School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Chicago, IL · Private · Large city · SAIC
Private institution in Chicago, IL · 2,762 undergraduates · 76% acceptance rate · $40,151 median earnings 10 years after entry.
- Top 20%Student-faculty ratio
Stats
College Scorecard figures, each with where this school sits nationally among institutions that report the same measure. A dash means the school does not report it.
Cost
- Average net price
- $49,8221,957th cheapest of 1,969 reporting
- In-state tuition & fees
- $54,5301,864th cheapest of 2,024 reporting
- Out-of-state tuition & fees
- $54,5301,862nd cheapest of 2,024 reporting
- Cost of attendance
- $74,1381,843rd cheapest of 1,969 reporting
- Median graduate debt
- $27,0001,593rd lowest of 1,865 reporting
Outcomes
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $40,1511,602nd highest of 1,954 reporting
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $26,7421,821st highest of 1,950 reporting
- Graduation rate (4-year)
- 64.0%622nd highest of 2,014 reporting
- Full-time retention
- 82.4%554th highest of 1,837 reporting
Admissions
- Acceptance rate
- 76.4%783rd most selective of 1,596 reporting
- Average SAT
- —
- Median ACT
- —
Campus
- Undergraduates
- 2,762743rd largest of 2,144 reporting
- Student-faculty ratio
- 10.0:1427th smallest of 2,141 reporting
- Pell Grant share
- 19.1%1,752nd highest of 2,122 reporting
Nearest large-hub airport: 9 mi (MDW)
On 2 of our 111 lists
Every published ranking this school appears on, with its rank there.
Applying
- EANov 15
- RDJan 15
- Common App member
- Yes
- Application fee
- $65
- Personal essay
- Optional / not required
- Writing supplement
- No
Deadlines and essay flags come from the Common App Requirements Grid, joined by school name. Always confirm against the school’s own admissions page before applying.
Best-paying fields of study
Median earnings one and two years after graduating, by field. Showing 4 of 4 reported programs.
| Field | Level | 1 yr | 2 yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fine and Studio ArtsVisual & Performing Arts | bachelors | $25,849 | $22,192 |
| Visual and Performing Arts, GeneralVisual & Performing Arts | bachelors | $21,508 | — |
| Interior ArchitectureArchitecture | bachelors | — | — |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing StudiesEnglish Language & Literature | bachelors | — | — |
Campus facts
Similar-size colleges
Nearest undergraduate enrollment to School of the Art Institute of Chicago’s 2,762 (College Scorecard UGDS, compiled 2026-10-24). Size only — not a judgment of similarity or quality.
In IL
- Illinois Institute of TechnologyChicago, IL · 2,812 undergrads
- Roosevelt UniversityChicago, IL · 2,583 undergrads
- Elmhurst UniversityElmhurst, IL · 2,954 undergrads
- Governors State UniversityUniversity Park, IL · 2,518 undergrads
- Saint Xavier UniversityChicago, IL · 3,030 undergrads
- Olivet Nazarene UniversityBourbonnais, IL · 2,485 undergrads
Elsewhere
- Goodwin UniversityEast Hartford, CT · 2,761 undergrads
- Skidmore CollegeSaratoga Springs, NY · 2,760 undergrads
- University of Maine at AugustaAugusta, ME · 2,759 undergrads
- Widener UniversityChester, PA · 2,765 undergrads
- South Carolina State UniversityOrangeburg, SC · 2,757 undergrads
- Baldwin Wallace UniversityBerea, OH · 2,775 undergrads
Key links
- Official websitesaic.edu
- College ScorecardFederal source for every figure above (UNITID 143048)
- Compare colleges in ILRe-score with your weights
- The Most Selective Colleges in IllinoisEvery eligible four-year in this state, ranked by published admission rate
- Compare with Illinois Institute of TechnologySide by side on every Scorecard measure — closest in-state school by enrollment
- Showdown: School of the Art Institute of Chicago vs Illinois Institute of TechnologyHigher-or-lower on real Scorecard metrics — round 1 is these two
- Build an admissions plan8th–12th grade actions for this college — sports, activities, timeline
- MethodologyWhat these figures do and do not capture
- How to read a school page end to endStats, standings, lists, athletics, news — one profile, many jobs. Know which panel answers which question.
- Sticker price is a trapPublished tuition is a starting rumor. Net price is closer to what families actually pay.
- What acceptance rate actually measuresSelectivity is a competition statistic — not a quality score, and not your personal odds.
- A plan from eighth grade — without fake certaintySchool-anchored milestones, sports scarcity honesty, and EC playbooks — not invented admit odds.