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Private College

Briar Cliff University

Private College in Sioux City, IA. Six-year graduation rate 48%. Median 10-year earnings $54,475.

Verdict Mixed outcomes
Briar Cliff University · Campus
Median earnings · 10 yr
$54,475
Median debt at grad
$23,250
Mobility score
1.0
% bottom→top quintile
Graduation rate
47.5%
Federal loan default
0%

The median ten-year earnings figure of $54,475 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. Six-year completion sits at 48%, near the national average for undergraduate institutions. Median debt at graduation is $23,250, 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.

Green Flags
  • 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Red Flags
  • ! Mobility score 1.0 — limited economic uplift documented

Academics

Full-time retention
64%
Transfer-out rate
0%
Student:faculty
10:1

48% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. 64% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in three 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. A 10:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty. As a private nonprofit four-year college, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions.

Financial Aid

Average net price
$23,263
Full-time, first-time undergraduates paying the in-state rate who were awarded grant or scholarship aid
% receiving grants
100%
degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
% receiving federal loans
56%
degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 674 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates

Average net price after grant aid is $23,263 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $17,764 at the $0–30k band to $27,328 at $110k+. Most students get help: 100% receive grants worth $25,214 on average. Most students borrow — 56% take federal loans to cover the gap.

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.

% receiving grants
100%
Average grant
$28,425

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 152 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 $17,764
$30–48k $14,604
$48–75k $25,516
$75–110k $30,156
$110k+ $27,328

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24

Federal student loans went to 378 of these 674 students, totalling $3,279,969 — an average of $8,677 each.

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24

Local housing costs

Typical rents near campus (Woodbury County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.

Studio
$796/mo
1 bedroom
$925/mo
2 bedroom (whole unit)
$1,154/mo

HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026

Veterans & GI Bill

VA caution flag

Heightened Cash Monitoring, Heightened Cash Monitoring (Compliance Audit Late or Missing); Heightened Cash Monitoring; School placed on Heightened Cash Monitoring

GI Bill students
18
Yellow Ribbon
Yes
Principles of Excellence
Yes

VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)

Compare Briar Cliff University with peer institutions

How we evaluate Briar Cliff University

IPEDS
US Department of Education
College Scorecard
Post-grad earnings
Census PSEO
Earnings by major
Opportunity Insights
Mobility by institution
Read our full methodology →