The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art

What are the graduation rates for students at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art?

In the reported 2024-25 IPEDS graduation data, Cooper Union's six-year graduation rate is 81% for the tracked first-time, full-time undergraduate cohort. Its four-year rate is 52%. These are cohort measures, not the share of all currently enrolled students who will graduate.

The difference between the two measures is particularly important at a school offering a five-year professional architecture degree. A four-year benchmark cannot capture on-time completion of that program. The six-year figure is therefore more useful for an institution-wide comparison, although students should still seek outcomes for their intended school when available.

The reported first-year retention rate is 92%, measuring the share of eligible first-time students who returned the following fall. Retention and graduation rates describe different groups and time periods; neither establishes why students stayed, left or took longer to finish.

What is the earning potential for graduates at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art?

The reported College Scorecard field-of-study figure for Fine and Studio Arts is $20,818 in earnings measured one year after completion. It is an early-career, program-specific measure - not a salary promised to every Cooper Union art graduate or an estimate for its engineering and architecture students.

College Scorecard field-of-study earnings are generally reported as medians for federally aided completers whose earnings can be matched in the underlying records, subject to the measure's reporting rules. A median describes the middle of the observed group, not its highest-paying outcomes. One-year figures can also miss later career growth, further education, self-employment patterns and differences among artistic occupations. Applicants should read this number alongside program costs, portfolio development, career goals and any longer-term outcomes they can verify.