College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

Ohio Northern University

OHMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #881 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth’s composite view centers on return at Ohio Northern University.

Who it’s a good fit for

Ohio Northern University is a private nonprofit university in Ada, Ohio, with a degree mix led by Engineering and Business. Return is above average.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The model attributes part of that gap to the factors it measures, which adds to expected earnings, and part to a remainder it cannot explain, which subtracts from them.

Affordability is below the levels seen at many peers, and the spread between the lowest and highest income bands is modest. Pell students complete below the overall rate, and access is modestly below average.

The admission rate is above the median for comparable schools. Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study, and the largest programs are in engineering and business.

Ohio Northern University at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
74.4%
Six-year completion[2]
75.5%
Four-year earnings[3]
$72,080

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$22,336
Median student debt[4]
$27,000
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$32,246

Ohio Northern University rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

Ohio Northern University is a private nonprofit university in Ada, Ohio, enrolling 2,489 undergraduates. Its composite standing in the Azimuth ranking sits in the middle of the field among nonprofit four-year institutions (40th percentile).

The university admits 74.4% of applicants, a rate that is close to the 71.2% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Of students who start full time, 84.3% return for a second year, against a peer median of 83.4%.

The six-year graduation rate is 75.5%, which sits above the 68.8% median for comparable institutions. An estimated 6.9% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year rate describes the first-time, full-time cohort and not the full student body.

The shape is a private university where return is the strongest and affordability the weakest. Access sits in the lower third of the ranking (28th percentile), while mobility is in the middle of the field (39th percentile), so the pillars do not move together.

Ohio Northern University’s clearest pillar is return, which Azimuth places in the 72nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Its other pillars sit lower, so the school’s overall profile is uneven rather than broadly strong.

Azimuth places access in the 28th percentile and mobility in the 39th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Affordability is the weakest pillar, at the 25th percentile.

Stronger return sits alongside lower access, mobility, and affordability measures.

The middle 50% of submitted SAT scores fell between 1,175 and 1,400, and the middle 50% of submitted ACT scores ranged from 24 to 29. 20.6% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants, the federal aid program for students with financial need.

Azimuth ranks Ohio Northern University #1,058 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. The access pillar is shaped by the Pell share and the completion rate for those students.

Pell recipients complete at a rate of 66.7%, which is 8.8 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate. The gap is a measure of how closely outcomes for Pell students track those of the entering cohort as a whole.

Azimuth ranks the university #902 for mobility. Graduates earn about $2,681 more than the model expects for similar students, a result that contributes to the mobility picture alongside the Pell completion figures.

The mobility pillar captures the intersection of access and outcomes, and here the earnings result sits above the model's expectation while the completion gap runs in the other direction.

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

Ohio Northern University rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#881

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 39
Access & reach
National percentile: 28
Affordability
National percentile: 25
Return on investment
National percentile: 72

01 / Ohio Northern University briefing

Ohio Northern University cost & financial aid[6][7]

Ohio Northern University lists a published annual cost of attendance of $53,580 (an average across living arrangements), setting the sticker-price starting point before aid. Tuition and fees account for $39,800, and room and board add $14,604.

For aid recipients, the average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $24,478. Financial aid savings average $29,102 against the sticker price.

That net price is $2,893 below the peer median of $27,371, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size). Azimuth ranks the university #1,066 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The below-peer net price offers one favorable cost comparison, though the affordability placement is lower nationally.

At Ohio Northern University, the published cost of attendance is $53,580 (an average across living arrangements), making the aid package central to what a family pays. For aid recipients, average net price, what families pay after grants and scholarships, is $18,525 in the lowest family-income band; $19,223 in the next-lowest band; $22,336 in the middle band; $25,605 in the next-highest band; and $27,710 in the highest band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $9,185. Azimuth ranks Ohio Northern University #1,066 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid covers about 54% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, an average savings of $29,102. Across all aid recipients, the is $24,478, which is $2,893 below the peer median of $27,371 at comparable institutions (same type and size).

Published tuition and fees are $39,800, and room and board are $14,604. The lower average net price compared with peers sits alongside a much higher published price before aid.

Federal student loan borrowers who complete have median debt of $27,000, and 94.3% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. That median is $2,801 above the peer median of $24,199 at comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month if repaid over ten years. Parent PLUS borrowers have median borrowing of $32,246.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$22,336

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Ohio Northern University

Federal borrowing is common at Ohio Northern University, where 94.3% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. Among borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $27,000 at completion.

At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median federal debt is $24,199, placing the university's median $2,801 above that benchmark. For the separate population of Parent PLUS parent borrowers, median borrowing is $32,246.

Four years after completion, federally aided graduates of Ohio Northern University who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $72,080. That is $3,830 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

This earnings figure falls in the 79th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $2,681 more than the model expects for similar students.

That places the gap at the 65th percentile. Earnings scenarios span from $47,835 to $86,650, with $72,080 as the typical outcome.

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $27,000 in federal loans. That is $2,801 above the $24,199 peer median.

If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month. The return picture is mixed: earnings beat the peer median and the model, but debt sits above the peer median.

Parent borrowing is a separate part of the cost picture: the median Parent PLUS amount for parent borrowers is $32,246. For student borrowers, median federal debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 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
$27,000
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$32,246

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$307/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$410/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 / Ohio Northern University briefing

Ohio Northern University career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Ohio Northern University offers a comparatively strong return picture: median earnings are $72,080 four years after completion, in the 79th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. That median is $3,830 above the peer median of $68,250, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Graduates earn about $2,681 more than the model expects for similar students. That earnings-beyond-expectations result, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is in the 65th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $8,969. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $6,288.

Azimuth places the return pillar in the 72nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Above-peer earnings and above-expected earnings point in the same direction.

Ohio Northern University graduates show a strong early earnings picture, with median earnings of $72,080 four years after completion. Azimuth places that earnings level in the 79th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The measure covers an earnings cohort of 537 federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. A typical earnings scenario, based on the program mix rather than an observed group, is $72,080.

An estimated 26.6% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. The earnings median and the typical scenario point to a similar near-term outcome, while the graduate-study estimate signals that some graduates may continue their education.

At Ohio Northern University, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $72,080 four years after completion, placing the university in the 79th percentile. That median is $3,830 above the peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), of $68,250.

Graduates earn about $2,681 more than the model expects for similar students. This earnings-beyond-expectations measure, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, stands in the 65th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $8,969. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $6,288.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $4,323. Azimuth places the return pillar in the 72nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix range from $47,835 in the downside scenario to $86,650 in the upside scenario. At the program level, Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians has the highest median earnings: 17 degrees awarded and $89,697 four years after completion.

Its median equals 1.11x the national median for its field. The highest median and largest degree count appear in different fields.

Earnings can vary substantially by field at Ohio Northern University. The downside earnings scenario is $47,835, while the upside scenario reaches $86,650; these are scenarios based on program mix, not observed groups.

Among high-earning fields, Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians completers earn median earnings of $89,697 four years after completion, Mechanical Engineering completers earn $85,802, and Accounting completers earn $84,916. Those field-level figures show why the modeled range is broad.

At Ohio Northern University, borrowing runs somewhat higher than at comparable schools, even as graduates post higher-than-expected earnings. Borrowers who complete have median federal student loan debt of $27,000, above the $24,199 median at comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $307 a month if repaid over ten years. Graduates earn about $2,681 more than the model expects for similar students.

The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $24,478, below the $27,371 peer median. Aid covers about 54% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.

Below-peer net price and above-peer borrowing pull in different directions, while earnings beyond expectations provide a favorable outcome measure.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$8,969
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$6,288
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$2,681

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 / Ohio Northern University briefing

Ohio Northern University acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

Ohio Northern University admitted 74.4% of applicants, so the published rate indicates a somewhat more open result than its comparable-institution benchmark. That figure is above the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

SAT: approximate enrolled-student range
Admission rate
74.4%
Approximate lower endpoint
1175
Reported average
1252
Approximate upper endpoint
1400

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 / Ohio Northern University briefing

What are the largest majors at Ohio Northern University?[12]

Ohio Northern University shows its strongest program earnings in several fields, but the size of those programs varies. Four years after completion, Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians reports median earnings of $89,697 with 17 degrees awarded, while Mechanical Engineering records $85,802 and awarded 67 degrees.

Accounting pairs median earnings of $84,916 with 23 degrees awarded. At a more moderate earnings level, Civil Engineering reports $79,673 four years after completion and awarded 19 degrees.

The figures show that the higher-earning fields include both smaller programs and one of the university's larger programs.

The Engineering family accounts for 26.5% of degrees awarded, anchoring a program mix with several comparatively high four-year earnings figures. Earnings are published for 12 bachelor’s fields.

Ohio Northern University awards bachelor's degrees across 12 programs with published four-year earnings data. The program mix is anchored by Engineering, which accounts for 26.5% of degrees awarded, followed by Business at 18.7% and Health Professions at 10.0%.

The largest programs with published earnings are Mechanical Engineering at 67 degrees awarded, Accounting at 23, and Nursing at 22. The highest-earning program is a smaller one: Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians graduates report median earnings of $89,697 four years after completion, from 17 degrees awarded.

That is a benchmark ratio of 1.11x against the national median for its field. The largest program, Mechanical Engineering, is also the second-highest-earning, at $85,802.

Accounting and Nursing follow closely, with medians of $84,916 and $83,157. Further down the list, Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration graduates earn $72,121, a benchmark ratio of 0.62x against the national median for its field.

The pattern is mixed: the highest-earning program is not among the largest, and earnings across the five largest programs span a wide range. Across all fields, 36.1% of degrees awarded are in STEM.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Mechanical Engineering 67 degrees awarded
$85,802
Biology, General 27 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Accounting and Related Services 23 degrees awarded
$84,916
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 22 degrees awarded
$83,157
Civil Engineering 19 degrees awarded
$79,673
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration 19 degrees awarded
$72,121

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 / Ohio Northern University briefing

How does Ohio Northern University serve students from different backgrounds?

Completion provides a mixed mobility signal at Ohio Northern University: the first-time full-time cohort has a 75.5% six-year graduation rate, while Pell recipients complete within six years at 66.7%, below the overall rate by 8.8 percentage points. Azimuth places the mobility pillar in the 39th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $2,681 more than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth places that measure in the 65th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The completion gap and higher-than-expected earnings give the mobility picture different signals.

With an admission rate of 74.4%, Ohio Northern University serves 2,489 undergraduates. Pell Grants reach 20.6% of undergraduates, and an estimated 6.9% arrive as transfers or part-time students.

Azimuth places the university's access pillar in the 28th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Its enrollment, Pell Grant share, and transfer estimate describe who reaches the institution through different entry routes.

06 / Ohio Northern University briefing

What colleges are similar to Ohio Northern 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 Ohio Northern University.

Admissions peerCedarville University65.3% admitted
Comparison with Ohio Northern University
MeasureOhio Northern UniversityCedarville University
Peer earnings · 4 years$72,080$60,679-$11,401 vs Ohio Northern University
Average annual net price$24,478$24,468-$10 vs Ohio Northern University · lower cost
Admission rate74.4%65.3%
Explore Cedarville University →
Higher-admission alternativeTrine University85.5% admitted
Comparison with Ohio Northern University
MeasureOhio Northern UniversityTrine University
Peer earnings · 4 years$72,080$67,814-$4,266 vs Ohio Northern University
Average annual net price$24,478$25,355+$877 vs Ohio Northern University · higher cost
Admission rate74.4%85.5%
Explore Trine University →
Nearby alternativeTrine UniversityNearby option · IN
Comparison with Ohio Northern University
MeasureOhio Northern UniversityTrine University
Peer earnings · 4 years$72,080$67,814-$4,266 vs Ohio Northern University
Average annual net price$24,478$25,355+$877 vs Ohio Northern University · higher cost
Admission rate74.4%85.5%
Explore Trine University →
Higher-earnings alternativeSUNY Maritime College$104,752 earnings
Comparison with Ohio Northern University
MeasureOhio Northern UniversitySUNY Maritime College
Peer earnings · 4 years$72,080$104,752+$32,672 vs Ohio Northern University
Average annual net price$24,478$22,367-$2,111 vs Ohio Northern University · lower cost
Admission rate74.4%72.4%
Explore SUNY Maritime College →
Lower-cost alternativeWright State University-Main Campus$15,415 average net price
Comparison with Ohio Northern University
MeasureOhio Northern UniversityWright State University-Main Campus
Peer earnings · 4 years$72,080$62,601-$9,479 vs Ohio Northern University
Average annual net price$24,478$15,415-$9,063 vs Ohio Northern University · lower cost
Admission rate74.4%96.3%
Explore Wright State University-Main Campus →
Similar profileMarian UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with Ohio Northern University
MeasureOhio Northern UniversityMarian University
Peer earnings · 4 years$72,080$72,150+$70 vs Ohio Northern University
Average annual net price$24,478$24,018-$460 vs Ohio Northern University · lower cost
Admission rate74.4%95.5%

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