Bethel University
Private College in Mishawaka, IN. Six-year graduation rate 53%. Median 10-year earnings $48,860.
Students who entered Bethel University land at a median of $48,860 a decade later, close to what most four-year schools deliver. Six-year completion sits at 53%, near the national average for undergraduate institutions. Graduates carry a median of $25,000 in debt — in line with the national norm.
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
- ! Mobility score 0.6 — limited economic uplift documented
Admissions
Bethel University admits 98% of applicants — effectively open admission, so the application is a formality rather than a hurdle. With 985 applicants, admissions statistics here move a lot on small changes. Yield sits at 27% — the remainder of admitted students enroll elsewhere or not at all. 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 | 460–580 | 155 (59%) |
| SAT Math | 440–570 | |
| ACT Composite | 16–24 | 30 (11%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Bethel University →Academics
Completion is middling: 53% finish inside six years. 72% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in four are gone before sophomore year. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. With 32% transferring out, this functions substantially as a stepping stone. A 12:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,069 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $19,494 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $17,580 at the $0–30k band to $25,871 at $110k+. 88% of students get grant aid averaging $22,671, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. 47% of students take federal loans, a middling borrowing rate.
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 · 222 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 | $17,580 |
| $30–48k | $12,572 |
| $48–75k | $12,673 |
| $75–110k | $18,645 |
| $110k+ | $25,871 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 499 of these 1,069 students, totalling $3,363,000 — an average of $6,739 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (St. Joseph 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)