Lee University
Private College in Cleveland, TN. Six-year graduation rate 63%. Median 10-year earnings $43,222.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $43,222 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. 63% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Median debt at graduation is $25,750, 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
Lee University accepts 71% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. The applicant pool runs to 2,388, typical for a school of this reach. 35% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. The score bands below rest on the 21% of enrolled first-years who submitted an SAT score — a self-selected group, 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 | 540–630 | 123 (21%) |
| SAT Math | 500–600 | |
| ACT Composite | 20–27 | 407 (69%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Lee University →Academics
Completion is middling: 63% finish inside six years. 82% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. Transfer-out runs to 24% — common enough at this school that the completion rate is measuring a smaller group than the entering class. At 13:1, students get materially more instructor contact than at a typical public university.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 2,712 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price after grant aid is $20,416 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $12,834 at the $0–30k band to $24,641 at $110k+. Most students get help: 90% receive grants worth $14,263 on average. Federal borrowing reaches 50% 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 · 547 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 | $12,834 |
| $30–48k | $13,845 |
| $48–75k | $17,029 |
| $75–110k | $19,699 |
| $110k+ | $24,641 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,364 of these 2,712 students, totalling $9,551,218 — an average of $7,002 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Bradley 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)