Percentile rankings vs 1,600+ peer institutions. Higher is better.
Career OutcomesAzimuth ranks Heritage University #213 for overall value on Azimuth's composite among nonprofit four-year institutions. Heritage University sits in the 33.8 percentile for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions, the institution's strongest-performing pillar. Azimuth ranks Heritage University #163 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Heritage University's composite standing is anchored by mobility and access working in tandem — a small private nonprofit in Toppenish that opens its doors widely and moves students toward meaningful career outcomes in public service and community-facing fields. The institution's strongest signals are its mobility and access rankings among nonprofit four-year institutions, reflecting a mission-driven model built around the students it serves rather than the selectivity it pursues.
Heritage University is a private university in Toppenish, WA, enrolling roughly 812 undergraduates. Azimuth ranks Heritage University #213 for overall value on Azimuth's composite among nonprofit four-year institutions. Retention stands at 56.8% and the six-year graduation rate is 53.7%, figures that reflect the realities of a small institution serving a student body with significant financial need. What anchors Heritage University's composite position is the population it serves and what those students achieve afterward. 66.7% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants and 63.4% are first-generation college students — shares that place the university among the most access-oriented institutions in the Azimuth coverage set. Heritage University sits in the 89.0 percentile for access among nonprofit four-year institutions, and in the 33.8 percentile for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions, reflecting strong outcomes relative to the students it enrolls. The dominant program family is Public Administration, consistent with the university's orientation toward community-facing careers. Return on investment is the lower-ranked pillar in the composite — Azimuth ranks Heritage University #264 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions, in the 82.2 percentile. Graduates earn median earnings four years after enrollment of $62,898, below the $57,042 median at comparable institutions; graduates earn about $22,354 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing Heritage University in the 97.0 percentile for among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those earnings figures reflect WA's regional labor market and a student population whose post-graduation outcomes represent meaningful returns relative to the no-degree-equivalent baseline of $36,819, even where they fall below selective-peer averages. Affordability sits in the 87.6 percentile for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Heritage University's published cost of attendance is $31,209, and need-based aid shapes what families across the income spectrum actually pay. Low-income families see a net price of approximately $15,114, while middle-income families pay around $14,119, and higher-income families pay approximately $20,749. Azimuth ranks Heritage University #178 for post-graduation affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. Net prices by income band are medians within those bands; individual aid packages vary, so some families in each band pay more and some less than the figures shown. Heritage University participates in federal, state, and institutional aid programs, including Pell Grants and Direct Loans, and families apply for need-based aid using the FAFSA. As a small private nonprofit institution serving a predominantly rural community in Washington state, Heritage draws a high share of students who depend on need-based assistance to make attendance possible — meaning the gap between sticker price and net price is a meaningful part of the affordability story for most enrolled families. Understanding how net price and sticker price differ is especially important here, where published costs can look daunting before aid is applied. Median federal student loan debt at graduation is $14,573, and families using Parent PLUS borrow a median of $18,542; private or institutional loans may add further borrowing that falls outside these federal-only figures — see the Parent PLUS risk framework for how household context shapes PLUS decisions. For a graduate at the institution's median four-year earnings of $62,898, median federal debt of $14,573 projects to a monthly payment of about $165 under standard ten-year repayment. For personalized projections across earnings scenarios — including Parent PLUS planning — use Azimuth's Financial GPS tool.
Heritage University is a private university in Toppenish, WA, with a program mix concentrated in Public Administration and related public-service fields — a strong fit for students drawn to careers in government, community services, and social work who want to serve the region they come from. The earnings case is modest but meaningful in context. Graduates earn median $62,898, placing Heritage University in the 63.0 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions, and Heritage University sits in the 97.0 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions — graduates earn about $22,354 more than similar students at comparable institutions relative to similar students at comparable institutions. The access profile is a defining feature. 66.7% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants and 63.4% are first-generation college students, making Heritage University one of the more accessible private nonprofit institutions in the West for students from low-income and first-generation backgrounds. Heritage University sits in the 6.2 percentile for low-income graduate earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions — a historical 10-year Scorecard measure not yet updated to the 4-year horizon — reflecting the institution's orientation toward public-service career pathways rather than high-wage private-sector fields. Fit depends on two realistic filters: students whose goals align with public administration, education, or community-facing careers in WA will find the program mix well matched to those paths, while students seeking high private-sector earnings or broad national career mobility may find stronger options elsewhere given the institution's regional labor-market orientation and median debt of $14,573.
This school profile was generated using Azimuth's proprietary ROI framework, developed by founder Daniel Rogers. Our methodology transforms federal education data into actionable insights for families.
College Azimuth is a private research initiative and is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Education or Federal Student Aid. Data sourced from College Scorecard.
This content is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, investment, or professional advice. Consult a qualified advisor before making any financial decisions.
Comprehensive Analysis
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This is the Heritage University hub overview page. Related admissions, cost, outcomes, majors, and similar-school pages provide the detailed school data.
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods
35 graduates
Social Work
61 graduates
Psychology, General
12 graduates
Criminal Justice and Corrections
17 graduates
Business Administration, Management and Operations
20 graduates
Heritage University's program mix is centered on Public Administration and applied social-service fields — a signature consistent with a small nonprofit institution serving a rural community in Washington's Yakima Valley. Education accounts for 18% of graduates and Business accounts for 15%, together defining the institution's academic identity.
Social Work is the largest program with 61 graduates, followed by Teacher Education with 35 graduates, Nursing with 21 graduates, Business Administration with 20 graduates, and Criminal Justice with 17 graduates. The strongest earnings outcomes cluster in social-work and education-adjacent fields.
Azimuth ranks Teacher Education #20 among nonprofit four-year institutions for median earnings four years after enrollment, with graduates earning $60,999. Azimuth ranks Social Work #6 among nonprofit four-year institutions for median earnings four years after enrollment, with graduates earning $58,634.
Many of Heritage University's dominant programs — particularly Business Administration and Criminal Justice — feed directly into local-labor careers in education and social services, where graduates serve the surrounding community rather than relocating nationally. Teacher Education represents a grad-school-dependent pathway where four-year earnings may undercount lifetime trajectory for graduates who continue to advanced clinical practice.
Based on federal data for students receiving aid. Actual costs may vary.
Heritage University's published cost of attendance is $31,209, and need-based aid shapes what families across the income spectrum actually pay. Low-income families see a net price of approximately $15,114, while middle-income families pay around $14,119, and higher-income families pay approximately $20,749.
Azimuth ranks Heritage University #178 for post-graduation affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. Net prices by income band are medians within those bands; individual aid packages vary, so some families in each band pay more and some less than the figures shown.
Heritage University participates in federal, state, and institutional aid programs, including Pell Grants and Direct Loans, and families apply for need-based aid using the FAFSA. As a small private nonprofit institution serving a predominantly rural community in Washington state, Heritage draws a high share of students who depend on need-based assistance to make attendance possible — meaning the gap between sticker price and net price is a meaningful part of the affordability story for most enrolled families.
Understanding how [net price and sticker price differ](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) is especially important here, where published costs can look daunting before aid is applied. Median federal student loan debt at graduation is $14,573, and families using Parent PLUS borrow a median of $18,542; private or institutional loans may add further borrowing that falls outside these federal-only figures — see the [Parent PLUS risk framework](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) for how household context shapes PLUS decisions.
For a graduate at the institution's median four-year earnings of $62,898, median federal debt of $14,573 projects to a monthly payment of about $165 under standard ten-year repayment. For personalized projections across earnings scenarios — including Parent PLUS planning — use [Azimuth's Financial GPS tool](/analysis/financial-gps-framework/).
Graduates of Heritage University earn median earnings of $62,898 four years after enrollment, placing Heritage University in the 63.0 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure sits below the $57,042 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band).
Graduates earn about $22,354 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 97.0 percentile for [earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/) among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those figures represent lifetime returns relative to WA's no-degree-equivalent earnings baseline of $36,819 (the state median earnings of working adults with only a high school credential).
The program lineup reflects Heritage University's focus on Public Administration, which accounts for 18% of degrees awarded, followed by Business at 15%. Social Work is the largest program, graduating 61 students, with median earnings of $58,634 four years after enrollment; Azimuth ranks it #6 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions [per the program-ranking methodology](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/).
The Teacher Education program graduates 35 students with median earnings of $60,999, and Azimuth ranks it #20 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Among smaller programs, Criminal Justice (17 graduates) posts median earnings of $55,375, and Azimuth ranks it #151 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions.
