Nova Southeastern University
Private Research University in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Six-year graduation rate 63%. Median 10-year earnings $59,209.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $59,209 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. Debt at graduation runs to a median of $24,250, neither a bargain nor a burden. Mobility is where this school separates itself: 3.3% of students move from the bottom income quintile to the top.
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
An acceptance rate of 73% puts Nova Southeastern University on the accessible end — a realistic target for a broad range of applicants. 17,765 students applied, a pool deep enough to make the acceptance rate meaningful. A 16% yield rate is low: the admitted pool is much larger than the entering class. 42% 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 | 530–650 | 854 (42%) |
| SAT Math | 500–650 | |
| ACT Composite | 19–28 | 329 (16%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Nova Southeastern University →Academics
63% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. 76% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in four are gone before sophomore year. 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. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 15% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 7,171 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price averages $31,858 annually, so cost is the first thing to weigh here. Aid is steeply need-based: families in the $0–30k band pay $26,603 while those at $110k+ pay $35,443. Most students get help: 93% receive grants worth $23,596 on average. Federal borrowing reaches 45% 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 · 2,016 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 | $26,603 |
| $30–48k | $27,048 |
| $48–75k | $29,953 |
| $75–110k | $34,277 |
| $110k+ | $35,443 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 3,250 of these 7,171 students, totalling $23,042,430 — an average of $7,090 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Broward 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)