by field of study

Median annual earnings of graduates who received federal student aid and were working, not studying: one year after completing (graduates of 2020–21 and 2021–22) and four years after (2017–18 and 2018–19), measured in 2022 and 2023 and shown in 2024 dollars. Median debt is federal Direct and Grad PLUS loans borrowed at this college by 2022–23 and 2023–24 graduates; it leaves out Parent PLUS and private loans. “National” is the median for the same field and credential across all US colleges.

Bachelor's degrees (63)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Psychology, General	726	$36,612	$52,892national $50,706	$17,750
Business Administration, Management and Operations	581	$60,191	$73,125national $68,257	$15,000
Marketing	453	$53,465	$68,139national $69,303	$15,500
Computer and Information Sciences, General	435	$79,332	$98,790national $92,374	$18,000
Finance and Financial Management Services	420	$62,157	$78,009national $83,343	$15,000
Management Information Systems and Services	389	$70,785	$91,983national $83,290	$15,000
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness	368	$34,297	$53,483national $54,562	$18,500
Biology, General	354	$29,347	$57,716national $57,214	$15,385
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General	303	$41,338	$54,471national $61,296	$17,500
Accounting and Related Services	296	$66,436	$84,668national $76,194	$15,812
Computer Systems Analysis	265	$66,400	$82,416national $78,929	$21,375
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other	229	$58,427	$58,705national $55,693	$15,500
Political Science and Government	202	$38,066	$61,533national $63,293	$17,000
Mechanical Engineering	190	$79,753	$93,275national $92,135	$19,687
Hospitality Administration/Management	154	$43,338	$53,344national $56,726	$17,000
Construction Engineering Technology/Technician	143	$81,201	$97,201national $93,843	$18,125
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication	137	$39,143	$60,180national $63,560	$14,475
Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services	134	$30,160	$49,724national $54,945	$18,250
Economics	129	$53,160	$78,204national $82,686	$18,065
English Language and Literature, General	111	$38,243	$49,884national $48,590	$19,000
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods	108	—	—national $86,176	$19,500
Computer Software and Media Applications	107	$43,079	$51,596national $58,894	$19,705
Architecture	106	$58,366	$70,616national $66,914	$27,500
Radio, Television, and Digital Communication	99	—	$40,419national $50,497	—
Fine and Studio Arts	90	—	$45,446national $41,367	—
Biotechnology	85	$51,190	$78,750national $67,097	$16,500
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services	84	$44,097	$54,871national $48,568	$19,250
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing	84	$85,922	$91,276national $88,910	$16,436
Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, General	80	—	—national $50,532	$20,875
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services	80	$36,873	$54,126national $58,928	$15,211
Chemical Engineering	78	$90,666	$110,184national $98,158	$23,605
Human Resources Management and Services	75	$49,657	$69,010national $68,069	$18,750
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology	74	$39,570	$61,122national $65,466	$17,500
History	74	$47,003	$55,475national $50,680	$16,744
Sociology	73	$36,719	$45,530national $52,657	$18,000
Civil Engineering	71	$78,027	$89,653national $86,517	$17,750
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering	70	$93,456	$107,399national $100,647	$20,250
Music	68	—	$56,667national $42,892	$22,600
Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians	66	$67,840	$84,692national $82,073	$20,818
Mathematics	65	$58,310	$62,833national $69,562	$16,750
Journalism	53	$45,054	$53,195national $56,278	$17,625
Biomedical/Medical Engineering	52	$59,725	—national $93,451	$17,050
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences Business Services	46	$45,945	$53,410national $64,926	$18,750
Computer Engineering	45	$80,242	$107,283national $109,015	$23,138
Computer Engineering Technologies/Technicians	42	$52,888	$78,396national $83,742	$16,690
Design and Applied Arts	41	$45,608	$64,612national $51,490	—
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations	41	$55,989	—national $61,027	—
Communication and Media Studies	34	$45,595	$49,545national $56,359	—
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities	34	$45,000	$58,450national $53,072	$25,125
Anthropology	34	$34,982	$42,146national $46,676	$17,750
Philosophy	32	—	$55,875national $54,455	$19,570
Electrical/Electronic Engineering Technologies/Technicians	31	$75,593	$87,022national $84,599	—
Industrial Engineering	30	$85,212	$94,814national $98,442	$16,250
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	29	$48,617	$56,442national $55,000	—
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences	29	$46,533	$68,127national $60,190	$16,625
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft	28	—	$42,301national $39,775	—
Natural Resources Conservation and Research	24	$47,522	—national $55,012	—
Chemistry	23	$47,623	$68,504national $65,120	$21,730
Physics	18	—	$86,078national $76,786	—
Petroleum Engineering	13	$96,730	$94,651national $104,823	—
Business/Corporate Communications	2	—	$64,374national $65,784	—
General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations	1	$63,105	$72,199national $75,399	—
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies	0	—	$39,645national $48,471	—

Master's degrees (30)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Social Work	267	$59,172	$68,032national $65,123	$40,396
Business Administration, Management and Operations	174	$109,810	$138,841national $103,485	$41,000
Data Analytics	149	—	—	$20,500
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management	83	$105,963	$138,873national $121,855	$29,614
Curriculum and Instruction	83	$67,767	$64,349national $63,399	$27,365
Educational Administration and Supervision	52	$67,144	$70,000national $71,685	$32,083
Hospitality Administration/Management	44	$58,299	$82,088national $74,856	$24,500
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods	44	$78,473	—national $124,807	$35,683
Marketing	44	$72,751	—national $79,106	$30,750
Student Counseling and Personnel Services	38	$59,793	$70,528national $60,111	$52,079
Applied Mathematics	36	$88,166	—national $116,060	$23,591
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences Business Services	33	—	—national $93,142	$35,651
Mechanical Engineering	32	—	$125,271national $115,974	—
Human Resources Management and Services	31	$70,763	$86,381national $83,558	$30,750
Architectural Sciences and Technology	30	$57,775	—national $77,466	$41,000
Biology, General	25	—	—national $69,830	$20,500
Biomedical/Medical Engineering	23	$79,549	—national $106,375	—
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences	23	$78,987	$110,277national $79,463	—
Economics	23	—	$106,324national $100,743	—
Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies	22	—	$122,385national $101,000	—
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft	22	—	$62,281national $49,978	—
Statistics	20	$90,511	—national $123,816	—
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services	20	$69,522	$69,451national $67,030	$34,327
Fine and Studio Arts	16	—	$53,255national $49,079	—
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions	15	$48,516	$62,993national $127,347	$56,718
Public Policy Analysis	14	$75,092	$72,392national $93,020	—
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness	11	—	$54,449national $62,033	—
Chemical Engineering	9	—	$125,334national $115,468	—
Law	—	—	$89,257national $65,341	—
Accounting and Related Services	0	$73,911	$101,406national $95,833	—

First professional degrees (3)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Law	280	$106,505	$135,984national $107,773	$88,521
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration	105	$100,254	$137,021national $138,348	$131,687
Optometry	84	$111,862	$129,383national $131,525	$163,834

Doctoral degrees (2)

Field of study	Degrees awarded 2023–24	Earnings, 1 yr after	Earnings, 4 yrs after	Median federal debt
Educational Administration and Supervision	50	$87,973	$105,601national $100,573	$51,077
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology	33	$78,198	$114,813national $99,878	$42,644

A dash means the Department of Education suppressed the figure because too few graduates were measured — not zero. 98 more programmes at this college have every figure suppressed and are not listed.

Contact and accreditation

Address: 4302 University Drive, Room 212, Houston, TX 77204-2018
Phone: (713) 743-1000
Institutional accreditor: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

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Sources: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts) and IPEDS Fall Enrolment for international student counts. College Scorecard, October 2026 release: net price calculator link, mission flags and religious affiliation (2025–26), enrolment shares, test policy, SAT/ACT ranges and student-to-faculty ratio (fall 2024), cost-of-attendance components (2025–26), and earnings and debt by field of study. IPEDS Institutional Characteristics 2023–24 for the application fee and the IPEDS 2024 directory for the phone number. IPEDS Admissions 2023–24 (ADM2023, provisional release) for admission requirements and first-time applicants, admits and enrolments (fall 2023). IPEDS Student Financial Aid 2022–23 (SFA2223, provisional release) for grants and loans to full-time, first-time students. All are U.S. Department of Education data in the public domain. Verify current costs and requirements with the school.

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