Purdue University Northwest
Public College in Hammond, IN. Six-year graduation rate 43%. Median 10-year earnings $48,318.
Students who entered Purdue University Northwest land at a median of $48,318 a decade later, close to what most four-year schools deliver. 43% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Median debt at graduation is $21,229, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree.
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 72% puts Purdue University Northwest on the accessible end — a realistic target for a broad range of applicants. 8,617 students applied in the most recent cycle — a mid-sized pool drawn mostly from the surrounding region. Only 18% of admitted students enroll — the great majority of admits go elsewhere or nowhere. The score bands below cover the middle 50% of the enrolled students who submitted a score — not the whole class, 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 | 450–570 | 818 (72%) |
| SAT Math | 440–570 | |
| ACT Composite | 16–24 | 38 (3%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Purdue University Northwest →Academics
43% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. Retention of 66% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. The part-time picture is harder: 22% return, against 66% full-time. The student-faculty ratio is 17:1 — typical, which in practice means large lectures early and smaller classes in the major.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 5,786 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $7,916 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Net price swings hard on family income here, from $1,432 at the $0–30k band to $13,645 at $110k+. About 73% get grants averaging $6,663, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. Federal borrowing reaches 35% 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 · 1,169 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 | $1,432 |
| $30–48k | $2,428 |
| $48–75k | $7,026 |
| $75–110k | $12,452 |
| $110k+ | $13,645 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,998 of these 5,786 students, totalling $12,071,908 — an average of $6,042 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Lake County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026