10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
−$191,592at year 10Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
Sweet Briar College
⌖ Sweet Briar, VA · 0 reportable field-and-credential outcomes
10-year estimate · Negative payoff
−$191,592 over 10 years
Modeled from observed year-5 institution earnings and the institution-wide average net price over four years.
With these assumptions, the added earnings do not recover the cost within ten years.
42.2 yrsModeled economic break-even
−76%Modeled 10-year ROI
$50,944Observed earnings · year 5
Not reachedMaximum annual price for positive 10-year payoff
What the numbers say about Sweet Briar College
What does Sweet Briar College cost?
Sweet Briar College reports an average annual net price of $17,758 after grants and scholarships. This is an institution-wide average, not an individual aid offer.
What do Sweet Briar College graduates earn?
The observed median earnings figure is $50,944 5 years after completion. It describes a federal cohort, not a guaranteed starting salary.
How much federal debt do Sweet Briar College 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 Sweet Briar College worth the same?
The current release does not contain reportable field-and-credential outcomes for Sweet Briar College, so this page cannot compare its individual degrees.
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.
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−$120,560
$8,000Annual price−$152,560
$16,000Annual price−$184,560
$18,000Current college-wide context−$192,560
$24,000Annual price−$216,560
$32,000Annual price−$248,560
$40,000Annual price−$280,560
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
- Rural
- Admissions
- Selective admission
- Delivery
- Campus or mixed delivery
- Federal designation
- No special designation reported
Cost, debt, completion and earnings context
$17,758Average net price / year
$43,898Cost of attendance
$27,000Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$286/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$50,944Median earnings · year 5 after completion
51.8%Completion rate
75.5%Admission rate
443Student size
Institution debt covers federal student-loan borrowers who completed. Parent PLUS and private loans are excluded; missing and privacy-suppressed values remain unavailable.
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
57% received a Pell Grant within eight yearsMedian Parent PLUS debt
56 parent borrowers in the reported cohortMedian federal student debt
68% making progress in repayment after three yearsStudent family incomeMedian earnings after 10 yearsObserved federal cohorts
Lower income$47,007Earnings are not a guarantee
Middle income$48,523Earnings are not a guarantee
Higher income$59,570Earnings are not a guarantee
Three-year repayment progress
Lower income70%
Middle income70%
Higher income74%
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.
INDEPENDENT CENSUS EARNINGS VIEW
How earnings develop by field
Privacy-protected Census employment records follow graduate cohorts one, five and ten years after completion. This source is kept separate from College Scorecard because its population and methodology differ.
Field and credentialYear 1Year 5Year 10
Accounting and Related Services.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 52
$42,709Year 1
$68,521Year 5
$84,259Year 10
Anthropology.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 45
$39,163Year 1
$55,665Year 5
$66,273Year 10
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 26
Not availableYear 1
$49,582Year 5
$65,986Year 10
Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 50
$33,078Year 1
$43,647Year 5
$62,075Year 10
English Language and Literature, General.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 23
$34,473Year 1
$48,878Year 5
$59,848Year 10
Clinical Psychology.Bachelor’s degree · Broad federal field 42
Not availableYear 1
$48,487Year 5
$51,223Year 10
Median annual earnings in 2023 dollars. Each time point may use a different pooled graduation cohort. Coverage is limited to institutions participating in the Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes program.
NATIONAL CONTEXT
How this college compares
Percentiles compare this institution with currently operating colleges that report the same federal measure.
EARNINGS PATH
Reported earnings over time
$21,090Year 1
$52,366Year 4
$50,944Year 5
Separate federal cohorts may underlie different measurement years.
Comparable colleges in VA
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.
Bridgewater, VA
Bridgewater College
- Annual net price
- $17,800
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $50,477
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -78%
Regent University
- Annual net price
- $19,923
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $49,687
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -82%
Virginia Wesleyan University
- Annual net price
- $19,676
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $48,912
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -85%
Randolph College
- Annual net price
- $15,921
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $47,139
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -91%
No field-level outcomes are currently reportable.
This college remains in the national directory because it appears in the College Scorecard. Program outcomes may be unavailable, privacy-suppressed or outside the reported cohorts.
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.