Outcomes
What it pays
Former students earn a median $97,800 ten years after enrolling, more than at 98% of colleges; 97% graduate within six years. Four years of net price is about 2.4 years of that salary.
Earnings
Earnings climb with time
Staying and finishing
Retention
come back for year two
Graduation
graduate within six years
National median graduation rate: 59%
What graduates owe
$13K
According to Duke University's most recent Common Data Set, 23% of its Class of 2025 graduates (1,783 students) borrowed from any source: federal, institutional, state, or private, averaging $26,395 among those who did.
Counts students who started here as first-time students and earned a bachelor's; the federal median counts federal loans only, including students who left without a degree.
Everyone who starts here, 8 years later
Students who entered in fall 2016, including and part-time students. The graduation rate counts only first-time, full-time students and treats a transfer out as not finishing.
97 of 100 students who start here earn a degree or certificate here within 8 years; 1 more is enrolled at another college. (1,749 students)
All entering students, by whether they had a Pell Grant.
92 of 100 finish within 4 years, 96 within 6, and 97 within 8.
| Earned a credential within | 4 yrs | 6 yrs | 8 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|
| All students | 92% | 96% | 97% |
| Started in college here | 92% | 97% | 97% |
National median: 60% of all entering students earn a credential at the college they started at within 8 years.
Do lower-income students finish?
Pell Grant recipients: 96%, 1 point below students with no need-based federal aid (97%). First-time, full-time students who finished within 6 years; entered fall 2018.
- Pell Grant recipients206 students
96% · 1 point below students with neither
- Subsidized loan, no Pell Grant239 students
98% · 2 points above students with neither
- Neither Pell nor subsidized loan1,295 students
97% · comparison group
By race and ethnicity
First-time, full-time students who finished within 6 years, from the College Scorecard's most recent release. Groups under 30 students aren't shown.
- White743 students
97% · the same as all students
- Asian389 students
98% · 1 point above all students
- Hispanic/Latino158 students
96% · 1 point below all students
- Black165 students
92% · 5 points below all students
- International174 students
96% · 1 point below all students
- American Indian/Alaska Native19 students
Not shown: under 30 students
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander7 students
Not shown: under 30 students
Cost vs. earnings
The 300 most-applied-to colleges plus Duke University. Top-left is lower cost and higher earnings.
↑ Median earnings 10 years after entry (higher = more)
Sources:College Scorecard, most recent release;Duke University Common Data Set 2025–26, Entered fall 2024;IPEDS Outcome Measures survey, Students entering fall 2016;IPEDS Graduation Rates survey (Pell Grant and subsidized loan recipients), Entered fall 2018;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey, 2023–24;IPEDS Student Financial Aid survey, 2023–24;Duke University Common Data Set 2025–26, Class of 2025About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)