Missouri Western
State University
Public College in Saint Joseph, MO. Six-year graduation rate 39%. Median 10-year earnings $42,647.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $42,647 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. Only 39% finish within six years, so roughly three in five students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Graduates carry a median of $19,968 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
Academics
Completion is the problem here: 39% graduate within six years. 54% first-year retention is low enough to be the defining risk of enrolling here. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. 28% transfer out. IPEDS does not follow them, so whether they finished elsewhere is not recorded either way. Retention drops to 32% for part-time students, a gap worth weighing if full-time study is not realistic.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 2,364 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $13,126 a year after grant aid — low for a four-year institution, though your own figure depends on aid eligibility. Income makes less difference than usual: $11,243 at $0–30k, $17,764 at $110k+. Most students get help: 89% receive grants worth $10,213 on average. About 43% 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 · 582 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 | $11,243 |
| $30–48k | $11,674 |
| $48–75k | $13,965 |
| $75–110k | $16,119 |
| $110k+ | $17,764 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,007 of these 2,364 students, totalling $6,317,865 — an average of $6,274 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Buchanan 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)