South University-Tampa
For-profit College in Tampa, FL. Six-year graduation rate 23%. Median 10-year earnings $34,421.
Ten-year median earnings of $34,421 are on the low side, which raises the bar for what this degree needs to cost. Completion is the weak point: 23% graduate within six years. Graduates carry a median of $26,123 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
- ! Debt-to-income ratio 0.76 — elevated (above 0.60)
- ! Graduation rate 23% — below national average
Academics
Only 23% finish within six years, so roughly three in four students leave without the credential. Just 50% of first-years come back — most of the completion gap opens in year one. Retention runs well ahead of completion, which means students are not leaving immediately; they are leaving somewhere between the second year and the finish line. A 14:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty. As a for-profit four-year institution, outcomes here deserve a harder look than the sector average suggests: for-profit institutions vary enormously, and the sector's aggregate numbers hide both strong and very weak performers.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 390 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $21,139 annually once grants are applied. The gap between the $0–30k and $75–110k bands is narrow ($20,347 versus $22,442), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. 75% of students receive grant aid, averaging $6,030 — common but not automatic. Most students borrow — 60% take federal loans to cover the gap.
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 · 13 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 | $20,347 |
| $30–48k | $19,364 |
| $48–75k | $20,759 |
| $75–110k | $22,442 |
| $110k+ | — |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 234 of these 390 students, totalling $1,908,187 — an average of $8,155 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Hillsborough 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)