Samford University

What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for Samford University

Samford University operates as a private nonprofit institution located in Birmingham, Alabama (suburb: large), with a total reported enrollment of 4,206 students of which 3,936 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. Samford 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 82.4%, drawn from the most recent IPEDS Fall enrollment survey, with an average SAT of 1,201 and an ACT midpoint of 26. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $32,622, with published in-state tuition of $40,150 and a Pell grant recipient share of 11.1%. Median federal student debt at graduation is $19,500, drawn from the U.S. Treasury-matched College Scorecard file.

Outcomes reveal whether the investment pays back. The 4-year completion rate is 78.4%, and the first-year retention rate is 92.9%. Graduates earn a median of $58,469 ten years after enrolling, compared with $49,466 six years post-enrollment. Within three years of entering repayment, 86900.0% of borrowers are making progress on their federal loans, and 73.8% 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.