University of South Alabama

What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for University of South Alabama

University of South Alabama operates as a public institution located in Mobile, Alabama (city: midsize), with a total reported enrollment of 8,879 students of which 10,053 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. University of South Alabama is categorized as “16” 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 71.0%, drawn from the most recent IPEDS Fall enrollment survey, with an average SAT of 1,147 and an ACT midpoint of 23. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $17,648, with published in-state tuition of $10,116 and a Pell grant recipient share of 38.0%. Median federal student debt at graduation is $24,929, drawn from the U.S. Treasury-matched College Scorecard file.

Outcomes reveal whether the investment pays back. The 4-year completion rate is 52.6%, and the first-year retention rate is 75.7%. Graduates earn a median of $49,379 ten years after enrolling, compared with $41,307 six years post-enrollment. Within three years of entering repayment, 519600.0% of borrowers are making progress on their federal loans, and 62.3% 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.