College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

University of Dayton

OHMedium private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #652 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth ranks the University of Dayton #652 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

The University of Dayton is a private nonprofit university in Ohio where Business and Engineering lead the degree mix. Return is well above average, while affordability is below the levels seen at many peers.

Graduates earn less than predicts for students like them. The model attributes an addition to the factors it measures and a subtraction to what it cannot explain.

The net price is higher for the highest income band than for the lowest. Pell students complete at a rate below the cohort as a whole, and access is modestly below average.

The admission rate sits below the median for comparable institutions. A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the best-paid ones are much smaller.

University of Dayton at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
65.4%
Six-year completion[2]
80.2%
Four-year earnings[3]
$78,870

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$24,155
Median student debt[4]
$23,250
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$43,810

University of Dayton rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

University of Dayton, a private nonprofit university in Dayton, Ohio, enrolls 7,682 undergraduates. It falls near the middle among nonprofit four-year institutions (56th percentile), where the four send different signals.

University of Dayton admits 65.5% of applicants, compared with a peer median of 71.2% for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Of the first-time, full-time cohort, 89.1% return for a second year, against a peer median of 83.4%.

The six-year graduation rate is 80.2%, while the peer median for comparable institutions is 68.8%. An estimated 9.4% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year rate describes only that first-time, full-time group.

The four pillars are spread wide. Return is the strongest and affordability the weakest, with access and mobility landing in between (40th and 56th percentiles).

That profile leaves the strongest and weakest pillars on opposite ends of the Azimuth framework, a spread visible in its overall standing.

The strongest pillar for University of Dayton is return, in the 82nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. That strength coincides with a median earnings figure of $78,870 four years after completion, well above the median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The mobility pillar sits in the 56th percentile, the access pillar in the 40th percentile, and affordability is the weakest pillar, in the 16th percentile.

The middle 50% of submitted SAT scores fell between 1,200 and 1,380. The middle 50% of submitted ACT scores fell between 25 and 31.

15.8% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants. The six-year completion rate for Pell recipients is 71.6%, 8.6 percentage points below the rate for the entering cohort as a whole (80.2%).

Azimuth ranks University of Dayton #874 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $5,688 less than the model expects for similar students.

Azimuth ranks the university #646 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions.

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

University of Dayton rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#652

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 56
Access & reach
National percentile: 40
Affordability
National percentile: 16
Return on investment
National percentile: 82

01 / University of Dayton briefing

University of Dayton cost & financial aid[6][7]

The University of Dayton's strongest pillar is return, but its cost picture is mixed. The published cost of attendance is $65,881, an average across living arrangements.

Tuition and fees are $49,140, and room and board are $16,800. For aid recipients, the average net price—what families pay after grants and scholarships—is $29,533, a reduction of $36,348 from the sticker total.

That sits above the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $2,162. Azimuth ranks the university #1,190 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

University of Dayton’s published cost of attendance is $65,881, an average across living arrangements. Its published tuition and fees are $49,140, and room and board is $16,800.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price—what aid recipients actually pay—varies by family income. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $21,736; for the middle band ($48,001–$75,000), it is $24,155; and for families earning over $110,000, it is $33,731.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $11,995, which means aid narrows the sticker-price gap but does not erase it. Azimuth ranks the university #1,190 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid covers about 55% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, a savings of $36,348 against the sticker price. The average net price across all aid recipients is $29,533, which sits above the peer median of $27,371 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $2,162.

While the sticker price is high, the aid structure brings the typical cost closer to the peer benchmark, though the net price for higher-income families remains above it. Among federal-loan borrowers who completed, the median federal student debt is $23,250.

That median is below the peer median of $24,199 by $949, and 95.5% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. For a graduate at the median four-year earnings, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $264 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parents who borrow through Parent PLUS carry a separate median of $43,810.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$24,155

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at University of Dayton

Federal borrowing is widespread at the University of Dayton, with 95.5% of federal aid recipients taking federal loans. Among borrowers who complete, median federal student debt is $23,250, $949 below the $24,199 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Parents who borrow through the Parent PLUS program hold a separate median of $43,810.

Four years after completion, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $78,870 at the University of Dayton. That amount is $10,620 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

The median lands in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $5,688 less than the model expects for similar students.

That places the gap at the 34th percentile. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, range from $52,887 in a downside case to $97,196 in an upside case, with the median as the typical outcome.

Borrowers who finish hold a median of $23,250 in federal loans, $949 below the peer median of $24,199. If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $264 a month.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $43,810. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $264.

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

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$23,250
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$43,810

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$264/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$557/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 / University of Dayton briefing

University of Dayton career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $78,870, in the 87th percentile. That is $10,620 above the $68,250 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth places the return pillar in the 82nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $5,688 less than the model expects for similar students.

That puts the gap at the 34th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures adds $9,371. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $15,059.

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates of University of Dayton who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $78,870. That figure, drawn from a cohort of 1,908 completers, sits in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $5,688 less than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations places the university at the 34th percentile.

Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix show a downside scenario of $52,887 and an upside scenario of $97,196. An estimated 26.2% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

Four years after completion, University of Dayton graduates earn a median of $78,870, which places the university in the 87th percentile nationally. That figure is above the peer median of $68,250 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $10,620.

Graduates earn about $5,688 less than the model expects for similar students, a result that sits in the 34th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,371.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $15,059. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $2,633.

Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix show a downside of $52,887 and an upside of $97,196, with the typical scenario at $78,870. Azimuth ranks University of Dayton #261 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The largest program, Mechanical Engineering, awarded 214 degrees and shows median earnings of $88,339 four years after completion. Finance follows with 186 degrees awarded and a median of $95,925, which is 1.15x the national median for the field.

The highest-earning program is Computer Engineering, with 22 degrees awarded and a median of $116,356. Management Information Systems and Services and Computer Science also reach six figures, at $107,354 and $102,468 respectively.

The return picture is mixed: earnings beat the peer median, yet the model expects more given the student body, and the institution itself subtracts from that expectation.

The spread between the downside scenario of $52,887 and the upside scenario of $97,196 shows the variation in earnings across the 32 programs with published data four years after completion. The highest-earning programs include Computer Engineering, where completers earn a median of $116,356, Management Information Systems and Services at $107,354, and Computer Science at $102,468.

The published cost of attendance at University of Dayton is $65,881 (an average across living arrangements). After grants and scholarships, aid recipients in the lowest income band pay an average net price of $21,736, while those in the highest band pay $33,731.

The spread between the two ends is $11,995, and aid covers about 55% of the published cost for the average aid recipient. Borrowers who finish carry a median of $23,250 in federal student loans, which is $949 below the $24,199 peer median.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $264 a month if repaid over ten years. Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $43,810.

The four-year median earnings are $78,870, which sits $10,620 above the peer median. Graduates earn about $5,688 less than the model expects for similar students, placing that gap at the 34th percentile.

The debt and net price figures sit alongside an earnings outcome that falls short of the model's expectation.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$9,371
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$15,059
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
-$5,688

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 / University of Dayton briefing

University of Dayton acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

The University of Dayton admits 65.5% of applicants, a rate that sits below the median of 71.2% for comparable institutions (same type and size). The university is more selective than its peer median, though the gap is modest.

SAT: approximate enrolled-student range
Admission rate
65.4%
Approximate lower endpoint
1200
Reported average
1335
Approximate upper endpoint
1380

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 / University of Dayton briefing

What are the largest majors at University of Dayton?[12]

The University of Dayton awards bachelor's degrees across 32 fields with published four-year earnings, and the spread between the highest- and lowest-earning programs is wide. Computer Engineering leads at $116,356, with 22 degrees awarded.

Management Information Systems and Services follows at $107,354 (46 degrees awarded), and Computer Science reaches $102,468 (37 degrees awarded). Among the university's largest programs, earnings vary by field.

Finance, the second-largest program with 186 degrees awarded, shows a median of $95,925. Communication and Media Studies reaches $67,231 on 141 degrees awarded.

The contrast between technical fields and communication-oriented programs is clear, and the gap between the top and bottom of the largest programs is substantial.

The university publishes earnings data for 32 bachelor's programs. The largest, Mechanical Engineering, awarded 214 degrees and shows a median of $88,339 four years after completion.

Finance follows with 186 degrees awarded and a median of $95,925, while Marketing awarded 168 degrees and reports a median of $80,677. The programs with the highest published medians are Computer Engineering at $116,356, Management Information Systems and Services at $107,354, and Computer Science at $102,468.

Computer Engineering awarded 22 degrees, while Management Information Systems and Services and Computer Science awarded 46 and 37 degrees, respectively.

The University of Dayton's bachelor's degrees are anchored in Business and Engineering, which together account for nearly half of all awards. Business is the largest family at 28.9% of degrees awarded, with Engineering at 18.6% and Health Professions at 9.0%.

Across 32 programs with published four-year earnings data, the largest by degrees awarded is Mechanical Engineering with 214 degrees a year, followed by Finance at 186 and Marketing at 168. The highest-earning program is Computer Engineering, where graduates earn a median of $116,356 four years after completion, from 22 degrees awarded.

Management Information Systems and Services follows with a median of $107,354 and 46 degrees awarded. Finance, the second-largest program, also ranks among the top earners at $95,925.

The program mix shows strength concentrated in business and engineering, with the largest departments delivering solid earnings. The highest pay, however, sits in smaller technical programs like Computer Engineering and Management Information Systems and Services, which award far fewer degrees than Mechanical Engineering or Finance but command a premium.

A student drawn to the largest departments should know that the best-paid outcomes are in programs with a fraction of the degrees awarded. Across all fields, 25.9% of degrees awarded are in STEM.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Mechanical Engineering 214 degrees awarded
$88,339
Finance and Financial Management Services 186 degrees awarded
$95,925
Marketing 168 degrees awarded
$80,677
Communication and Media Studies 141 degrees awarded
$67,231
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General 111 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods 103 degrees awarded
$47,775

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 / University of Dayton briefing

How does University of Dayton serve students from different backgrounds?

The mobility pillar is in the 56th percentile nationally. The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 80.2%, while Pell recipients complete at 71.6% — a figure that sits below the overall rate by 8.6 percentage points.

Graduates earn about $5,688 less than the model expects for similar students, placing the earnings beyond expectations measure in the 34th percentile.

The University of Dayton, a private nonprofit university in Dayton, Ohio, enrolls 7,682 undergraduates. Azimuth places its access pillar in the 40th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The university admits 65.5% of applicants, and Pell Grant recipients account for 15.8% of the undergraduate body. An estimated 9.4% of undergraduates arrive as transfers or part-time students.

06 / University of Dayton briefing

What colleges are similar to University of Dayton?[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 University of Dayton.

Admissions peerMiami University-Oxford75.4% admitted
Comparison with University of Dayton
MeasureUniversity of DaytonMiami University-Oxford
Peer earnings · 4 years$78,870$70,785-$8,085 vs University of Dayton
Average annual net price$29,533$28,384-$1,149 vs University of Dayton · lower cost
Admission rate65.4%75.4%
Explore Miami University-Oxford →
Higher-admission alternativeUniversity of Cincinnati-Main Campus85.3% admitted
Comparison with University of Dayton
MeasureUniversity of DaytonUniversity of Cincinnati-Main Campus
Peer earnings · 4 years$78,870$72,188-$6,682 vs University of Dayton
Average annual net price$29,533$25,648-$3,885 vs University of Dayton · lower cost
Admission rate65.4%85.3%
Explore University of Cincinnati-Main Campus →
Nearby alternativeUniversity of Cincinnati-Main CampusNearby option · OH
Comparison with University of Dayton
MeasureUniversity of DaytonUniversity of Cincinnati-Main Campus
Peer earnings · 4 years$78,870$72,188-$6,682 vs University of Dayton
Average annual net price$29,533$25,648-$3,885 vs University of Dayton · lower cost
Admission rate65.4%85.3%
Explore University of Cincinnati-Main Campus →
Higher-earnings alternativeColorado School of Mines$100,252 earnings
Comparison with University of Dayton
MeasureUniversity of DaytonColorado School of Mines
Peer earnings · 4 years$78,870$100,252+$21,382 vs University of Dayton
Average annual net price$29,533$28,690-$843 vs University of Dayton · lower cost
Admission rate65.4%60.7%
Explore Colorado School of Mines →
Lower-cost alternativeOhio State University-Main Campus$17,339 average net price
Comparison with University of Dayton
MeasureUniversity of DaytonOhio State University-Main Campus
Peer earnings · 4 years$78,870$70,682-$8,188 vs University of Dayton
Average annual net price$29,533$17,339-$12,194 vs University of Dayton · lower cost
Admission rate65.4%60.6%
Explore Ohio State University-Main Campus →
Similar profileMarquette UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with University of Dayton
MeasureUniversity of DaytonMarquette University
Peer earnings · 4 years$78,870$80,228+$1,358 vs University of Dayton
Average annual net price$29,533$31,487+$1,954 vs University of Dayton · higher cost
Admission rate65.4%81.3%
Explore Marquette University →

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 is 150% of the federal poverty guideline for one person, for the year the API serves. It is an illustration rather than a school rating. The parent table is the 10-year payment on the median Parent PLUS as a share of household income above 200% of the guideline for a household of three: under 6% Safe, 6–10% Caution, over 10% High pressure. 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