Mount Vernon
Nazarene University
Private College in Mount Vernon, OH. Six-year graduation rate 68%. Median 10-year earnings $49,555.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $49,555 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. 68% graduate within six years, so most students who start here finish here. Debt at graduation runs to a median of $25,000, neither a bargain nor a burden.
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
- ! Mobility score 0.8 — limited economic uplift documented
Admissions
An acceptance rate of 84% puts Mount Vernon Nazarene University on the accessible end — a realistic target for a broad range of applicants. Only 1,230 students applied, so treat these rates as directional — small pools swing sharply between cycles. About 29% of admitted students enroll, a yield in the normal range. The score bands below rest on the 5% 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 | 528–645 | 16 (5%) |
| SAT Math | 518–670 | |
| ACT Composite | 18–25 | 87 (29%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Mount Vernon Nazarene University →Academics
Six-year completion runs to 68% — students who start here overwhelmingly finish here. First-year retention is 79% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. At 13:1, 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. At 1,631 undergraduates, expect a small, closely-held student body.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,332 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $22,961 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. The gap between the $0–30k and $110k+ bands is narrow ($22,358 versus $26,271), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. Grant aid is widespread — 89% of students receive it, averaging $26,304. 61% of students borrow federally, so debt is the norm rather than the exception.
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 · 277 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 | $22,358 |
| $30–48k | $20,508 |
| $48–75k | $18,116 |
| $75–110k | $21,486 |
| $110k+ | $26,271 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 818 of these 1,332 students, totalling $5,306,912 — an average of $6,488 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Knox 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)