Freed-Hardeman University
Private College in Henderson, TN. Six-year graduation rate 70%. Median 10-year earnings $47,485.
Students who entered Freed-Hardeman University land at a median of $47,485 a decade later, close to what most four-year schools deliver. 70% graduate within six years, so most students who start here finish here. Graduates carry a median of $21,500 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
Admissions
At 60%, the acceptance rate makes Freed-Hardeman University a school worth applying to with alternatives in hand. Only 1,302 students applied, so treat these rates as directional — small pools swing sharply between cycles. 36% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. 11% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score. The bands below describe the middle half of that group, not of the class.
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 | 481–549 | 32 (11%) |
| SAT Math | 471–538 | |
| ACT Composite | 19–26 | 254 (90%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Freed-Hardeman University →Academics
Six-year completion runs to 70% — students who start here overwhelmingly finish here. Retention is strong at 86%, and first-year attrition is where most degrees are lost. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. At 10:1, 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 1,259 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price after grant aid is $20,178 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. The gap between the $0–30k and $110k+ bands is narrow ($20,988 versus $23,618), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. Most students get help: 97% receive grants worth $16,938 on average. About 52% borrow federally, roughly the national pattern.
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 · 284 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 | $20,988 |
| $30–48k | $21,788 |
| $48–75k | $19,639 |
| $75–110k | $21,308 |
| $110k+ | $23,618 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 658 of these 1,259 students, totalling $5,395,775 — an average of $8,200 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Chester 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)