And that is precisely this article’s job: to put in front of you the numbers Agnes Scott College reported to the federal government, explained in plain English, so you can decide whether it is worth continuing to research. I am not going to tell you whether it is the right school for your son or daughter. That depends on what she wants to study, what your family can afford, and a thousand things only you know. What I can give you is an honest map of what the official data show.
What kind of school it is
Agnes Scott College is in Decatur, Georgia, in DeKalb County, in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The census code places it in a suburb: within the urbanized area, but outside the heart of the city. If your family lives nearby and your daughter plans to live at home, I recommend something simple: drive the route on a weekday, at the time she would have classes. The time shown on the map is almost never the real time.
It is a private, nonprofit, four-year institution. The Carnegie system—which classifies the country’s colleges and universities by what they do—places it as a small, selective, highly residential bachelor’s college focused on arts and sciences: at least half of degree-seeking students live in institution-owned, controlled, or affiliated housing, and at least 80 out of every 100 study full time.
Living on campus is not the same as paying tuition. Room and board almost never come bundled with tuition in the brochure. Ask for them separately, including the meal plan, before comparing this school with any other.
IPEDS—the federal data system that supports this entire article—records the master’s degree as the highest level the institution reports offering, and classifies it as a primarily undergraduate school. That does not tell you whether your daughter’s specific major exists or whether there is a pathway connecting her undergraduate degree to a graduate degree there. You need to ask for that information yourself, program by program.
One note worth clarifying right away: Agnes Scott College is not listed as a historically Black college or university, a tribal college or university, or a land-grant institution. Those are three distinct designations, with distinct histories, and of the 3,012 colleges and universities in this federal directory, only 138 have one of the three. Not appearing on that list says nothing about which communities it serves or how your daughter will feel there. Ask directly: what student organizations and cultural centers exist today?
A small community, and predominantly women
I mentioned it above, but it deserves a pause: according to the official count, Agnes Scott College’s undergraduate student body consists of zero men. It is a predominantly—in this case, entirely, according to the report—female school in its undergraduate enrollment.
Among the rest of the student community: 14 out of every 100 undergraduate students are Hispanic or Latino, in fall 2023. It is a small minority. Compared with the 941 selective private four-year schools reporting this figure, it is above the middle of that group, without reaching the highest quarter. That number does not tell you how your daughter will feel there. During the visit, ask what specifically exists for Latino students: a student group, a cultural center, someone in the office who speaks Spanish.
And here is an important limit on that comparison: peers are assembled by school type, not by state. It does not account for what part of the country Agnes Scott College is in, and that matters. Nor does it go down to the major level. All these percentages are for the whole school.
As for age, there are almost no adult students: only 1 out of every 100 are between 25 and 64 years old. And where incoming students came from—what states, what countries—is information IPEDS does not provide for this school in the reported cycle. It is not available, and it is not estimated.
In total, Agnes Scott College had 1,077 students enrolled in the official fall count: 911 undergraduates and 166 graduate students. It is primarily an undergraduate school of medium size—between 1,000 and 4,999 students—but on the smaller side compared with its peers: seven out of ten selective private four-year schools, or more, have more students than it does. Being small does not guarantee more attention for your daughter. Ask about the specific major, not the entire school.
How academics work
The year is organized by semesters: two long terms of about 15 weeks each. In its report, the institution indicated that it accepts AP exam credit; it did not indicate credit for life experience. Saying that it accepts AP does not mean it grants credit for every exam or that those credits count toward your daughter’s major. Ask for the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget the savings until you have it in hand.
In the most recently reported year, Agnes Scott College awarded 199 bachelor’s degrees, distributed across 15 families of majors. No single family accounts for a large share: the largest was biological and biomedical sciences, and even it represented only 18 out of every 100 degrees that year. It is a broad, distributed offering, not a school built around one dominant major. With counts this small by family, the number can shift substantially from year to year. Ask for the last three years of the exact program that interests your daughter, not just a one-year snapshot.
The official ratio of students to instructional staff, both measured in full-time equivalents, is 10 to 1. Compared with its 941 census peers, it falls below the middle: it is a comparatively low ratio. But note that this is an aggregate figure for the entire school. It does not tell you the actual size of first-year classes or guarantee more personal attention for each student.
In addition, the institution reports structured academic opportunities: study abroad, cocurricular undergraduate research, and a full program that can be completed only in the evenings or on weekends.
What admission, testing, and enrollment are like
Agnes Scott College does not have open admission. Review specific pieces before saying yes. Of nine possible considerations, it marks five as required: the high school record, high school GPA, personal essay, letters of recommendation, and English-proficiency examination for applicants. It also considers, though they are not required, class rank and completion of the college-preparatory curriculum the university requests.
Simply put: gathering documents is not enough here. The essay is required, so your daughter has to write it. Have her start in the summer, not the week of the deadline. The first draft is never the one submitted. The published application fee, by the way, is $0.
In cycle 2023, the school received 1,857 first-time applications and offered admission to 1,250. That is 67 out of every 100 — an acceptance rate that is common among its 942 selective peers, slightly below the middle of the group. It is not a guaranteed formality, nor is it a lottery. The application is reviewed.
But being admitted is not the same as enrolling. Out of every 100 admitted students, only 19 ended up enrolling that fall. The remaining 81 had a place and did not take it. It is a typical rate compared with its peers, neither high nor low. And do not read it as a stain on the school: the federal record does not say why each person made the decision they did. What does matter is this: wait for your own letter with the net price—the amount the year would actually cost you—before deciding whether this school stays on the list.
Regarding standardized tests: the SAT and ACT are not required. If your daughter submits them, they are considered; if not, the application remains valid all the same. Among those who enrolled and submitted SAT scores—30 out of every 100, one of the highest proportions among schools of its type—the middle half scored between 610 and 710 in reading and writing, and between 570 and 640 in mathematics. These numbers apply only to those who submitted scores and enrolled; they are neither a minimum nor a guarantee for anyone.
Regarding transfers: in fall 2023, 14 students arrived at Agnes Scott College for the first time after studying at another institution. It is a count of people, not a proportion, and it places the school in the lower half compared with its peers. The school did not report its transfer-out rate, so that figure is not available. How many credits it recognizes for a transfer student is a question to ask the school directly.
The list price, and what is actually paid
At Agnes Scott College, among 35 first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $20,042. Among 35 students in the same population with family EFC income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $22,407; among 52 students with family EFC income above $110,000, it was $28,583. For dependent students, the band adds their parents’ income and their own.
The difference between the average for the lowest-income band (35 students) and the highest-income band (52 students) is $8,541. Among first-year students who received any grant or scholarship, the average was $25,609.
Even after scholarships are deducted, the average net price for the lowest-income families was $20,042 in academic year 2022-23. If that number does not fit your budget, it is better to see it today than in August.
An average does not show how different individual cases were within that band; this data does not allow us to claim that there were families far below or above the published figure. The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at public institutions, they use the in-state or district rate. The overall average with grants, when it appears, describes first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional scholarships or grants.
The aid that does arrive, and the debt that accumulates
The good news, within this picture: at Agnes Scott College, 100% of degree-seeking students received some scholarship or aid that does not have to be repaid. Among those who received it, the average was $35,128 for the year. It is real money, but it is not a price: what determines how much your family will pay is what remains after aid, and that must be requested case by case.
In addition, 40 out of every 100 students received a Pell Grant, the federal aid for low-income families.
Now the other side: in school year 2022-23, 53 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal student loan. Financing with debt is common here, not the exception. Of those who borrowed, each received an average of $6,578 that year. If your daughter borrowed a similar amount in each of the four years, the total would be about $26,312, not including interest. That calculation is made before the first signature, not at the end of the road.
That average, however, includes only federal loans in the student’s name in one year. It does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes sign, debt with banks, or credit cards. And it is not the total debt with which someone graduates; for that, the four years would have to be added together, and that number is not in this report.
The institution also offers a tuition payment plan in installments, if that helps organize the family budget month by month.
Campus life: housing, food, sports, and support
Agnes Scott College has institution-owned housing and does not require all first-time students to live there—although that does not mean no program has that requirement; you need to ask about your daughter’s specific situation. The reported maximum capacity of institution-controlled housing is 783 students. It also offers meal plans with a fixed number of meals per week in its largest option. The existence of housing does not guarantee an available bed; ask in writing for the year’s rate, the application deadline, and whether you are guaranteed a space or placed on a waiting list.
Regarding ROTC: the school reported an opportunity in two branches, Army and Air Force; Navy is not marked. Being marked does not mean the program takes place on this campus itself; ask that directly before building a plan around this path.
In sports, Agnes Scott College competes at the intercollegiate level and is affiliated with the NCAA. The federal report confirms membership specifically in basketball and cross-country or track and field, but it does not say which division each sport competes in or whether athletic scholarships are available. Ask the sport’s coach directly, in writing.
Regarding distance education: the school does offer courses and at least one complete program at a distance, but in the fall count, zero out of every 100 undergraduate students took their entire academic load that way. All took at least one in-person class. Confirm in writing whether a fully distance option exists for the specific major that interests your daughter.
The library operates with paid staff, and its annual spending exceeded the $100,000 threshold recorded by the government. It has physical and digital collections and participates in interlibrary lending. Exceeding that threshold does not guarantee that there are databases specific to your daughter’s major; ask by major name.
Reported services include combined academic and career counseling, employment services for current students, placement services upon program completion, participation in the Yellow Ribbon program, a dedicated point of contact for veterans and military families, and a services page for people with disabilities.
They stay, and they graduate: what the persistence numbers say
Of the cohort that entered in fall 2022 seeking a bachelor’s degree for the first time, 276 students in total, 80 out of every 100 were still enrolled or had already graduated one year later. It is a result slightly above the middle compared with its 930 peers. Important: that number does not separate who is still studying from who has already graduated, and it does not reveal what happened to the rest. Not returning is not the same as dropping out: someone who transferred to another university and continues studying there counts the same as someone who stopped studying altogether.
Regarding graduation: of the cohort that entered in 2017, 251 full-time students, 71 out of every 100 had their degree in hand six years later. Using the four-year timeframe, the figure falls to 61 out of every 100 — a difference of 10 points between the two timeframes. Compared with its 920 selective peers, that 71% places Agnes Scott College in the highest quarter: three out of every four comparable schools report an equal or lower proportion.
It is a high number. But it is not a promise for your daughter. It describes what happened to a specific cohort that entered in 2017. What is within your control is for her to enter with her credits in order, and from the first semester to know who her academic adviser is and when courses in her major are enrolled in.
One final fact, through a broader lens: following a cohort that entered between July 2015 and June 2016—including both first-time students and students with prior experience, full-time and part-time—after eight years, 76 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate from this institution. Among those with Pell Grants, the figure was 75 out of every 100, virtually the same. Compared with its peers, it is also in the highest quarter. Again: this is the history of a past cohort, not a forecast about your daughter.
What this article cannot tell you
I do not have data on what happens after graduation: income, employment, or debt at the time of graduation. That is outside what the government reports in these figures, and I am not going to invent it.
Closing: one piece of the plan, not the whole plan
You now know in detail an important part of what Agnes Scott College is: a small school, predominantly female in its undergraduate enrollment, moderately selective, with a high list price but generous and consistent financial aid, and graduation rates that place it among the highest in its comparison group.
That is one piece of the map. The other two—what your daughter truly wants to study and how she imagines living those years, and what your family can and is willing to pay—are known only to you. Put them together with what you learned here. From that combination, not from a single article, comes a real plan.
Source note: The information in this article comes from IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) of the U.S. Department of Education, primarily from reporting cycle 2023 and academic year 2022-23, depending on the data point. Best College Aid does not represent Agnes Scott College or the U.S. government; this article is an independent explanation of public data.