Percentile rankings vs 1,600+ peer institutions. Higher is better.
Career OutcomesAzimuth ranks Peru State College #782 for overall value on Azimuth's composite among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn in the 75.8 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks Peru State College #863 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. ---
Azimuth ranks Peru State College #782 for overall value on Azimuth's composite among nonprofit four-year institutions. Peru State College is a public university located in Peru, NE, enrolling roughly 1,092 undergraduates. The institution maintains a 64.5% freshman retention rate and a 37.6% six-year graduation rate. The composite reflects a balanced profile across access and outcomes. 36.9% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants and 41.6% are first-generation college students, signaling broad access to students from lower-income and non-college-educated backgrounds. Azimuth ranks Peru State College #863 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $4,893 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing Peru State College in the 75.8 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. The institution's program portfolio centers on Business, which aligns with regional labor-market demand and supports graduates into stable career pathways. As a master's-level institution with moderate enrollment, Peru State College offers a personalized academic environment while maintaining the scale needed to support diverse student backgrounds and career outcomes. Affordability sits in the 85.4 percentile and access in the 36.6 percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, reflecting the institution's positioning as an affordable public option with broad enrollment reach.
Peru State College's published cost of attendance is $22,240. Net price by income band reflects the institution's public-tuition structure: low-income families pay approximately $9,986, middle-income families pay around $12,845, and higher-income families pay approximately $13,450. Azimuth ranks Peru State College #209 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. Peru State College participates in federal need-based aid programs, including Pell Grants and Direct Loans, alongside state and institutional aid. The institution's affordability rank reflects both the headline cost and the debt load graduates carry: net price and sticker price can differ substantially, and understanding that gap helps families budget realistically for enrollment. Median federal student loan debt at graduation is $21,875, and families using Parent PLUS borrow a median of $13,517; 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 $53,258, median federal debt of $21,875 projects to a monthly payment of about $247 under standard ten-year repayment. For personalized projections across earnings scenarios — including Parent PLUS planning — use Azimuth's Financial GPS tool.
Peru State College is a strong fit for students seeking a public university experience in NE with a focus on Business programs and career-aligned outcomes at an accessible price point. Graduates earn median 4-year earnings of $53,258, placing Peru State College in the 13.0 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. They earn about $4,893 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 75.8 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. The university enrolls students from a range of backgrounds, with 36.9% of undergraduates receiving Pell Grants and 41.6% identifying as first-generation. This access combines with a net price for higher-income families of $13,450 and median federal debt of $21,875, making the financial path relatively straightforward for students who qualify for need-based aid. Fit depends on alignment with the university's Business focus (32% of degrees) and comfort with a regional public university setting. Students seeking these applied fields in NE's lower-cost environment will find Peru State delivers solid outcomes relative to the state's no-degree baseline of $34,059.
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
Detailed metrics, charts, and full data breakdown
Financial GPS Tool
Personalized cost and earnings calculator
This is the Peru State College hub overview page. Related admissions, cost, outcomes, majors, and similar-school pages provide the detailed school data.
Computer and Information Sciences, General
12 graduates
Business Administration, Management and Operations
79 graduates
Criminal Justice and Corrections
25 graduates
Psychology, General
39 graduates
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods
21 graduates
Peru State College's program mix is anchored in business and education fields, reflecting the institution's regional mission as a comprehensive public university. Business Administration is the largest program with 79 graduates, followed by Psychology, General, Criminal Justice, Teacher Education, and Kinesiology.
The dominant program family, Business, accounts for a substantial share of degrees and shapes the institution's career-outcomes profile. Median earnings four years after enrollment vary across the program portfolio.
Business Administration graduates earn $57,519, while Psychology, General graduates earn $45,096 and Criminal Justice graduates earn $50,150. Among the institution's highest-earning programs, Artificial Intelligence leads with median earnings of $64,278 for 12 graduates, followed by Business Administration at $57,519 and Criminal Justice at $50,150.
This earnings distribution reflects the mix of applied professional fields and education pathways that characterize Peru State College's degree output. The institution's program portfolio supports both direct-to-workforce and graduate-school-dependent pathways.
Business and accounting programs typically lead to immediate labor-market entry with stable, mid-range earnings outcomes. Education programs, by contrast, are grad-school-dependent fields where four-year earnings reflect early-career teaching positions and do not fully capture the lifetime trajectory of graduates who pursue advanced degrees or administrative roles.
The [supply and demand for college graduates](/analysis/supply-demand-map-college-degrees/) provides context for how Peru State College's dominant program families align with regional and national labor-market demand.
Based on federal data for students receiving aid. Actual costs may vary.
Peru State College's published cost of attendance is $22,240. Net price by income band reflects the institution's public-tuition structure: low-income families pay approximately $9,986, middle-income families pay around $12,845, and higher-income families pay approximately $13,450.
Azimuth ranks Peru State College #209 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.
Peru State College participates in federal need-based aid programs, including Pell Grants and Direct Loans, alongside state and institutional aid. The institution's affordability rank reflects both the headline cost and the debt load graduates carry: [net price and sticker price can differ substantially](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/), and understanding that gap helps families budget realistically for enrollment.
Median federal student loan debt at graduation is $21,875, and families using Parent PLUS borrow a median of $13,517; 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 $53,258, median federal debt of $21,875 projects to a monthly payment of about $247 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 Peru State College earn median 4-year earnings of $53,258, placing Peru State College in the 13.0 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $4,893 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing Peru State College in the 75.8 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Azimuth ranks Peru State College #863 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those figures represent lifetime returns relative to NE's no-degree-equivalent earnings baseline of $34,059 (the state median earnings of working adults with only a high school credential).
The earnings pattern centers on business and applied professional fields. Business Administration is the largest program with 79 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $57,519, performing at 0.8x the national benchmark for the field.
The Psychology, General program graduates 39 students with median 4-year earnings of $45,096, while Criminal Justice and Teacher Education round out the top programs with 25 and 21 graduates respectively. The concentration in Business — Peru State College's dominant program family — aligns with regional labor-market demand and contributes to the institution's solid four-year earnings outcomes.
