Public · Murfreesboro, TN
Middle Tennessee State University
Middle Tennessee State University merit aid, cost of attendance, freshman GPA and SAT/ACT scores, net price by income, and graduate earnings.
Costs, merit aid & admissions
- Acceptance rate
- 64%
- Undergraduates
- 16,301
- Avg merit aid / yr
- $9,798.66
- Cost of attendance (in-state)
- $29,482
- Cost of attendance (out-of-state)
- $50,790
- SAT 75th percentile
- 1230
- ACT 75th percentile
- 26
Costs are annual prices before aid. Average merit aid is the average non-need-based award to freshmen who got one — not an offer to every applicant.
Middle Tennessee State University incoming freshman academic profile
- Average high school GPA
- 3.622025-26 CDS · Source
- SAT composite middle score
- 1,1202025-26 CDS · Source
- ACT composite middle score
- 222025-26 CDS · Source
Average GPA of enrolled freshmen (scale may be weighted or unweighted). SAT/ACT are median scores of students who submitted them — not scholarship cutoffs.
Freshman financial need & merit gifts
2024-25 financial-aid profile · CollegeData source
- Average freshman need met
- 62%
- Average undergraduate need met
- 56%
Merit gifts among freshmen receiving need-based aid
1,756 recipients · 93.3% of freshman aid recipients.
Merit gifts to freshmen without financial need
779 recipients · 25% of all freshmen.
$9,799 average annual award
These groups use different denominators and should not be added together. Need met is an average share of assessed financial need—not a share of tuition or an aid guarantee. The source’s detailed aid table reports 2024-25, although its general page note says 2025-26.
Published scholarship grid · 2027–28
Middle Tennessee State University merit scholarship grid
The college describes these awards as automatic for admitted students who meet the criteria.
| Award | GPA | SAT / ACT | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Centennial Scholarship | 3.50+ | 34+ | $8,000 |
| Trustee Scholarship | 3.50+ | 30+ | $5,000 |
| Presidential Scholarship | 3.50+ | 25+ | $4,500 |
| True Blue Scholarship | 3.50+ | 22+ | $3,500 |
U.S. citizens/permanent residents; ACT/SAT required and official documents due Dec. 1, 2026. GPA listed as 3.50; renewable up to four years subject to renewal rules.
Middle Tennessee State University's official scholarship page ↗Middle Tennessee State University net price by family income
Historical average cost after all grants and scholarships — not need-based aid eligibility. 2024–25 academic year.
| Family income | $0–30K | $30–48K | $48–75K | $75–110K | $110K+ | All |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual net price | $8,914 | $9,294 | $11,139 | $15,385 | $18,856 | $12,562 |
Families earning $150,000+ should not assume they'll get need-based grants; the "Over $110K" group mixes very different incomes.
At what family income does financial aid stop at Middle Tennessee State University?
There's no universal cutoff. Need-based aid depends on income, assets, family size and college rules; merit scholarships are based on grades and scores, so high income doesn't rule them out. Use Middle Tennessee State University's net price calculator for a personal estimate, and the federal aid estimator for federal aid.
Graduation, earnings & student debt
- 6-year graduation
- 53.6%Fall 2019 / 2019–20 entering cohort
- First-year retention
- 79.5%Fall 2023 entering cohort; return in fall 2024
- Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
- $52,7022011–12 and 2012–13 entering cohorts; earnings in 2022 and 2023, in 2024 dollars
- Median federal debt
- $18,057Federal fiscal years 2024 and 2025, pooled
Historical group figures, not individual predictions. Debt excludes private and Parent PLUS loans. Source: College Scorecard (ID 220978).
Colleges with acceptance rates similar to Middle Tennessee State University
Middle Tennessee State University accepts about 64% of applicants. These colleges have the closest reported acceptance rates.
- Agnes Scott College · Decatur, GA64% acceptance
- Florida Gulf Coast University · Fort Myers, FL63% acceptance
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute · Troy, NY63% acceptance
- Lawrence University · Appleton, WI64% acceptance
- Farmingdale State College · Farmingdale, NY63% acceptance
- Berry College · Mount Berry, GA64% acceptance
- Clark Atlanta University · Atlanta, GA64% acceptance
- Coe College · Cedar Rapids, IA64% acceptance
- CUNY Queens College · Queens, NY64% acceptance
- CUNY York College · Jamaica, NY64% acceptance
Colleges with merit aid similar to Middle Tennessee State University
Middle Tennessee State University reports average merit aid of $9,798.66 per year. These colleges report the closest average non-need-based awards.
- University of Delaware · Newark, DE$9,785 avg merit aid / yr
- University of Alabama at Birmingham · Birmingham, AL$9,765 avg merit aid / yr
- Saginaw Valley State University · University Center, MI$9,854 avg merit aid / yr
- Belmont University · Nashville, TN$9,710 avg merit aid / yr
- Chatham University · Pittsburgh, PA$9,585 avg merit aid / yr
- University of Rhode Island · Kingston, RI$10,107 avg merit aid / yr
- University of Maine · Orono, ME$9,432 avg merit aid / yr
- University of Colorado Boulder · Boulder, CO$10,166 avg merit aid / yr
- Arizona State University Campus Immersion · Tempe, AZ$10,188 avg merit aid / yr
- Temple University · Philadelphia, PA$10,264 avg merit aid / yr
Data sources & limitations
Admissions, costs and merit aid: collegedata.fyi (Common Data Set + federal data), imported Oct 2026. Net prices and outcomes: College Scorecard, Oct 15, 2026 release, matched by federal ID. SAT 75th percentile adds section scores; 90th-percentile and GPA match thresholds are estimates. ROI compares four years of average net price with median earnings 10 years after entry, ranked in thirds across colleges. Blank means not reported — never estimated. Confirm costs and scholarships with the college.