College ROI

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Carson-Newman University

Jefferson City, TN 1,387 Undergrads 57.0% Grad Rate
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Total Cost
$49,024
Sticker Price
Avg Net Price
$20,251
After Aid
Median Earnings
$53,936
4yr Post-Grad

Vs. Peer Institutions

Net Price$20,251
Peer Midpoint: $20,081
Earnings (4yr Post-Grad)Completers only after graduation
$53,936
Peer Midpoint: $60,428
Earnings (10yr Post-Enroll)All enrolled after enrollment
$48,382
Peer Midpoint: $53,763
Graduation Rate57.0%
Peer Midpoint: 58.9%
Average Starting Age20.6
Socio-Economic Diversity
Pell Grant Recipients41.1%
Enrollment Status
Full-Time97.0%
Economic Outcomes
Earn More than HS67.6%

Admissions Profile

Acceptance
90.5%
SAT Avg
1,117
SAT Reading
25th: 50053575th: 645
SAT Math
25th: 45551075th: 570
ACT Composite
25th: 192275th: 25

ROI Sensitivity Analysis
Assuming 4 Years to Graduation

This analysis tests three cost scenarios (Scholarship, Average Net Price, Full Sticker Price) to show how college costs impact your long-term return compared to the average student and a high school graduate.

Lifetime Value Added (NPV)

Institution Lifetime NPV
Vs Median Peer
Vs HS Grad
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
+$486k
+$19k
+$2k
Median Cost$20k/yr
+$413k
-$53k
-$71k
Full Cost$49k/yr
+$310k
-$157k
-$174k

ROI Efficiency Metrics

Break-Even Age
Return on Inv. %
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
61
∞
Median Cost$20k/yr
Never
-97%
Full Cost$49k/yr
Never
-99%
Analysis Assumptions:
  • Starting Salary: Estimated from the 4-year post-graduation median earnings (assuming 2% annual growth from graduation).
  • Comparisons: "Vs Median Peer" compares to the median student nationwide in a similar level program. "Vs HS Grad" compares to a median high school graduate.
  • Break-Even: The age at which the college investment net income exceeds the median high school graduate's lifetime earnings.
  • NPV: Net Present Value of all future earnings minus costs and taxes, discounted at 7.8%.

Social Impact ROINew

Measures the societal return on a donor's investment. Calculated as the incremental pre-tax lifetime earnings vs. HS grad, divided by the tax-adjusted donation cost.

Donor Return-88%

Gov. Pell Grant ROINew

Measures the government's return on Pell Grants via increased tax revenue. Calculated as the portion of incremental lifetime taxes (discounted at 5.4%) attributed to the Pell Grant investment.

Taxpayer Return-85%
Important Note: Your ROI with any major will depend on the cost you pay to attend the program, and your starting salary. Both vary significantly across institutions. We encourage you to explore the ROI of a specific program variant by selecting the Program title of the credential level you are interested in. You will then have a more detailed return analysis for programs at specific institutions. We also encourage you to use the ROI calculator, or for more sophisticated analysis, the Guided ROI Interview, with your specific estimates of cost and salary.

Program ROI Analysis

Associate's Degrees

Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $41,884
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$12,000
Earnings (4yr)
$35,843
Natl Median: $44,125
Lifetime Value Added
-$131k

Bachelor's Degrees

Median Debt
$21,954
Earnings (4yr)
$64,634
Natl Median: $76,194
Lifetime Value Added
+$15k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,466
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Biology, General
BachCIP: 2601
Median Debt
$21,900
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $57,214
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$21,464
Earnings (4yr)
$64,503
Natl Median: $68,257
Lifetime Value Added
+$14k
Chemistry
BachCIP: 4005
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,120
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$19,235
Earnings (4yr)
$46,614
Natl Median: $56,359
Lifetime Value Added
-$132k
Computer Science
BachCIP: 1107
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $107,009
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $51,490
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,753
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $39,775
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $48,842
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Economics
BachCIP: 4506
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $82,686
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Engineering Physics
BachCIP: 1412
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $89,154
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $48,590
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $48,460
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $43,765
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $83,343
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $41,367
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $61,911
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
History
BachCIP: 5401
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $50,680
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $48,568
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$19,000
Earnings (5yr)
$42,420
Natl Median: $48,597
Lifetime Value Added
-$175k
Mathematics
BachCIP: 2701
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $69,562
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,693
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Music
BachCIP: 5009
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$23,649
Natl Median: $42,892
Lifetime Value Added
-$323k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $50,983
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Philosophy
BachCIP: 3801
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $54,455
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Physics
BachCIP: 4008
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $76,786
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $63,293
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Psychology, General
BachCIP: 4201
Median Debt
$25,125
Earnings (4yr)
$37,992
Natl Median: $50,706
Lifetime Value Added
-$206k
Psychology, Other
BachCIP: 4299
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$49,609
Natl Median: $50,748
Lifetime Value Added
-$107k
Median Debt
$23,000
Earnings (4yr)
$70,769
Natl Median: $88,910
Lifetime Value Added
+$62k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$43,115
Natl Median: $41,390
Lifetime Value Added
-$162k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $48,471
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,000
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Sociology
BachCIP: 4511
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $52,657
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$19,207
Earnings (2yr)
$37,054
Natl Median: $50,499
Lifetime Value Added
-$201k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $59,631
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness
BachCIP: 3105
Median Debt
$25,030
Earnings (4yr)
$44,311
Natl Median: $54,562
Lifetime Value Added
-$152k
Median Debt
$26,500
Earnings (4yr)
$42,340
Natl Median: $47,382
Lifetime Value Added
-$169k
Median Debt
$24,861
Earnings (4yr)
$45,780
Natl Median: $51,389
Lifetime Value Added
-$139k

Master's Degrees

Median Debt
$18,133
Earnings (4yr)
$86,617
Natl Median: $103,485
Lifetime Value Added
+$86k
Median Debt
$24,250
Earnings (4yr)
$67,411
Natl Median: $71,685
Lifetime Value Added
-$83k
Health Professions Education, Ethics, and Humanities
MastCIP: 5132
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $100,487
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$57,413
Natl Median: $59,571
Lifetime Value Added
-$174k
Psychology, Other
MastCIP: 4299
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $61,796
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$41,234
Earnings (4yr)
$108,765
Natl Median: $120,193
Lifetime Value Added
+$280k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$43,798
Natl Median: $64,397
Lifetime Value Added
-$287k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$51,874
Natl Median: $60,111
Lifetime Value Added
-$226k
Median Debt
$27,000
Earnings (4yr)
$53,619
Natl Median: $59,916
Lifetime Value Added
-$209k
Median Debt
$19,118
Earnings (4yr)
$53,243
Natl Median: $63,707
Lifetime Value Added
-$213k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$51,940
Natl Median: $65,767
Lifetime Value Added
-$225k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $61,300
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Doctoral Degrees

Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$76,497
Natl Median: $100,573
Lifetime Value Added
-$153k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $77,066
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $83,794
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $81,822
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Note: Lifetime Value Added is the Net Present Value (NPV) of estimated career earnings relative to a median high school graduate (for undergraduate programs) or a median bachelor's degree holder (for graduate programs), accounting for this institution's average cost and taxes. Computed over a career to retirement age.

For graduate programs (Master's, Doctoral, etc.), the calculation assumes a starting age of 22 (after undergraduate completion) and does not include the sunk costs of prior degrees. It represents the value added of the graduate decision moving forward. Note that the institution's average undergraduate net price is used as a proxy for annual cost, which may differ from actual graduate tuition. These Lifetime Value Added results for graduate degrees should not be compared with those for Undergraduate Certificates, Associates or Bachelors.

Completers Only: Federal median earnings data strictly reflects outcomes for students who successfully graduated. Students who do not complete their degree typically earn significantly less and face higher risks of debt default.