College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

Taylor University

INMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #1333 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth’s composite placement is the 9th percentile nationally.

Who it’s a good fit for

Taylor University is a private nonprofit university in Upland, Indiana, where Business, Education, and Visual & Performing Arts lead the degree mix. Mobility is the strongest , though it sits modestly below average.

Graduates earn less than predicts for students like them. The model attributes most of that gap to a remainder it cannot explain.

The factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market — add a smaller amount. Pell recipients complete within a few points of the overall rate, and aid covers about half the published cost for the average recipient.

But access is below the levels seen at many peers, and the spread between what the lowest and highest income bands pay is wide. The admission rate is close to the median for comparable schools, and most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study.

A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the best-paid one, Computer Science, awards far fewer degrees.

Taylor University at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
73.5%
Six-year completion[2]
73.8%
Four-year earnings[3]
$51,779

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$18,100
Median student debt[4]
$20,500
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$45,174

Taylor University rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

Taylor University is a private nonprofit university in Upland, Indiana, enrolling 2,025 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits in the lower portion of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The university admits 73.5% of applicants, a rate close to the 71.2% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Retention runs above the peer median: 89.3% return after the first year, against a peer median of 83.4%.

Completion also exceeds the peer benchmark, with 73.8% finishing within six years compared to a peer median of 68.8%. An estimated 8.0% 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 four pillars sit in a narrow band, with mobility the strongest and access the weakest. Return and affordability sit between them.

The shape is a private university where no single pillar dominates, and where the strongest measure still sits below the midpoint of the field.

Taylor University’s relative strength is mobility, though its overall pillar profile remains modest. Azimuth places the university's mobility pillar in the 36th percentile and affordability in the 31st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth puts return in the 19th percentile and access, the weakest pillar, in the 11th percentile. The stronger mobility and affordability readings sit alongside lower return and access measures.

13.5% of undergraduates at Taylor University receive Pell Grants, a measure of financial access at this private nonprofit university in Upland, Indiana. For students who submitted test scores, the middle 50% of SAT scores fell between 1,070 and 1,330.

The middle 50% of ACT scores ranged from 24 to 31. Azimuth ranks Taylor University #1,299 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell Grant recipients complete at a rate of 71.5%, which is 2.3 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate for the entering cohort. The university is ranked #935 for mobility by Azimuth.

Graduates earn about $18,155 less than the model expects for similar students. Mobility is the stronger of the two pillars here.

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

Taylor University rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#1,333

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 36
Access & reach
National percentile: 11
Affordability
National percentile: 31
Return on investment
National percentile: 19

01 / Taylor University briefing

Taylor University cost & financial aid[6][7]

For aid recipients, Taylor University has an average net price of $24,865, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, against a published cost of attendance of $53,405. Tuition and fees are listed at $40,490, with room and board at $12,029.

The published total is a sticker figure before grants and scholarships are applied. Average financial aid savings amount to $28,540 against that price.

At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median net price is $27,371, placing the university $2,506 below that benchmark. Azimuth places the university in the 31st percentile for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The lower-than-peer average price and the average aid reduction point in the same direction, though individual bills vary.

Taylor University publishes a cost of attendance of $53,405, and aid-recipient prices vary across family-income bands. The average net price is $16,143 for the lowest family-income band, $17,262 for the lower-middle band, $18,100 for the middle band, $23,504 for the upper-middle band, and $30,050 for the highest band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $13,907. Azimuth ranks the university #982 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 53% of the published cost, or average savings of $28,540 against the sticker price. Across all aid recipients, , what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $24,865.

That figure is $2,506 below the peer median of $27,371, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size). Published tuition and fees are $40,490, with room and board listed at $12,029.

Among federal-loan borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $20,500, which is $3,699 below the $24,199 peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size). 94.5% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans, and that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $233 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parent borrowers have median Parent PLUS borrowing of $45,174.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$18,100

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Taylor University

Federal borrowing is central to the financing picture at Taylor University, where 94.5% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. For borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt at completion is $20,500.

Among comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median federal debt is $24,199, with the university’s median $3,699 below that mark. A separate parent-borrower population has median Parent PLUS borrowing of $45,174.

Mobility is the strongest Azimuth pillar for Taylor University, but its earnings and cost picture asks for close attention. Graduates earn a median of $51,779 four years after completion, placing that earnings measure in the 23rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $18,155 less than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, stands in the 5th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The earnings scenarios run from $44,242 in the downside case to $88,464 in the upside case, with $51,779 as the typical scenario. Median federal debt is $20,500, which is $3,699 below the $24,199 peer median.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $233 a month if repaid over ten years. Lower debt sits alongside earnings that fall below both the model’s expectation and the comparable-institution median.

For parent borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $45,174, separate from federal student borrowing. For completers with median federal student debt, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $233 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
$20,500
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$45,174

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$233/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$574/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 / Taylor University briefing

Taylor University career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

The return figures for Taylor University point to a gap between earnings and the model’s expectation. Azimuth places the return pillar in the 19th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $18,155 less than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, sits in the 5th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $2,414. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $20,569.

Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $51,779 four years after completion, in the 23rd percentile. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $68,250, placing Taylor University $16,471 below it. The model result and peer comparison point in the same direction.

Taylor University shows a modest early-career earnings picture, with a median of $51,779 four years after completion among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. Azimuth puts this earnings measure in the 23rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 385 completers.

The program-mix model sets a downside earnings scenario at $44,242 and an upside scenario at $88,464; its typical scenario matches the reported median. An estimated 32.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment.

For earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, graduates earn about $18,155 less than the model expects for similar students. The low earnings percentile and below-expected earnings point in the same direction, while the earnings scenarios show substantial variation across the program mix.

Taylor University has median earnings of $51,779 four years after completion. That is $16,471 below the peer median of $68,250, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Those earnings sit in the 23rd percentile. Graduates earn about $18,155 less than the model expects for similar students.

Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, are in the 5th percentile. Azimuth places the return pillar in the 19th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix put the downside at $44,242 and the upside at $88,464. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $2,414.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $20,569. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $2,603.

The highest-earning listed field is Computer Science, with 14 degrees awarded and median earnings of $108,812 four years after completion, at 1.02x of the national median for its field. Marketing awarded 33 degrees and had median earnings of $78,191, or 1.13x of its field’s national median.

The largest listed program, Business Administration and Management, awarded 38 degrees and posted $76,192 in median earnings, at 1.12x of its field’s national median. Psychology awarded 31 degrees, with median earnings of $39,400 and a 0.78x field benchmark.

The listed fields therefore show differing earnings levels and field benchmarks.

At Taylor University, earnings scenarios span from $44,242 on the downside to $88,464 on the upside, with $51,779 as the typical scenario. These are scenarios derived from the program mix, not observed groups of graduates.

Program medians four years after completion range upward to $108,812 in Computer Science, $78,191 in Marketing, and $76,192 in Business Administration and Management. Those program figures help explain why the modeled range is broad.

Taylor University presents a mixed cost-and-earnings picture: aid recipients face an average net price of $24,865. That average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is below the $27,371 peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size) by $2,506.

Aid covers about 53% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. For borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $20,500.

The peer median is $24,199, with Taylor University’s figure below it by $3,699. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $233 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parent borrowers using Parent PLUS have median borrowing of $45,174. Graduate earnings complicate the lower debt figure.

Earnings beyond expectations is unfavorable: Graduates earn about $18,155 less than the model expects for similar students. Lower costs and debt sit alongside earnings that fall short of the model’s expectation.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$2,414
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$20,569
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
-$18,155

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 / Taylor University briefing

Taylor University acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

Taylor University’s admission outcome sits close to the comparable-institution midpoint, with a somewhat higher admitted share. Its admission rate of 73.5% is above the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

SAT: approximate enrolled-student range
Admission rate
73.5%
Approximate lower endpoint
1070
Reported average
1220
Approximate upper endpoint
1330

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 / Taylor University briefing

What are the largest majors at Taylor University?[12]

At Taylor University, program earnings differ enough by field that higher- and more moderate-earning options present different financial pictures. The figures below are median earnings four years after completion, with degrees awarded in one academic year.

Computer Science has median earnings of $108,812 and 14 degrees awarded. Marketing records $78,191 across 33 degrees awarded, while Business Administration and Management posts $76,192 and 38 degrees awarded.

At a more moderate level, Psychology shows $39,400 with 31 degrees awarded. The contrast between these fields shows why the selected program matters when reading the university-wide earnings figure.

Business accounts for 23.2% of bachelor’s degrees awarded, and earnings differ sharply across the university’s larger and higher-earning fields. This makes the field choice especially consequential when assessing Taylor University’s outcomes.

Four years after completion, Computer Science had median earnings of $108,812 and 14 degrees awarded; Marketing had $78,191 and 33 degrees awarded; Business Administration and Management had $76,192 and 38 degrees awarded; and Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences had $57,113 and 26 degrees awarded. The higher-earning fields sit well above the institution-wide earnings picture.

The bachelor's degrees at Taylor University are spread across several fields, with no single family dominating. Business accounts for 23.2% of degrees awarded, followed by Education at 14.8% and Visual & Performing Arts at 11.6%.

The university has 9 programs with published four-year earnings data. The largest programs by degrees awarded are Business Administration and Management with 38 degrees awarded, Teacher Education with 37, and Marketing with 33.

The highest-earning program is Computer Science, where graduates earn a median of $108,812 four years after completion, from 14 degrees awarded. Marketing, the third-largest program, is the second-highest-earning at $78,191.

Business Administration and Management, the largest program, reports median earnings of $76,192. The earnings picture is mixed across the larger programs: Psychology, with 31 degrees awarded, reports a median of $39,400, while Film/Video and Photographic Arts graduates earn $50,403.

The pattern is one of breadth rather than concentration, with the largest programs spanning business, education, and the arts. The highest earnings come from a smaller technical program, while several of the larger programs sit closer to the national median for their fields. Across all fields, 25.8% of degrees awarded are in STEM.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Business Administration, Management and Operations 38 degrees awarded
$76,192
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods 37 degrees awarded
$50,237
Marketing 33 degrees awarded
$78,191
Psychology, General 31 degrees awarded
$39,400
Film/Video and Photographic Arts 29 degrees awarded
$50,403
Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences 26 degrees awarded
$57,113

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 / Taylor University briefing

How does Taylor University serve students from different backgrounds?

Completion is the clearest part of Taylor University’s mobility picture. Its six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 73.8%.

Pell recipients complete within six years at 71.5%, below the overall rate by 2.3 percentage points. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, the university’s mobility pillar sits at the 36th percentile.

Earnings beyond expectations means the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students. It falls in the 5th percentile.

Graduates earn about $18,155 less than the model expects for similar students. Completion is stronger than modeled earnings.

Taylor University combines a 73.5% admission rate with a comparatively limited Pell Grant presence among its undergraduate population. The university has 2,025 undergraduates; Pell Grant recipients account for 13.5% of them, and an estimated 8.0% enter as transfers or part-time students.

Azimuth assigns the access pillar to the 11th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Its admissions rate and transfer estimate show more than one route into the university, while the Pell share remains a smaller part of undergraduate enrollment.

06 / Taylor University briefing

What colleges are similar to Taylor 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 Taylor University.

Admissions peerWittenberg University72.4% admitted
Comparison with Taylor University
MeasureTaylor UniversityWittenberg University
Peer earnings · 4 years$51,779$54,622+$2,843 vs Taylor University
Average annual net price$24,865$18,649-$6,216 vs Taylor University · lower cost
Admission rate73.5%72.4%
Higher-admission alternativePurdue University Fort Wayne83.9% admitted
Comparison with Taylor University
MeasureTaylor UniversityPurdue University Fort Wayne
Peer earnings · 4 years$51,779$56,455+$4,676 vs Taylor University
Average annual net price$24,865$13,171-$11,694 vs Taylor University · lower cost
Admission rate73.5%83.9%
Explore Purdue University Fort Wayne →
Nearby alternativeHuntington UniversityNearby option · IN
Comparison with Taylor University
MeasureTaylor UniversityHuntington University
Peer earnings · 4 years$51,779$52,242+$463 vs Taylor University
Average annual net price$24,865$19,310-$5,555 vs Taylor University · lower cost
Admission rate73.5%75.6%
Explore Huntington University →
Higher-earnings alternativeOhio Northern University$72,080 earnings
Comparison with Taylor University
MeasureTaylor UniversityOhio Northern University
Peer earnings · 4 years$51,779$72,080+$20,301 vs Taylor University
Average annual net price$24,865$24,478-$387 vs Taylor University · lower cost
Admission rate73.5%74.4%
Explore Ohio Northern University →
Lower-cost alternativeWilberforce University$5,567 average net price
Comparison with Taylor University
MeasureTaylor UniversityWilberforce University
Peer earnings · 4 years$51,779$45,958-$5,821 vs Taylor University
Average annual net price$24,865$5,567-$19,298 vs Taylor University · lower cost
Admission rate73.5%40.5%
Similar profileUniversity of Mount UnionMatched across several measures
Comparison with Taylor University
MeasureTaylor UniversityUniversity of Mount Union
Peer earnings · 4 years$51,779$57,955+$6,176 vs Taylor University
Average annual net price$24,865$23,280-$1,585 vs Taylor University · lower cost
Admission rate73.5%78.2%
Explore University of Mount Union →

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