Messenger College
Private College in Bedford, TX. Six-year graduation rate 100%. Median 10-year earnings $29,463.
Median earnings ten years after entry come to $29,463, below what most undergraduate institutions return — the central fact to weigh against cost here. The six-year graduation rate of 100% is well above average and the clearest sign this school holds onto its students.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Graduation rate 100% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
Messenger College admits 38% of applicants and is genuinely selective — roughly three in five applicants are turned away. The applicant pool is small at 24, which makes year-over-year comparisons unreliable. A 67% yield rate puts this school in the upper range for admits who follow through.
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 | — | — |
| SAT Math | — | |
| ACT Composite | — | — |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Messenger College →Academics
100% of students finish within six years, putting completion well above the national norm. Just 57% of first-years come back — most of the completion gap opens in year one. The 8:1 student-faculty ratio is small enough that seminar-sized classes are the norm. As a private nonprofit four-year college, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions. The undergraduate body is just 27, which shapes everything from class size to how often a required course is offered.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 27 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $25,941 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $17,029 at the $0–30k band to $29,756 at $110k+. 96% of students get grant aid averaging $8,046, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. Borrowing is widespread: 96% take federal loans.
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 · 8 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 | $17,029 |
| $30–48k | $28,494 |
| $48–75k | $24,551 |
| $75–110k | $24,903 |
| $110k+ | $29,756 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 26 of these 27 students, totalling $198,676 — an average of $7,641 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Tarrant 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)