Drake University

Des Moines, IA · Private

Official website

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Admission rate

Drake University admitted 63.9% of applicants university-wide (6,304 of 9,873).

CohortAdmit rateAdmittedApplicants
University-wide63.9%6,3049,873
Men57.4%2,5644,466
Women69.3%3,7295,380

Also offers Early Action (closes Nov 1) — the Common Data Set doesn't publish EA admit counts.

Of 6,304 admitted students, 618 enrolled (9.8% yield).

Drake University U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard · Sections C1–C2 · 2023 — Published cohort admit rates — context, not an applicant-specific probability.

Test scores and GPA of admitted students

SAT (mid-50%)
1110–1350
ACT (mid-50%)
24–29
GPA (mid-50%, 4.0 scale)
3.25–3.99

Testing policy: Required

Drake University U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard · Sections C9–C12 · 2023 — Published admit stats reflect the entire incoming class unless explicitly labeled international-only.

Cost and financial aid

Published cost of attendance: $69,192/yr.

Out-of-state tuition$52,130
Fees, housing, food, books & other$17,062
Sticker cost of attendance$69,192/yr

Average net price by family income (US, federal aid data)

Under $30k$25,824
$30k–48k$23,275
$48k–75k$25,171
$75k–110k$27,408
Over $110k$33,126

U.S. Dept. of Education · College Scorecard — average net price by family income (Title IV, from IPEDS) · 2023

US applicants

Need- and merit-based aid available.

  • Trustee Scholarship — $22,000 per year (Trustee)
  • Dean's Scholarship — $20,000 per year (Merit)
  • Distinguished Scholarship — $20,000 per year (Merit)
  • Faculty Scholarship — $18,000 per year (Merit)
  • Drake Scholarship — $15,000 per year (Merit)
  • Transfer Scholarship — Up to $15,000 per year (Merit)
  • Athletic Scholarship — Varies (Athletic)
  • Drake Direct Scholarship — Varies (up to $15,000 per year) (Automatic)
  • Drake Need-Based Grant — Varies (Need Based)
  • National Alumni Scholarship — Full tuition (Full Tuition)
  • Performing Arts Scholarship — Varies (Departmental)
  • Presidential Scholarship — Full tuition (Full Tuition)

International applicants

No need-based aid reported for internationals.

  • Trustee Scholarship — $22,000 per year (Trustee)
  • Dean's Scholarship — $20,000 per year (Merit)
  • Distinguished Scholarship — $20,000 per year (Merit)
  • Faculty Scholarship — $18,000 per year (Merit)
  • Drake Scholarship — $15,000 per year (Merit)
  • Transfer Scholarship — Up to $15,000 per year (Merit)
  • Athletic Scholarship — Varies (Athletic)
  • Drake Direct Scholarship — Varies (up to $15,000 per year) (Automatic)
  • National Alumni Scholarship — Full tuition (Full Tuition)
  • Performing Arts Scholarship — Varies (Departmental)
  • Presidential Scholarship — Full tuition (Full Tuition)

Drake University U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard · Sections G–H · 2023

Application requirements

US applicants

  • High School Transcript
  • Music Audition
  • Theatre Audition or Portfolio

International applicants

  • High School Transcript
  • Music Audition
  • Theatre Audition or Portfolio
  • English proficiency (IELTS/TOEFL)
  • GPA credential conversion
  • Predicted Class XII marksheet
  • Financial documentation (I-20)

Drake University · Application requirements (official admissions pages) · 2025

Essay prompts

Drake University requires no supplemental essays.

Prompts from the Common App member feed · verified Jul 4, 2026

Graduate outcomes

Median earnings
$71,901
Median earnings · 10 years after entry
Graduation rate
74%
Within 150% of normal time
First-year retention
84.1%
Return for year two · CDS Section B
Median debt
$23,000
At graduation

Drake University · U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2023 release) · 2023 — Earnings and debt figures are federal data for aid-receiving graduates — cohort outcomes, not a guarantee for any individual student.

Published rankings

  • U.S. News National: #183
  • WSJ: #193
  • Forbes: #287
  • Niche: #229

Academics and campus

Largest degree fields: Business & marketing (22%), Biological & life sciences (8%), Social sciences (8%).

Student–faculty ratio: 12:1 · 63% of class sections have under 20 students.

Drake University U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard · Sections E, F, I · 2023 — Published institutional figures for the reporting year — descriptive of the current student body, not a prediction about your experience.

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