Research brief & institution hub

Holy Family University

PAMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #192 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth ranks Holy Family University #192 among 1,467 nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

Holy Family University is a private nonprofit university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where the degree mix is dominated by health care. Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study, and the largest program is also the best-paid.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The model attributes more of that to a remainder it cannot explain than to the factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market.

Return is among the highest we track. Pell recipients complete within a few points of the overall rate, and access is above average.

The lowest income band pays well below the published cost, so the price case turns on income. The admission rate sits right at the median for comparable institutions.

A student interested in fields outside the largest program should check program-level earnings carefully.

Holy Family University at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
71.0%
Six-year completion[2]
60.9%
Four-year earnings[3]
$82,892

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$12,056
Median student debt[4]
$25,125
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$20,500

Holy Family University rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

Holy Family University is a private nonprofit university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, enrolling 2,464 undergraduates. The composite rank places it near the top of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The university admits 71.0% of applicants, a rate that sits right at the 71.2% median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Of students who start full time, 77.7% return for a second year.

The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 60.9%. Both retention and completion run below the peer medians of 83.4% and 68.8%.

An estimated 38.3% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year graduation rate describes the first-time full-time cohort, which makes up an estimated majority of entrants. The university serves a large share of students who did not start here.

The four are spread across the ranking. Return is the strongest (94th percentile), while mobility is the weakest (41st percentile). Access and affordability sit between them (74th and 72nd percentiles).

Return is the strongest of Holy Family University's four Azimuth pillars, and mobility is the weakest. The university ranks #192 among 1,467 nonprofit four-year institutions.

Return is the strongest pillar, in the 94th percentile, and mobility is the weakest, in the 41st percentile. Access and affordability sit between the two, at the 74th and 72nd percentiles respectively. The spread between the strongest and weakest pillars is wide.

The middle 50% of submitted SAT scores at Holy Family University fell between 910 and 1,150. 41.0% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants.

Azimuth ranks the university #376 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Pell recipients complete at 57.5%, 3.4 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate.

Azimuth ranks the university #861 for mobility. Graduates earn about $20,936 more than the model expects for similar students.

How value-added outcomes are assessed · How to interpret program rankings

Holy Family University rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#192

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 41
Access & reach
National percentile: 74
Affordability
National percentile: 72
Return on investment
National percentile: 94

Top-ranked majors

  1. Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing#64
  2. Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods#95
  3. Biology, General#105

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / Holy Family University briefing

Holy Family University cost & financial aid[6][7]

The published cost of attendance at Holy Family University is $40,539, an average across living arrangements. Tuition and fees are $35,330 and room and board are $15,284.

For the average aid recipient, grants and scholarships reduce that sticker price by $27,396, bringing the average net price to $13,143. That net price is $14,228 below the $27,371 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks the university #401 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. The lowest income band averages $9,721, while the highest band averages $17,822, a spread of $8,101 between the two ends.

The published cost of attendance at Holy Family University is $40,539 (an average across living arrangements). Azimuth ranks the university #401 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $9,721, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $12,056, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $17,822. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $8,101.

Aid covers about 68% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. The across all aid recipients is $13,143, which is $14,228 below the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who complete a degree carry a median of $25,125 in federal student loans. That is $926 above the peer median of $24,199.

Parents who borrow through the Parent PLUS program hold a separate median of $20,500. If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $286 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$12,056

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Holy Family University

The median federal debt for completers at Holy Family University is $25,125. Federal loans reach 96.4% of federal aid recipients here.

The median here is $926 above the $24,199 figure for comparable institutions (same type and size). For parents who borrow, the median Parent PLUS debt is $20,500.

Graduates of Holy Family University earn a median of $82,892 four years after completing a degree, placing the university in the 91st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure is $14,642 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Graduates earn about $20,936 more than the model expects for similar students, a result at the 96th percentile. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, run from $53,902 on the downside to $95,869 on the upside, with a typical scenario of $82,892.

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $25,125 in federal loans, $926 above the peer median—the median for comparable institutions—of $24,199. If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $286 a month.

Earnings land well above both the peer median and the model's expectation, while the debt sits close to the peer median.

For the separate population of parent borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $20,500. For student borrowers, the median federal debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $286 a month if repaid over ten years.

How Financial GPS measures payment burden · The four risk-and-reward zones

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$25,125
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$20,500

Federal loans only; private or institutional loans aren’t included.

Estimated student payment · monthly
$286/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$260/mo

Payments use school-wide median balances, not a specific major’s.

Payment assumptions

Payments are 10-year standard payments on the median balance, before loan fees, used as a yardstick. Rates for newly issued loans may differ, and loans made after July 1, 2026 can repay over a longer term; existing loans keep their original fixed rates.

Explore your own numbers in Financial GPS
Read the full cost & aid brief

02 / Holy Family University briefing

Holy Family University career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Earnings at Holy Family University sit well above the peer median and the model's expectation for similar students. Federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $82,892 four years after completion.

That is $14,642 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). That places the university in the 91st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Those graduates earn about $20,936 more than the model expects for similar students. That result is in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth places the return pillar at the 94th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $6,450. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $14,486.

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates of Holy Family University who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $82,892. That figure is $14,642 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The earnings cohort includes 880 completers, and Azimuth places the university in the 91st percentile for earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $20,936 more than the model expects for similar students.

That result sits at the 96th percentile, meaning the earnings advantage holds against what the model expects for students with similar characteristics, not just in raw terms. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the university's program mix, put the typical figure at $82,892, with a downside scenario of $53,902 and an upside of $95,869.

An estimated 29.1% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

The return picture at Holy Family University is strong, led by a median of $82,892 four years after completion, at the 91st percentile nationally. That is $14,642 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks the university #93 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $20,936 more than the model expects for similar students.

The gap sits at the 96th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $6,450.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $14,486. Within the measured factors, the STEM component subtracts $12.

The university's program mix is concentrated in health professions, which shapes the earnings scenarios. The typical earnings scenario is $82,892, with a downside of $53,902 and an upside of $95,869.

An estimated 29.1% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

The earnings scenarios for Holy Family University range from a downside of $53,902 to an upside of $95,869. These are estimates from the program mix, not observed groups of graduates.

At the top of the earnings range, Nursing graduates earn a median of $95,869 four years after completion, from 290 degrees awarded. Business Administration and Management follows at $81,021, with 40 degrees awarded. Accounting graduates earn $76,379.

The published cost of attendance at Holy Family University is $40,539 (an average across living arrangements), and aid covers about 68% of that for the average aid recipient. Here the average net price is $13,143.

That average net price is $14,228 below the $27,371 peer median. Net prices by income band are averages within those bands: the lowest band averages $9,721 and the highest $17,822, a spread of $8,101 between the two ends.

Borrowers who finish leave with a median of $25,125 in federal student loans. That is $926 above the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size), and corresponds to an estimated payment of $286 a month if repaid over ten years. Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $20,500 in Parent PLUS loans.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$6,450
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$14,486
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$20,936

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Read the full outcomes brief

03 / Holy Family University briefing

Holy Family University acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

Holy Family University admits 71.0% of applicants, a rate that sits right at the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

SAT: approximate enrolled-student range
Admission rate
71.0%
Approximate lower endpoint
910
Reported average
1060
Approximate upper endpoint
1150

Enrolled students who submitted scores. This range is not an admission cutoff. The endpoints add section percentiles; they are not verified composite-score percentiles. A separate SAT-equivalent average is not plotted as a median. Source: College Scorecard; sum of section 25th/75th percentiles; enrolled score-submitters.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / Holy Family University briefing

What are the largest majors at Holy Family University?[12]

The earnings spread across programs at Holy Family University is wide, and the largest program is also the best-paid one. Nursing graduates earn a median of $95,869 four years after completion, from 290 degrees awarded a year.

Azimuth ranks it #64 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. Business Administration and Management is a much smaller program at 40 degrees awarded, with median earnings of $81,021.

That is 1.19x the national median for the field. At the more moderate end, Psychology reports $51,374 from 39 degrees awarded, and Criminal Justice reports $56,861 from 21 degrees awarded. Azimuth ranks Criminal Justice #125 nationally within its field.

Health Professions dominates the degree mix, accounting for 58.5% of bachelor's degrees awarded. Business is a distant second at 10.0%, followed by Education at 8.2%.

Nursing is the largest single program, with 290 degrees awarded a year. Azimuth ranks it #64 nationally within its field, and graduates earn a median of $95,869 four years after completion.

The university has 6 nationally ranked programs and 7 programs with published earnings data.

Holy Family University awards bachelor's degrees across 7 programs with published four-year earnings data, and 6 hold an Azimuth national rank within their field. The degree mix is concentrated in health professions: Health Professions accounts for 58.5% of degrees awarded, with Business a distant second at 10.0% and Education third at 8.2%.

The largest single program is Nursing, at 290 degrees awarded, followed by Business Administration and Management at 40 and Psychology at 39. Nursing is also the highest-earning program, with graduates reporting a median of $95,869 four years after completion.

Azimuth ranks it #4 in Pennsylvania within its field. Business Administration and Management is the second-highest-earning program, at $81,021, with a benchmark ratio of 1.19x against the national median for its field.

Accounting, a smaller program at 11 degrees awarded, follows at $76,379. Teacher Education is the second-highest-ranked program, at #95 nationally and #4 in Pennsylvania within its field, with 21 degrees awarded.

The pattern is one of concentration: a single large program in Nursing anchors the degree mix and sets the earnings ceiling. The other programs with published earnings data sit below it, and 10.0% of degrees are in STEM fields.

Four-year earnings for fields where graduate study is common understate later trajectories.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 290 degrees awarded
$95,869
Business Administration, Management and Operations 40 degrees awarded
$81,021
Psychology, General 39 degrees awarded
$51,374
Biology, General 31 degrees awarded
$67,285
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods 21 degrees awarded
$53,935
Criminal Justice and Corrections 21 degrees awarded
$56,861

Fields selected by reported completions. Counts describe credentials awarded, not unique students or the earnings sample. Bars show median four-year earnings.

Read the full majors brief

05 / Holy Family University briefing

What colleges are similar to Holy Family University?[15]

Azimuth groups alternatives by admissions, location, cost and earnings, then orders candidates within each group. Peer earnings use the matched four-year cohort. How matching works.

A shortlist for different decisions

Choose a row to compare the figures with Holy Family University.

Admissions peerRosemont College76.3% admitted
Comparison with Holy Family University
MeasureHoly Family UniversityRosemont College
Peer earnings · 4 years$82,892$59,674-$23,218 vs Holy Family University
Average annual net price$13,143$20,150+$7,007 vs Holy Family University · higher cost
Admission rate71.0%76.3%
Higher-admission alternativeWagner College88.0% admitted
Comparison with Holy Family University
MeasureHoly Family UniversityWagner College
Peer earnings · 4 years$82,892$85,313+$2,421 vs Holy Family University
Average annual net price$13,143$28,241+$15,098 vs Holy Family University · higher cost
Admission rate71.0%88.0%
Nearby alternativeWidener UniversityNearby option · PA
Comparison with Holy Family University
MeasureHoly Family UniversityWidener University
Peer earnings · 4 years$82,892$80,946-$1,946 vs Holy Family University
Average annual net price$13,143$25,759+$12,616 vs Holy Family University · higher cost
Admission rate71.0%70.9%
Explore Widener University →
Lower-cost alternativeCUNY Bernard M Baruch College$3,033 average net price
Comparison with Holy Family University
MeasureHoly Family UniversityCUNY Bernard M Baruch College
Peer earnings · 4 years$82,892$82,748-$144 vs Holy Family University
Average annual net price$13,143$3,033-$10,110 vs Holy Family University · lower cost
Admission rate71.0%47.5%
Explore CUNY Bernard M Baruch College →
Similar profileUniversity of Mount Saint VincentMatched across several measures
Comparison with Holy Family University
MeasureHoly Family UniversityUniversity of Mount Saint Vincent
Peer earnings · 4 years$82,892$83,648+$756 vs Holy Family University
Average annual net price$13,143$21,696+$8,553 vs Holy Family University · higher cost
Admission rate71.0%85.1%
Explore University of Mount Saint Vincent →

Each school is the first-ranked match in its category, not a recommendation across every measure. The same college may lead more than one category. Figures use the matching snapshot; earnings reflect the matched four-year cohort. — means unavailable.

Read the full similar schools brief

Data scope & methodology

Structured payloads generated Governed hub narrative Governed spoke corpus

Four-year earnings describe cohorts of completers. Figures for other horizons describe different cohorts and are not joined into a career-growth projection.

Azimuth's overall rank and pillar percentiles come from the school profile. Absolute pillar ranks, city, enrollment and official-site links are shown only when structured data supplies them.

Detailed earnings, cost, admissions and program values come from the endpoint responsible for each measure. Missing values are not replaced with zero. Value-added estimates are model associations, not causal effects.

Figures are refreshed with each data release, at most a quarter apart. The underlying source dates can be earlier than the release.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.

Read the ranking methodology, data definitions and limitations · About College Azimuth

Read the analysis behind value-added earnings and the change to four-year graduate earnings. These articles are published on collegeazimuth.com.

Data notes & source fields

Scorecard field codes identify the underlying measure; Azimuth-derived values are labeled separately. Snapshot dates are not measurement years. Source populations and reporting periods differ across measures. Field definitions are in the U.S. Department of Education · College Scorecard documentation; notes with a different source link it below.

  1. Admission rate. Reported applicants admitted; not a transfer-specific or individual admission probability.

    Source fields: ADM_RATE

  2. Six-year completion. First-time, full-time students completing at the institution within 150% of normal time, typically six years for a bachelor’s degree.

    Source fields: C150_4

  3. Four-year institutional earnings. Median earnings of graduates in the reported cohort who are working and not enrolled, four years after completion.

    Source fields: MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

  4. Median federal student debt. Federal student-loan debt among completers in the reported borrowing cohort. Excludes Parent PLUS and is not total debt across all students.

    Source fields: GRAD_DEBT_MDN

  5. National, regional and state ranks; pillar percentiles; major ranks. Derived scores within the stated eligible comparison set, not raw Scorecard fields. Major ranks compare institutions within a field; their denominators differ.

    Source fields: Azimuth rankings

    College Azimuth · Ranking methodology

  6. Annual net price by family income. Average annual cost after grants and scholarships for the eligible first-time, full-time aid-recipient cohort. Public-school figures reflect in-state tuition. Includes living costs; these are averages, not medians or individual offers.

    Source fields: NPT4_PUB/PRIV; NPT41_PUB/PRIV through NPT45_PUB/PRIV

  7. Parent PLUS debt, payments and GPS illustration. Stored payments use Financial GPS loan and repayment assumptions. The adjustable spectrum applies the published framework to annual student payments divided by earnings minus an expense allowance; its initial allowance uses the frozen 2024 framework baseline. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. Parent PLUS uses the completer median where available, otherwise the all-borrower median; these describe different borrowing populations.

    Source fields: PLUS_DEBT_ALL_COMP_MD; fallback PLUS_DEBT_ALL_MD; Azimuth Financial GPS calculations

    College Azimuth · Financial GPS methodology

  8. Downside and upside earnings; yellow band. The band spans the modeled lower and higher scenarios. It is not the P25–P75 interval for individual graduates. The median marker is the separately reported institutional median.

    Source fields: Azimuth modeled program-mix scenarios

    College Azimuth · Earnings scenario methodology

  9. Value added and its components. Observed-factor attribution plus the unexplained remainder equals total modeled value added. These are associations, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

    Source fields: Azimuth statistical model

    College Azimuth · Value-added methodology

  10. SAT score range and reported midpoint. Reported scores of enrolled score-submitters, not admission cutoffs. The midpoint field is not necessarily the middle of the displayed range.

    Source fields: SATVR25 + SATMT25; SATVR75 + SATMT75; SAT_AVG

  11. First-year retention. Retention of the reported full-time cohort at four-year institutions.

    Source fields: RET_FT4

  12. Program earnings, completion counts and major-mix dots. Included bachelor’s programs have at least five reported completions. Counts are aggregated credentials, not unique people or an earnings sample. Major-mix dots group those counts by field of study; excluded programs are not zero activity.

    Source fields: EARN_MDN_4YR; IPEDSCOUNT1; CIPCODE

    College Scorecard · Field-of-study technical documentation

  13. Pell recipients. Share of undergraduates receiving a Pell Grant in the reported academic year.

    Source fields: PCTPELL

  14. Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group. This is not an observed transfer-in rate. It includes part-time entrants and other entering-student attendance patterns.

    Source fields: 1 − PFTFTUG1_EF

  15. Peer earnings and signed differences. Differences are peer minus this school, from the same matching snapshot. A positive earnings difference does not mean the peer is better on every measure.

    Source fields: Azimuth peer model using MD_EARN_WNE_4YR

    College Azimuth · Comparison methodology

How to interpret program rankings