10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
−$133,056at year 10Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
Private nonprofit · COLLEGE PAYOFF
Brenau University
Gainesville, GA · 18 field-and-degree records
Earnings reported for 17 · Federal debt reported for 7
Based onObserved earnings + college priceEstimate10-year payoff
Estimated 10-year payoff
Negative payoff
−$133,056 over 10 years
Modeled from observed year-5 institution earnings and the institution-wide average net price over four years.
20.8 yrsTime to earn back the modeled cost
−52%Estimated return after 10 years
$57,264Observed earnings · year 5
Not reachedHighest annual price before payoff reaches $0
Start with your question
What do you want to understand?
ECONOMIC INVESTMENT → PAYBACK
Estimated payoff over ten years.
The scenario counts direct price and earnings forgone upfront, then applies the reported annual earnings premium.
FEDERAL COST DATA
Four ways to read college price.
Annual college-wide figures from the current College Scorecard release. Average net price covers full-time, first-time undergraduates receiving federal aid; public-college figures use in-state students. Program tuition and individual aid offers may differ.
PUBLISHED STUDENT BUDGET · 2024–25
What makes up the annual price?
Sticker-price components reported to IPEDS. Grants and scholarships are not subtracted here.
Living off campus: $14,536 housing and food allowance plus $5,460 in other expenses.
Do not confuse this with net price. Net price subtracts average grants and scholarships. DegreeVerdict continues to use the separately labeled average net price in its standard college ROI scenario.
PRICE SENSITIVITY
The price can change the verdict.
Hold observed earnings constant and see how the modeled ten-year payoff changes as annual price rises.
← Negative payoff$0Positive payoff →
$0Annual price−$57,360
$8,000Annual price−$89,360
$16,000Annual price−$121,360
$19,000Current college-wide context−$133,360
$24,000Annual price−$153,360
$32,000Annual price−$185,360
$40,000Annual price−$217,360
HOW STUDENTS ATTEND · 2023-24
Online study is a meaningful part of the student experience.
IPEDS enrollment counts show course delivery across the whole institution. They do not indicate whether a specific degree can be completed online.
Institution-level attendance context from IPEDS. Program delivery is reported separately on degree pages and in the program directory. These figures do not enter ROI.
College identity and local contextAccreditation, institution type, dual enrollment and state prices
COLLEGE AT A GLANCE
Institution details
Current federal characteristics describing the college, not the outcomes of a specific program.
- Accreditor
- Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
- Main award level
- Bachelor’s degrees
- Campus setting
- City
- Admissions
- Selective admission
- Delivery
- Campus or mixed delivery
- Federal designation
- No special designation reported
DUAL-ENROLLMENT CONTEXT · 2024
290 high-school students took college courses.
IPEDS counts students enrolled in college credit while still in high school. A large dual-enrollment population can shape headline enrollment figures, especially at community colleges.
This is participation, not a college completion rate. It does not indicate how many students later enrolled after high school, earned a credential or entered the workforce.
STATE PRICE CONTEXT · 2024
Prices in Georgia run 4% below the U.S. level.
BEA Regional Price Parities compare price levels across states. A value of 100 equals the national average.
What it costs and what graduates earn
$18,924Average net price / year
$46,010Cost of attendance
$27,000Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$286/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$57,264Median earnings · year 5 after completion
32.9%Completion rate
87.8%Admission rate
1,079Average SAT score
23ACT midpoint
1,029Student size
Debt covers federal student-loan borrowers who completed. It does not include Parent PLUS or private loans. We show admissions scores only when a valid federal value is available.
What the numbers say about Brenau University
What does Brenau University cost?
Brenau University reports an average annual net price of $18,924 after grants and scholarships. This is an institution-wide average, not an individual aid offer.
What do Brenau University graduates earn?
The observed median earnings figure is $57,264 5 years after completion. It describes a federal cohort, not a guaranteed starting salary.
How much federal debt do Brenau University graduates have?
Completer borrowers report median cumulative federal student debt of $27,000. Parent PLUS and private loans are not included.
Is every degree at Brenau University worth the same?
No. The current release contains 18 field-and-degree records for Brenau University; 17 report year-4 earnings and 7 report federal debt. Outcomes can differ substantially by field and degree level.
DEBT AFTER COLLEGE
Are borrowers making progress?
Repayment progress, default and debt at exit describe different federal borrower cohorts. They are shown separately and do not change the ROI estimate.
Source: College Scorecard. Repayment progress is the share of borrowers who reduced principal by at least $1 at the stated measurement point. Debt covers federal student loans; Parent PLUS and private loans are excluded. Cohorts and reporting periods differ across measures.
Who studied here during the year
2,953Students enrolled at any point
1,479Undergraduate students
1,474Graduate students
Unduplicated students enrolled at any point from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025. This full-year measure is different from a fall headcount and does not enter ROI.
More student and earnings detailPrice by family income, retention, equity and common industries
WHO PAYS, WHO FINISHES, WHO EARNS
Outcomes are not the same for every family.
These federal cohorts add context that a single college average can hide. Missing figures remain unreported rather than estimated.
Complete within 150% of the expected time
33% received a Pell Grant within eight yearsMedian Parent PLUS debt
133 parent borrowers in the reported cohortMedian federal student debt
44% making progress in repayment after three yearsStudent family incomeMedian earnings after 10 yearsObserved federal cohorts
Lower income$47,863Earnings are not a guarantee
Middle income$60,924Earnings are not a guarantee
Higher income$61,602Earnings are not a guarantee
Three-year repayment progress
Lower income40%
Middle income46%
Higher income60%
Undergraduate student composition
White42%
Black24%
Hispanic21%
Asian2%
Source: College Scorecard, June 2026 release. Parent PLUS debt belongs to parents; student-debt measures exclude Parent PLUS and private loans. Cohort definitions differ by measure.
NATIONAL CONTEXT
How this college compares
Percentiles compare this institution with currently operating colleges that report the same federal measure.
WHAT STANDS OUT
A faster read on this college
These summaries use every reportable field-and-credential record at this institution. They do not fill privacy-suppressed outcomes.
EARNINGS OVER TIME
What graduates earned in later years
$51,095Year 1
$61,654Year 4
$57,264Year 5
Each year can represent a different federal cohort, so the points do not track the same people over time.
Your choice of degree can change the payoff.
Graduate earnings differ by field and credential, even within the same college.
1Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Master's Degree$116,2992Accounting and Related Services · Master's Degree$91,5093Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's Degree$88,7314Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions · Doctoral Degree$84,2695Health and Medical Administrative Services · Master's Degree$80,7906Business Administration, Management and Operations · Master's Degree$80,4647Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions · Master's Degree$74,8278Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods · Master's Degree$69,139Observed year-4 earnings · compare the same field and credential across colleges
Programs that stand out against the same-degree benchmark
This view rewards performance relative to the same field and credential, not simply majors that pay more everywhere.
1Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssociate's Degree · $54,968 reported+25%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt2Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and MethodsMaster's Degree · $69,139 reported+15%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt3Rehabilitation and Therapeutic ProfessionsMaster's Degree · $74,827 reported+5%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt4Rehabilitation and Therapeutic ProfessionsDoctoral Degree · $84,269 reported+2%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt5Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingBachelor's Degree · $88,731 reported-0%vs same-degree national median$42,187federal debt6Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and MethodsBachelor's Degree · $46,138 reported-3%vs same-degree national median$38,250federal debt
Comparable colleges in GA
Currently operating private nonprofit institutions with the closest combination of annual net price and observed year-5 earnings. Similarity is descriptive, not a quality ranking.
Thomasville, GA
Thomas University
- Annual net price
- $18,499
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $57,547
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -51%
LaGrange College
- Annual net price
- $20,875
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $56,632
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -56%
Piedmont University
- Annual net price
- $20,599
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $55,613
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -60%
Oglethorpe University
- Annual net price
- $19,509
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $53,234
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -68%
Compare fields and degree levels
Showing all 18 field-and-degree records in the current release.
| Major or field | Degree level | Earnings, year 4 | Federal debt | 2024–25 graduates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Master's Degree | $116,299 | Not available | 7 |
| Accounting and Related Services | Master's Degree | $91,509 | Not available | 1 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Bachelor's Degree | $88,731 | $42,187 | Not reported |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions | Doctoral Degree | $84,269 | Not available | 60 |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services | Master's Degree | $80,790 | Not available | 1 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Master's Degree | $80,464 | Not available | 3 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions | Master's Degree | $74,827 | Not available | Not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | Master's Degree | $69,139 | Not available | 17 |
| Business/Commerce, General | Bachelor's Degree | $55,114 | $44,156 | Not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | Associate's Degree | $54,968 | Not available | Not reported |
| Human Resources Management and Services | Bachelor's Degree | $53,693 | Not available | Not reported |
| Gerontology | Master's Degree | $50,743 | Not available | Not reported |
| Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology | Master's Degree | $47,251 | Not available | 0 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | Bachelor's Degree | $46,138 | $38,250 | Not reported |
| Psychology, General | Bachelor's Degree | $42,586 | $30,761 | Not reported |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services | Bachelor's Degree | $38,591 | $29,648 | Not reported |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft | Bachelor's Degree | $36,910 | $19,500 | Not reported |
| Accounting and Related Services | Bachelor's Degree | Not available | $49,590 | Not reported |
Graduate counts come from IPEDS and group related majors into the same federal field. Missing earnings or debt values remain labeled as unavailable.
Earnings, price, completion and enrollment are observed federal measures. ROI, payoff and break-even are modeled scenarios built from those measures and fixed assumptions. College payoff is not the payoff of every degree at this school; use the program table for a more precise comparison.