Pepperdine University

What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for Pepperdine University

Pepperdine University operates as a private nonprofit institution located in Malibu, California (suburb: large), with a total reported enrollment of 3,553 students of which 3,949 are undergraduates. Institution-level records in the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) classify each school by Carnegie category, ownership sector, and urban/rural locale, which is how this profile’s peer group and cost cohort are determined. Pepperdine University is categorized as “17” under the Carnegie classification system, a meaningful signal when comparing like-to-like institutions.

Selectivity and financial signals give context to what applicants can expect. The reported admission rate is 62.9%, drawn from the most recent IPEDS Fall enrollment survey, with an average SAT of 1,384 and an ACT midpoint of 28. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $58,098, with published in-state tuition of $69,918 and a Pell grant recipient share of 20.3%. Median federal student debt at graduation is $23,510, drawn from the U.S. Treasury-matched College Scorecard file.

Outcomes reveal whether the investment pays back. The 4-year completion rate is 84.2%, and the first-year retention rate is 87.6%. Graduates earn a median of $82,939 ten years after enrolling, compared with $64,934 six years post-enrollment. Within three years of entering repayment, 123400.0% of borrowers are making progress on their federal loans, and 77.9% of graduates earn above the high-school threshold. Treating these numbers as a single snapshot alongside the cost cohort is the standard approach for evaluating ROI under the College Scorecard methodology.