Belmont Abbey College
Private College in Belmont, NC. Six-year graduation rate 47%. Median 10-year earnings $47,937.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $47,937 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. 47% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Median debt at graduation is $26,000, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
75% of applicants get in, so the odds favor most reasonably prepared students. 4,221 students applied in the most recent cycle — a mid-sized pool drawn mostly from the surrounding region. A 13% yield rate is low: the admitted pool is much larger than the entering class. The score bands below cover the middle 50% of the enrolled students who submitted a score — not the whole class, and not a cutoff.
Test score bands (middle 50% of submitters)
These bands describe the enrolled first-years who submitted a score, not the entering class. Where most students apply test-optional the submitters are a self-selected, higher-scoring group.
| Test | 25th–75th percentile | Submitted |
|---|---|---|
| SAT Evidence-Based Reading | 490–610 | 357 (90%) |
| SAT Math | 470–590 | |
| ACT Composite | 18–26 | 334 (84%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Belmont Abbey College →Academics
47% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. 70% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in three are gone before sophomore year. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. At 12:1, students get materially more instructor contact than at a typical public university. Judge these figures against other institutions of the same type — sector explains more of the variation in completion than any single campus factor.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,441 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $24,726 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. Income makes less difference than usual: $20,610 at $0–30k, $27,059 at $110k+. Most students get help: 98% receive grants worth $8,759 on average. Federal borrowing reaches 51% of students.
Entering first-year students
A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 400 students
Net price by family income
The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.
| Family income band | Average net price |
|---|---|
| $0–30k | $20,610 |
| $30–48k | $18,868 |
| $48–75k | $21,195 |
| $75–110k | $24,798 |
| $110k+ | $27,059 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 738 of these 1,441 students, totalling $4,725,348 — an average of $6,403 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Gaston County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026
Veterans & GI Bill
VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)