10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
−$209,224at year 10Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
Private nonprofit · COLLEGE PAYOFF
Union University
Jackson, TN · 19 field-and-degree records
Earnings reported for 18 · Federal debt reported for 6
Based onObserved earnings + college priceEstimate10-year payoff
Estimated 10-year payoff
Negative payoff
−$209,224 over 10 years
Modeled from observed year-5 institution earnings and the institution-wide average net price over four years.
36.3 yrsTime to earn back the modeled cost
−72%Estimated return after 10 years
$52,946Observed 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: $9,204 housing and food allowance plus $4,756 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−$100,540
$8,000Annual price−$132,540
$16,000Annual price−$164,540
$24,000Annual price−$196,540
$27,000Current college-wide context−$208,540
$32,000Annual price−$228,540
$40,000Annual price−$260,540
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
260 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 Tennessee run 8% 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
$27,171Average net price / year
$58,363Cost of attendance
$20,714Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$220/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$52,946Median earnings · year 5 after completion
66.0%Completion rate
60.4%Admission rate
1,256Average SAT score
27ACT midpoint
1,607Student 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 Union University
What does Union University cost?
Union University reports an average annual net price of $27,171 after grants and scholarships. This is an institution-wide average, not an individual aid offer.
What do Union University graduates earn?
The observed median earnings figure is $52,946 5 years after completion. It describes a federal cohort, not a guaranteed starting salary.
How much federal debt do Union University graduates have?
Completer borrowers report median cumulative federal student debt of $20,714. Parent PLUS and private loans are not included.
Is every degree at Union University worth the same?
No. The current release contains 19 field-and-degree records for Union University; 18 report year-4 earnings and 6 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
3,124Students enrolled at any point
2,135Undergraduate students
989Graduate 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
58% received a Pell Grant within eight yearsMedian Parent PLUS debt
257 parent borrowers in the reported cohortMedian federal student debt
54% making progress in repayment after three yearsStudent family incomeMedian earnings after 10 yearsObserved federal cohorts
Lower income$49,813Earnings are not a guarantee
Middle income$53,908Earnings are not a guarantee
Higher income$59,178Earnings are not a guarantee
Three-year repayment progress
Lower income50%
Middle income67%
Higher income83%
Undergraduate student composition
White65%
Black13%
Hispanic3%
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
$53,098Year 1
$60,152Year 4
$52,946Year 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.
1Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other · Doctoral Degree$211,5652Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Doctoral Degree$182,6063Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration · Doctoral Degree$131,6594Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Master's Degree$108,2065Business Administration, Management and Operations · Master's Degree$99,8746Educational Administration and Supervision · Doctoral Degree$88,0947Theology and Religious Vocations, Other · Master's Degree$80,5608Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Bachelor's Degree$72,824Observed 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.
1Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, OtherDoctoral Degree · $211,565 reported+62%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt2Theology and Religious Vocations, OtherMaster's Degree · $80,560 reported+47%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt3Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingDoctoral Degree · $182,606 reported+32%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt4Business Administration, Management and OperationsMaster's Degree · $99,874 reported-3%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt5Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and AdministrationDoctoral Degree · $131,659 reported-4%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt6Business Administration, Management and OperationsBachelor's Degree · $63,234 reported-7%vs same-degree national median$33,333federal debt
Comparable colleges in TN
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.
Sewanee, TN
The University of the South
- Annual net price
- $27,872
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $57,680
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -56%
Fisk University
- Annual net price
- $32,020
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $50,878
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -81%
Belmont University
- Annual net price
- $33,147
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $51,996
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -78%
Southern Adventist University
- Annual net price
- $24,345
- Observed earnings · year 5
- $58,971
- Modeled 10-year ROI
- -50%
Compare fields and degree levels
Showing all 19 field-and-degree records in the current release.
| Major or field | Degree level | Earnings, year 4 | Federal debt | 2024–25 graduates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other | Doctoral Degree | $211,565 | Not available | Not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Doctoral Degree | $182,606 | Not available | 31 |
| Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration | Doctoral Degree | $131,659 | Not available | 26 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Master's Degree | $108,206 | Not available | 6 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Master's Degree | $99,874 | Not available | Not reported |
| Educational Administration and Supervision | Doctoral Degree | $88,094 | Not available | 39 |
| Theology and Religious Vocations, Other | Master's Degree | $80,560 | Not available | Not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Bachelor's Degree | $72,824 | $29,127 | Not reported |
| Educational Administration and Supervision | First Professional Degree | $69,625 | Not available | Not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Bachelor's Degree | $63,234 | $33,333 | Not reported |
| Educational Administration and Supervision | Master's Degree | $58,174 | Not available | 7 |
| Marketing | Bachelor's Degree | $57,184 | $23,250 | Not reported |
| Social Work | Master's Degree | $54,660 | Not available | Not reported |
| Education, General | Master's Degree | $53,072 | Not available | Not reported |
| Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research | Master's Degree | $52,015 | Not available | Not reported |
| Social Work | Bachelor's Degree | $46,286 | $39,415 | Not reported |
| Psychology, General | Bachelor's Degree | $44,056 | $26,506 | Not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | Bachelor's Degree | $41,226 | Not available | Not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | Associate's Degree | Not available | $20,000 | 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.