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Career outcomes brief

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# Olivet Nazarene University Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated September 30, 2026

[Overview](/school/olivet-nazarene-university/)[Cost & aid](/school/olivet-nazarene-university/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/olivet-nazarene-university/admissions/)[Majors](/school/olivet-nazarene-university/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/olivet-nazarene-university/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much do Olivet Nazarene University graduates earn?

The reported median is $64,769 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $68,250 as its benchmark; the difference is \-$3,481 per year.

Return is close to the peer midpoint, though the model splits its expectation gap between program mix and the institution. Azimuth places Olivet Nazarene University’s return pillar in the 49th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $825 less than the model expects for similar students, effectively at the expected level. [Earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/), the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, sits in the 52nd percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $3,647. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $4,472.

Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled earn median earnings of $64,769 four years after completion, in the 65th percentile. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions of the same type and size, is $68,250, with Olivet $3,481 below it.

The peer comparison and model result both describe earnings near their reference points.

Earnings differ widely across fields at Olivet Nazarene University, so the modeled range matters alongside the schoolwide figure. The downside earnings scenario is $44,370, and the upside scenario is $84,028; both are estimated from the program mix rather than observed groups.

Four years after completion, medians are $84,705 in Nursing, $82,632 in Engineering, and $77,132 in Accounting. Those field figures sit toward the upper end of the modeled range.

An estimated 27.6% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment. Four-year earnings include only completers who are working and not enrolled, so this estimate matters when reading the reported earnings measure.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$64,769

**Rank for difference from expectations**
52nd percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**Olivet Nazarene University reported median**
$64,769

**Peer schools comparable schools · $3,481 above Olivet Nazarene University**
$68,250

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $825 above Olivet Nazarene University**
$65,594

School and program earnings use pooled 2017–18 and 2018–19 completion cohorts, measured in 2022 and 2023 and expressed in 2024 dollars. [How the model works](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

## How could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $44,370 to $84,028, around the reported median of $64,769. Compare the lower scenario with [Olivet Nazarene University borrowing and monthly payments](/school/olivet-nazarene-university/cost/) to see how a smaller income could change your plan.

Modeled from the school’s program mix; not salary percentiles or a forecast for one graduate.

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

**Lower estimate**
$44,370

**Median · reported**
$64,769

**Higher estimate**
$84,028

Downside shows a lower-earning scenario based on the college’s mix of programs; upside shows a higher-earning scenario. Typical is the school’s reported median four years after completion. These are planning scenarios, not a forecast of your salary or percentiles of individual graduates.

[Why the downside matters](/analysis/median-roi-hides-a-harsh-reality/) explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. [Read about the move to four-year earnings](/analysis/college-scorecard-2026-4-year-vs-10-year-earnings-2-2/).

## Do Olivet Nazarene University graduates earn more than expected?

Azimuth models what we would expect graduates to earn based on who the college enrolls, how selective it is and its local economy. The difference between that expectation and reported earnings is what Azimuth calls [value added](/methodology/#value-added).

Olivet Nazarene University graduates’ reported earnings are $825 below that expectation, the 52nd percentile for this measure. Unlike a peer comparison, it adjusts for who enrolls.

The breakdown separates the contribution attributed to observed factors from the remaining difference. Neither component establishes how much attending Olivet Nazarene University caused a student to earn. [Read how expected earnings are estimated](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

What explains value-added earnings?

**Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.**
+$3,647

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
\-$4,472

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
\-$825

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

## Which fields at Olivet Nazarene University report the highest earnings?

Nursing has the highest median earnings among the listed fields, at $84,705 four years after completion, alongside 87 degrees awarded in one academic year. Engineering is also at the higher-earning end, with median earnings of $82,632 and 51 degrees awarded.

Azimuth’s figures place both fields well above the more moderate results elsewhere in the displayed programs. Accounting recorded median earnings of $77,132 four years after completion and 9 degrees awarded.

Psychology had median earnings of $49,427 with 36 degrees awarded. The contrast between these fields shows that program-level earnings vary considerably across the university’s larger and higher-earning offerings.

Program choice matters at Olivet Nazarene University: its largest degree fields show markedly different earnings four years after completion. During one academic year, Nursing awarded 87 degrees and had median earnings of $84,705 four years after completion; Business Administration and Management awarded 59 degrees and had median earnings of $57,973; Engineering awarded 51 degrees and had median earnings of $82,632; Psychology awarded 36 degrees and had median earnings of $49,427; and Teacher Education awarded 36 degrees and had median earnings of $45,455.

The listed large fields span a broad reported earnings range, so the overall earnings figure does not describe every field equally.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing**
$84,705

**Engineering, General**
$82,632

**Accounting and Related Services**
$77,132

**Economics**
$68,935

**Biology, General**
$58,864

**Business Administration, Management and Operations**
$57,973

**Marketing**
$56,787

**Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication**
$56,435

[Explore Olivet Nazarene University program cohorts and field ranks](/school/olivet-nazarene-university/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

Field choice accounts for a broad modeled range in earnings: the downside scenario is $44,370, the typical scenario is $64,769, and the upside scenario reaches $84,028. Nursing sits at the high end at $84,705 four years after completion; among the largest programs, Teacher Education is at $45,455. These scenarios, grounded in program mix, show variation by field.

At Olivet Nazarene University, median earnings are $64,769 four years after completion for federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. Azimuth places this earnings measure in the 65th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 1,225 completers.

[Earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/), the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, sit near the expected level. Graduates earn about $825 less than the model expects for similar students, effectively at the expected level.

Earnings scenarios based on the program mix run from a downside of $44,370 to an upside of $84,028, with the typical scenario matching the median. An estimated 27.6% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

Near-expected earnings and a wide scenario range point to outcomes that can differ by field.

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

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

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).