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Walden University

Minneapolis, MN 9,136 Undergrads 31.6% Grad Rate
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Total Cost
$35,358
Sticker Price
Avg Net Price
$33,817
After Aid
Median Earnings
$83,334
4yr Post-Grad

Vs. Peer Institutions

Net Price$33,817
Peer Midpoint: $20,081
Earnings (4yr Post-Grad)Completers only after graduation
$83,334
Peer Midpoint: $60,428
Warning: This school's reported earnings inflated significantly (+95%) when the Dept of Education excluded non-graduates from the dataset. Take caution when comparing.
Earnings (10yr Post-Enroll)All enrolled after enrollment
$42,810
Peer Midpoint: $53,763
Graduation Rate31.6%
Peer Midpoint: 58.9%
Warning: The majority of students at this institution do not graduate. Non-completers typically earn significantly less and face higher debt risks.
Average Starting Age36.1
Warning: High average starting age indicates non-traditional students with prior work experience, which may inflate the median earnings shown.
Socio-Economic Diversity
Pell Grant Recipients53.2%
Enrollment Status
Full-Time25.7%
Economic Outcomes
Earn More than HS72.7%

Admissions Profile

Acceptance
100.0%
SAT Avg
-
SAT Reading
25th: --75th: -
SAT Math
25th: --75th: -
ACT Composite
25th: --75th: -

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)
⚠️ Caution: Underlying earnings data reflects graduates only. This institution flagged for high risk factors (low completion/older demographics) that may artificially inflate this ROI.

Institution Lifetime NPV
Vs Median Peer
Vs HS Grad
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
+$716k
+$249k
+$231k
Median Cost$34k/yr
+$594k
+$127k
+$110k
Full Cost$35k/yr
+$588k
+$122k
+$104k

ROI Efficiency Metrics
⚠️ Caution: Underlying earnings data reflects graduates only. This institution flagged for high risk factors (low completion/older demographics) that may artificially inflate this ROI.

Break-Even Age
Return on Inv. %
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
27
∞
Median Cost$34k/yr
38
90%
Full Cost$35k/yr
39
82%
Analysis Assumptions:
  • Starting Salary: Estimated from the 4-year post-graduation median earnings (assuming 2% annual growth from graduation).⚠️ Warning: The high average starting age or low completion rate may inflate the Median earnings and ROI shown.
  • 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
⚠️ Caution: Underlying earnings data reflects graduates only. This institution flagged for high risk factors (low completion/older demographics) that may artificially inflate this ROI.

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 Return248%

Gov. Pell Grant ROINew
⚠️ Caution: Underlying earnings data reflects graduates only. This institution flagged for high risk factors (low completion/older demographics) that may artificially inflate this ROI.

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 Return15%
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
⚠️ Caution: Underlying earnings data reflects graduates only. This institution flagged for high risk factors (low completion/older demographics) that may artificially inflate this ROI.

Bachelor's Degrees

Median Debt
$35,625
Earnings (4yr)
$62,148
Natl Median: $76,194
Lifetime Value Added
-$53k
Median Debt
$33,334
Earnings (4yr)
$66,978
Natl Median: $68,257
Lifetime Value Added
-$15k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$74,633
Natl Median: $65,784
Lifetime Value Added
+$43k
Median Debt
$39,341
Earnings (5yr)
$51,690
Natl Median: $50,523
Lifetime Value Added
-$147k
Median Debt
$32,060
Earnings (5yr)
$58,928
Natl Median: $56,359
Lifetime Value Added
-$88k
Median Debt
$43,204
Earnings (4yr)
$89,230
Natl Median: $92,374
Lifetime Value Added
+$155k
Median Debt
$25,000
Earnings (4yr)
$52,456
Natl Median: $55,378
Lifetime Value Added
-$132k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$65,134
Natl Median: $50,452
Lifetime Value Added
-$40k
Education, General
BachCIP: 1301
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$44,458
Natl Median: $49,808
Lifetime Value Added
-$207k
Median Debt
$34,592
Earnings (4yr)
$58,602
Natl Median: $58,716
Lifetime Value Added
-$82k
Median Debt
$35,500
Earnings (4yr)
$61,434
Natl Median: $61,296
Lifetime Value Added
-$59k
Median Debt
$40,167
Earnings (4yr)
$43,103
Natl Median: $48,568
Lifetime Value Added
-$211k
Median Debt
$39,649
Earnings (4yr)
$55,040
Natl Median: $48,597
Lifetime Value Added
-$111k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $50,532
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Psychology, General
BachCIP: 4201
Median Debt
$33,334
Earnings (4yr)
$55,974
Natl Median: $50,706
Lifetime Value Added
-$103k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$52,295
Natl Median: $65,093
Lifetime Value Added
-$142k
Public Health
BachCIP: 5122
Median Debt
$35,750
Earnings (4yr)
$63,061
Natl Median: $58,808
Lifetime Value Added
-$46k
Median Debt
$20,341
Earnings (4yr)
$106,892
Natl Median: $88,910
Lifetime Value Added
+$289k
Social Work
BachCIP: 4407
Median Debt
$25,895
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $51,790
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$36,500
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $47,382
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Master's Degrees

Median Debt
$39,610
Earnings (4yr)
$73,233
Natl Median: $95,833
Lifetime Value Added
-$56k
Median Debt
$45,581
Earnings (4yr)
$82,853
Natl Median: $103,485
Lifetime Value Added
+$28k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$56,934
Natl Median: $65,184
Lifetime Value Added
-$203k
Median Debt
$38,500
Earnings (4yr)
$54,533
Natl Median: $71,953
Lifetime Value Added
-$226k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$91,087
Natl Median: $124,201
Lifetime Value Added
+$100k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$60,679
Natl Median: $66,714
Lifetime Value Added
-$168k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$80,064
Natl Median: $63,399
Lifetime Value Added
+$3k
Education, General
MastCIP: 1301
Median Debt
$20,500
Earnings (4yr)
$64,694
Natl Median: $65,824
Lifetime Value Added
-$132k
Median Debt
$36,691
Earnings (4yr)
$55,023
Natl Median: $71,685
Lifetime Value Added
-$221k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $110,694
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$44,740
Earnings (4yr)
$79,613
Natl Median: $89,981
Lifetime Value Added
-$456
Homeland Security
MastCIP: 4303
Median Debt
$44,971
Earnings (4yr)
$86,888
Natl Median: $96,660
Lifetime Value Added
+$63k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$69,182
Natl Median: $83,558
Lifetime Value Added
-$92k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$56,751
Natl Median: $57,050
Lifetime Value Added
-$205k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $61,132
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$109,874
Natl Median: $106,092
Lifetime Value Added
+$264k
Marketing
MastCIP: 5214
Median Debt
$34,167
Earnings (4yr)
$68,462
Natl Median: $79,106
Lifetime Value Added
-$98k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$91,306
Natl Median: $101,441
Lifetime Value Added
+$102k
Median Debt
$80,386
Earnings (4yr)
$60,034
Natl Median: $59,571
Lifetime Value Added
-$174k
Psychology, General
MastCIP: 4201
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$60,895
Natl Median: $64,711
Lifetime Value Added
-$166k
Median Debt
$43,814
Earnings (4yr)
$68,434
Natl Median: $81,408
Lifetime Value Added
-$99k
Public Health
MastCIP: 5122
Median Debt
$60,029
Earnings (4yr)
$72,906
Natl Median: $82,751
Lifetime Value Added
-$59k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$84,035
Natl Median: $93,020
Lifetime Value Added
+$38k
Median Debt
$53,686
Earnings (4yr)
$122,823
Natl Median: $120,193
Lifetime Value Added
+$377k
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$53,809
Natl Median: $63,216
Lifetime Value Added
-$233k
Social Work
MastCIP: 4407
Median Debt
$72,715
Earnings (4yr)
$63,559
Natl Median: $65,123
Lifetime Value Added
-$142k
Median Debt
$64,000
Earnings (4yr)
$57,267
Natl Median: $60,111
Lifetime Value Added
-$200k
Median Debt
$38,929
Earnings (4yr)
$55,860
Natl Median: $59,916
Lifetime Value Added
-$213k

Graduate Certificates

Median Debt
$122,882
Earnings (4yr)
$77,566
Natl Median: $69,033
Lifetime Value Added
+$77k
Education, General
Gr-CertCIP: 1301
Median Debt
$75,167
Earnings (4yr)
$74,809
Natl Median: $69,448
Lifetime Value Added
+$51k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$71,093
Natl Median: $86,288
Lifetime Value Added
+$2k
Health Professions Education, Ethics, and Humanities
Gr-CertCIP: 5132
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $112,957
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $126,911
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $63,709
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Doctoral Degrees

Median Debt
$115,920
Earnings (4yr)
$105,432
Natl Median: $113,566
Lifetime Value Added
+$13k
Median Debt
$137,963
Earnings (4yr)
$77,515
Natl Median: $99,878
Lifetime Value Added
-$195k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $154,538
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$102,504
Earnings (4yr)
$85,639
Natl Median: $86,427
Lifetime Value Added
-$134k
Education, General
DocCIP: 1301
Median Debt
$132,844
Earnings (4yr)
$94,881
Natl Median: $87,373
Lifetime Value Added
-$65k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $126,299
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$136,439
Earnings (4yr)
$113,723
Natl Median: $101,669
Lifetime Value Added
+$74k
Median Debt
$150,298
Earnings (4yr)
$72,722
Natl Median: $70,068
Lifetime Value Added
-$230k
Median Debt
$175,633
Earnings (4yr)
$80,203
Natl Median: $98,707
Lifetime Value Added
-$174k
Median Debt
$138,500
Earnings (4yr)
$100,861
Natl Median: $99,464
Lifetime Value Added
-$21k
Public Health
DocCIP: 5122
Median Debt
$129,841
Earnings (4yr)
$108,951
Natl Median: $108,962
Lifetime Value Added
+$39k
Median Debt
$94,982
Earnings (4yr)
$132,421
Natl Median: $138,131
Lifetime Value Added
+$212k
Social Work
DocCIP: 4407
Median Debt
$102,480
Earnings (4yr)
$99,933
Natl Median: $98,285
Lifetime Value Added
-$28k
Median Debt
$125,441
Earnings (4yr)
$92,301
Natl Median: $83,794
Lifetime Value Added
-$85k

Other Programs

Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $73,933
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$74,472
Natl Median: $62,426
Lifetime Value Added
-$217k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$68,442
Natl Median: $54,768
Lifetime Value Added
-$262k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $75,268
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$79,752
Natl Median: $73,949
Lifetime Value Added
-$178k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$71,589
Natl Median: $69,125
Lifetime Value Added
-$239k
Education, General
DegCIP: 1301
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$64,549
Natl Median: $62,645
Lifetime Value Added
-$292k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$91,353
Natl Median: $90,560
Lifetime Value Added
-$92k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $41,452
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$67,185
Natl Median: $65,711
Lifetime Value Added
-$272k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $50,131
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $46,356
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Marketing
DegCIP: 5214
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,915
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$47,652
Natl Median: $59,214
Lifetime Value Added
-$426k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $99,128
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $57,802
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.