Northwestern Oklahoma
State University
Public College in Alva, OK. Six-year graduation rate 30%. Median 10-year earnings $44,358.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $44,358 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. Only 30% finish within six years, so roughly two in three students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Graduates carry a median of $17,355 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
- ! Graduation rate 30% — below national average
Admissions
An acceptance rate of 65% puts Northwestern Oklahoma State University on the accessible end — a realistic target for a broad range of applicants. The applicant pool is small at 1,375, which makes year-over-year comparisons unreliable. 39% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. 18% 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 | 420–518 | 64 (18%) |
| SAT Math | 383–518 | |
| ACT Composite | 16–21 | 348 (100%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Northwestern Oklahoma State University →Academics
A six-year graduation rate of 30% means finishing is closer to the exception than the rule. First-year retention is 65% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. That gap between coming back and finishing is where this school loses people — after the first year, not during it. Transfer-out runs to 18% — common enough at this school that the completion rate is measuring a smaller group than the entering class. The 15:1 student-faculty ratio is small enough that seminar-sized classes are the norm.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,468 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $10,492 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. The income table below is the number that matters — $6,439 at $0–30k versus $16,065 at $110k+. Grant aid is widespread — 93% of students receive it, averaging $9,409. 44% of students take federal loans, a middling borrowing rate.
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 · 336 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 | $6,439 |
| $30–48k | $7,828 |
| $48–75k | $10,539 |
| $75–110k | $12,638 |
| $110k+ | $16,065 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 642 of these 1,468 students, totalling $4,086,953 — an average of $6,366 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Woods 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)