Samford University
Private College in Birmingham, AL. Six-year graduation rate 77%. Median 10-year earnings $58,469.
Ten years after entry, the median Samford University student earns $58,469 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. The six-year graduation rate of 77% is well above average and the clearest sign this school holds onto its students. Median debt at graduation is $19,500, 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.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.33 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ Graduation rate 77% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Mobility score 0.7 — limited economic uplift documented
Admissions
Samford University accepts 82% of applicants, which makes it accessible to most students who meet the baseline requirements. 4,559 applications came in, enough to make the rates below reasonably stable year to year. 29% of those admitted enroll, which is unremarkable in either direction. The score bands below rest on the 25% 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 | 550–640 | 267 (25%) |
| SAT Math | 520–610 | |
| ACT Composite | 22–28 | 713 (66%) |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at Samford University →Academics
77% of students finish within six years, putting completion well above the national norm. First-year retention of 93% shows the cohort holds together through the hardest year. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. A 14:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty. This is a private nonprofit four-year college, so read every rate on this page against that peer group specifically.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 3,828 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay $34,926 a year on average after aid, a premium price that the earnings data has to justify. The income table below is the number that matters — $22,716 at $0–30k versus $36,235 at $110k+. Grant aid is widespread — 99% of students receive it, averaging $22,686. 27% 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 · 1,080 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 | $22,716 |
| $30–48k | $24,812 |
| $48–75k | $31,527 |
| $75–110k | $34,206 |
| $110k+ | $36,235 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,030 of these 3,828 students, totalling $6,564,987 — an average of $6,374 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Jefferson 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)