College ROI

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Western Oregon University

Monmouth, OR 3,103 Undergrads 54.5% Grad Rate
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Total Cost
$25,062
Sticker Price
Avg Net Price
$17,237
After Aid
Median Earnings
$54,346
4yr Post-Grad

Vs. Peer Institutions

Net Price$17,237
Peer Midpoint: $20,081
Earnings (4yr Post-Grad)Completers only after graduation
$54,346
Peer Midpoint: $60,428
Earnings (10yr Post-Enroll)All enrolled after enrollment
$51,815
Peer Midpoint: $53,763
Graduation Rate54.5%
Peer Midpoint: 58.9%
Average Starting Age22.4
Socio-Economic Diversity
Pell Grant Recipients41.0%
Enrollment Status
Full-Time85.6%
Economic Outcomes
Earn More than HS72.3%

Admissions Profile

Acceptance
98.1%
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)

Institution Lifetime NPV
Vs Median Peer
Vs HS Grad
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
+$490k
+$23k
+$5k
Median Cost$17k/yr
+$428k
-$39k
-$57k
Full Cost$25k/yr
+$400k
-$67k
-$85k

ROI Efficiency Metrics

Break-Even Age
Return on Inv. %
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
57
∞
Median Cost$17k/yr
Never
-91%
Full Cost$25k/yr
Never
-94%
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-70%

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-68%
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

Bachelor's Degrees

Median Debt
$23,500
Earnings (4yr)
$48,295
Natl Median: $45,044
Lifetime Value Added
-$107k
Anthropology
BachCIP: 4502
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $46,676
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Biology, General
BachCIP: 2601
Median Debt
$25,895
Earnings (4yr)
$45,268
Natl Median: $57,214
Lifetime Value Added
-$133k
Median Debt
$20,667
Earnings (4yr)
$59,599
Natl Median: $68,407
Lifetime Value Added
-$14k
Chemistry
BachCIP: 4005
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,120
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$19,654
Earnings (4yr)
$49,630
Natl Median: $56,359
Lifetime Value Added
-$96k
Median Debt
$21,056
Earnings (4yr)
$90,324
Natl Median: $92,374
Lifetime Value Added
+$223k
Median Debt
$21,500
Earnings (4yr)
$60,363
Natl Median: $55,378
Lifetime Value Added
-$8k
Dance
BachCIP: 5003
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $39,980
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$21,316
Earnings (2yr)
$26,715
Natl Median: $51,490
Lifetime Value Added
-$284k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$31,048
Natl Median: $39,775
Lifetime Value Added
-$256k
Economics
BachCIP: 4506
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $82,686
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Education, General
BachCIP: 1301
Median Debt
$15,500
Earnings (4yr)
$46,042
Natl Median: $49,808
Lifetime Value Added
-$126k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$45,297
Natl Median: $48,590
Lifetime Value Added
-$140k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$30,437
Natl Median: $41,367
Lifetime Value Added
-$261k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $57,853
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $60,190
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Gerontology
BachCIP: 3011
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$49,507
Natl Median: $54,051
Lifetime Value Added
-$105k
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
-
Earnings (2yr)
$42,682
Natl Median: $85,294
Lifetime Value Added
-$140k
International/Globalization Studies
BachCIP: 3020
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $59,972
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $53,072
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $118,943
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Mathematics
BachCIP: 2701
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $69,562
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$22,210
Earnings (4yr)
$53,550
Natl Median: $55,693
Lifetime Value Added
-$63k
Music
BachCIP: 5009
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $42,892
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Philosophy
BachCIP: 3801
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $54,455
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $63,293
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Psychology, General
BachCIP: 4201
Median Debt
$20,500
Earnings (4yr)
$52,407
Natl Median: $50,706
Lifetime Value Added
-$73k
Public Health
BachCIP: 5122
Median Debt
$21,278
Earnings (4yr)
$52,452
Natl Median: $58,808
Lifetime Value Added
-$72k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,000
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$23,000
Earnings (4yr)
$51,921
Natl Median: $53,366
Lifetime Value Added
-$77k
Sociology
BachCIP: 4511
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $52,657
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness
BachCIP: 3105
Median Debt
$23,463
Earnings (4yr)
$54,540
Natl Median: $54,562
Lifetime Value Added
-$55k
Median Debt
$22,250
Earnings (4yr)
$54,761
Natl Median: $47,382
Lifetime Value Added
-$53k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $41,688
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Master's Degrees

Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $73,769
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $66,714
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $63,399
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$72,714
Natl Median: $70,644
Lifetime Value Added
-$31k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $106,092
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Music
MastCIP: 5009
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $48,285
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$69,653
Natl Median: $71,416
Lifetime Value Added
-$57k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,443
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$65,172
Natl Median: $64,397
Lifetime Value Added
-$97k
Median Debt
$34,166
Earnings (4yr)
$60,465
Natl Median: $59,916
Lifetime Value Added
-$140k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$47,327
Natl Median: $63,707
Lifetime Value Added
-$246k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,767
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Graduate Certificates

Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $63,709
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.