Quad

Key differences on Outcomes

  1. 1

    Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State grads earn $9.3K more ten years out than Purdue's ($81,698 vs. $72,424)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  2. 2

    Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State graduates 9 pts more of its students than Purdue (87% vs. 78%)

    Graduation rate

Outcomes

Outcomes

Earnings and finishing

Median earnings, 10 yrs
Purdue$72.4K
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State$81.7K
Graduation rate
Purdue78%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State87%
Retention rate
Purdue92%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State93%

Borrowing

Median debt
Purdue$19.5K
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State$21.5K
Undergrads with a federal loan
Purdue22%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State34%
Median debt, Pell Grant recipients
Purdue$13.8K
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State$19.5K

Eight-year outcomes

Credential within 4 years, all students
Purdue60%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State71%
Credential within 8 years, all students
Purdue79%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State87%
Enrolled at another college, 8 years on
Purdue12%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State9%

Graduation by group

Graduated in 6 years, Pell Grant recipients
Purdue73%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State79%
Graduated in 6 years, neither Pell nor subsidized loan
Purdue86%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State88%
Pell graduation gap
Purdue13 pts lower
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State9 pts lower

Graduated in 6 years, by race and ethnicity

GroupPurdueVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State
White84%88%
Asian86%91%
Hispanic/Latino77%83%
Black71%76%
Two or more races80%84%
International85%75%

All outcome numbers in the table

Sources:College Scorecard, most recent release;Purdue University-Main Campus Common Data Set 2025–26, Entered fall 2024;College Scorecard, 2023–24;IPEDS Outcome Measures survey, Students entering fall 2016;IPEDS Graduation Rates survey (Pell Grant and subsidized loan recipients), Entered fall 2018;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why