College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

University of Delaware

DELarge public institution · Overall rank #242 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

A public university in Newark, Delaware, ranked #242 by Azimuth among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

University of Delaware is a public university in Newark, Delaware, with a degree mix led by Business, Health Professions, and Social Sciences. Mobility is the strongest , well above average.

Graduates earn less than predicts for students like them. The model attributes the gap to a remainder it does not explain, which subtracts, and to the factors it measures, which adds.

Return is well above average, while the model-adjusted picture is negative. Affordability is around the average, and the net price for the lowest income band sits well below the published cost, while the highest band pays closer to it.

Pell students complete below the overall rate, and mobility is well above average. The admission rate is below the median for comparable schools.

Most graduates are estimated to go into work rather than further study. The largest program, Finance, earns less than the highest-earning program, Computer and Information Sciences.

University of Delaware at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
70.6%
Six-year completion[2]
80.5%
Four-year earnings[3]
$77,675

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$13,225
Median student debt[4]
$24,572
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$43,000

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

University of Delaware is a public university in Newark, Delaware, enrolling 19,071 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits in the top fifth of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions, and its mobility pillar is the strongest.

The university admits 70.6% of applicants, a rate below the 78.1% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size. Retention runs well above the peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions: 92.0% of first-year students return, against a peer median of 83.1%.

The six-year graduation rate is 80.5%, compared to a peer median of 65.0%. An estimated 12.9% of undergraduates arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year rate describes the first-time full-time cohort rather than the full student body.

The four pillars are spread out. Mobility is the strongest, and return is also high. Affordability is the weakest of the four, with access sitting between them.

Mobility is the clearest strength at University of Delaware, where Azimuth places the pillar in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. For the other pillars, Azimuth puts return in the 80th percentile, access in the 61st percentile, and affordability in the 47th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Mobility is the strongest pillar, while affordability is the weakest, so the school’s broader profile is less even on cost than on graduate mobility.

16.1% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants. Among enrolled students who submitted test scores, the middle 50% of SAT scores fell between 1,190 and 1,370.

For the ACT, the middle 50% of submitted scores ranged from 28 to 32. Azimuth ranks University of Delaware #567 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell Grant recipients complete at 75.3%, which is 5.2 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate (80.5%). Azimuth ranks the university #158 for mobility. Graduates earn about $6,463 less than the model expects for similar students.

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

University of Delaware rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#242

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 89
Access & reach
National percentile: 61
Affordability
National percentile: 47
Return on investment
National percentile: 80

Top-ranked majors

  1. Educational Administration and Supervision#1
  2. Agriculture/Veterinary Preparatory Programs#2
  3. Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General#2

This school’s three highest-ranked programs nationally. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

Explore major rankings

01 / University of Delaware briefing

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

At University of Delaware, aid reduces the listed cost, but the average aid recipient pays more than at comparable institutions. The published cost of attendance is $30,952, an average across living arrangements.

In-state tuition and fees are $16,810. Out-of-state tuition and fees are $41,400, while room and board are $15,386.

The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $17,799. Aid offsets $13,153 on average, covering about 42% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $15,634, leaving the university $2,165 above it. Azimuth ranks University of Delaware #744 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The above-peer and the affordability ranking point in the same direction.

The published cost of attendance at University of Delaware is $30,952 (an average across living arrangements). Azimuth ranks the university #744 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, aid recipients in the lowest family-income band (under $30,000) average $10,901, those in the middle band ($48,001–$75,000) average $13,225, and those in the highest band (over $110,000) average $25,580. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $14,679.

Aid covers about 42% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, bringing the average net price across all bands to $17,799. That figure is $2,165 above the $15,634 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $24,572 in federal student loans, $4,496 above the peer median of $20,076. 93.3% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $43,000 in Parent PLUS loans. If repaid over ten years, the median student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $279 a month.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$13,225

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at University of Delaware

Debt at University of Delaware runs higher than at comparable institutions, and federal borrowing is widespread. 93.3% of federal aid recipients take federal loans.

Among federal-loan borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $24,572. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $20,076, placing Delaware above that figure by $4,496.

For the separate population of Parent PLUS parent borrowers, median borrowing is $43,000.

At University of Delaware, the investment picture pairs high earnings four years after completion with lower-than-expected modeled earnings and debt above comparable schools. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $77,675 four years after completion.

That earnings level falls in the 86th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $6,463 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, falls in the 30th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The earnings scenarios place the downside at $56,878, the typical case at $77,675, and the upside at $103,390.

For borrowers who complete, median federal student loan debt is $24,572, which is $4,496 above the $20,076 peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size). That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $279 a month if repaid over ten years. High earnings sit alongside a below-model result and borrowing above peers.

Family borrowing can include a separate parent loan: median Parent PLUS borrowing is $43,000 for parent borrowers. The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $279 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
$24,572
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$43,000

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$279/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$546/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 Delaware briefing

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

Mobility is University of Delaware's clearer strength, but the return evidence splits between peer earnings and model expectations. Azimuth puts its return pillar in the 80th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $6,463 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 30th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $8,863. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $15,326.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $1,567. Median earnings four years after completion are $77,675, in the 86th percentile.

Comparable institutions (same type and size) have a peer median—the middle value—of $65,610; the university is $12,065 above.

At University of Delaware, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $77,675 four years after completion. The earnings cohort includes 5,747 completers.

Azimuth places this earnings level in the 86th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios based on the program mix put typical earnings at $77,675, with a downside scenario of $56,878 and an upside scenario of $103,390.

For earnings beyond expectations—the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students—graduates earn about $6,463 less than the model expects for similar students. An estimated 29.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

The reported median and its percentile stand alongside earnings below model expectations, leaving a mixed return picture.

Federally aided graduates of University of Delaware who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $77,675 four years after completion. That figure is $12,065 above the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks the university #291 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $6,463 less than the model expects for similar students.

That result sits at the 30th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $8,863.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $15,326. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $1,567.

The university awards degrees across a wide range of fields, and the program mix yields a spread in earnings scenarios. The typical earnings scenario is $77,675, with a downside of $56,878 and an upside of $103,390.

An estimated 29.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

Earnings vary widely by program mix at University of Delaware, from a downside scenario of $56,878 to an upside scenario of $103,390. These are scenarios rather than observed graduate groups, and they show why a schoolwide median cannot stand in for every field. The program figures make the modeled range concrete.

Graduates of University of Delaware earn about $6,463 less than the model expects for similar students. The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $17,799, which is $2,165 above the $15,634 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $24,572 in federal student loans. That is $4,496 above the peer median of $20,076, and it corresponds to an estimated payment of $279 a month if repaid over ten years.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $43,000. The earnings fall short of the model's expectation, and both the net price and the median debt sit above the comparable-school midpoint.

A student looking at University of Delaware should weigh the above-peer cost and borrowing against the earnings picture.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$8,863
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$15,326
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
-$6,463

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 Delaware briefing

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

At 70.6%, University of Delaware admitted a majority of applicants to the reported entering class. The figure summarizes admissions outcomes across that applicant group rather than predicting an individual decision.

Its rate is below the median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size).

SAT: approximate enrolled-student range
Admission rate
70.6%
Approximate lower endpoint
1190
Reported average
1292
Approximate upper endpoint
1370

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 Delaware briefing

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

At University of Delaware, program earnings span higher-earning and more moderate-earning fields four years after completion. Educational Administration and Supervision has median earnings of $72,710 and 23 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #1 among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

Agriculture/Veterinary Preparatory Programs reports $55,528 in median earnings and 62 degrees awarded, with an Azimuth rank of #2 among nonprofit four-year institutions in the field. Other highly ranked fields show a wide range of earnings.

Apparel and Textiles shows median earnings of $76,595 four years after completion across 77 degrees awarded, while Azimuth ranks the field #3 among nonprofit four-year institutions. Health Sciences records $107,695 and 76 degrees awarded; its Azimuth rank is #2 among nonprofit four-year institutions in the field.

The program list combines highly ranked fields with widely differing earnings four years after completion. University of Delaware has 52 ranked bachelor’s fields.

In Azimuth’s national field rankings among nonprofit four-year institutions, Educational Administration and Supervision ranks #1, awarded 23 degrees, and has median earnings of $72,710 four years after completion. Health Sciences ranks #2, with 76 degrees awarded and median earnings of $107,695.

Agriculture/Veterinary Preparatory Programs holds a national Azimuth rank of #2, awarded 62 degrees, and shows median earnings of $55,528 four years after completion. Apparel and Textiles ranks #3, with 77 degrees awarded and median earnings of $76,595.

The rankings are strong across these fields, but their earnings figures make field choice especially consequential.

The bachelor's degrees at the University of Delaware are anchored in business, with the Business family accounting for 20.9% of degrees awarded. Health Professions and Social Sciences follow at 10.6% and 9.8%, respectively.

Across 59 programs with published four-year earnings, 52 hold an Azimuth national rank. The largest single program is Finance, at 310 degrees awarded, followed by Research and Experimental Psychology with 234 and Marketing with 216.

The highest-ranked program is Educational Administration and Supervision, which Azimuth places #1 in Delaware within its field. It awards 23 degrees a year and graduates earn a median of $72,710 four years after completion.

Health Sciences ranks #2 nationally and #1 in Delaware within its field. The highest-earning program is Computer and Information Sciences, where graduates earn $111,520 from 150 degrees awarded.

The university also has a high-return program in Health Sciences, with a benchmark ratio of 1.76x against the national median for its field. The pattern is one of strength concentrated in a few fields rather than spread evenly across the curriculum.

The top-ranked programs sit at the very top of their fields nationally, and the largest programs by degrees awarded are not the highest-earning ones. Finance, the largest program, earns $101,605, while the smaller Computer and Information Sciences program earns more.

Across all fields, 19.5% of degrees are in STEM, and the four-year earnings for fields where graduates commonly continue to graduate study understate later trajectories.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Finance and Financial Management Services 310 degrees awarded
$101,605
Research and Experimental Psychology 234 degrees awarded
$63,614
Marketing 216 degrees awarded
$88,383
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness 210 degrees awarded
$76,478
Biology, General 196 degrees awarded
$74,535
Communication and Media Studies 188 degrees awarded
$70,414

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 Delaware briefing

How does University of Delaware serve students from different backgrounds?

Completion is the clearest mobility strength at University of Delaware: the six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 80.5%. Pell recipients complete at 75.3%, below the overall rate by 5.2 percentage points.

Azimuth places the mobility pillar in the 89th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Four years after completion, graduates earn about $6,463 less than the model expects for similar students; Azimuth places earnings beyond expectations in the 30th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Access at University of Delaware begins with a 70.6% admission rate, while 16.1% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants. Undergraduate enrollment is 19,071, and an estimated 12.9% enter as transfers or part-time students.

Azimuth places the access pillar in the 61st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The admission and transfer figures describe multiple entry routes into the university.

06 / University of Delaware briefing

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

Admissions peerLoyola University Maryland75.5% admitted
Comparison with University of Delaware
MeasureUniversity of DelawareLoyola University Maryland
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,675$81,772+$4,097 vs University of Delaware
Average annual net price$17,799$30,574+$12,775 vs University of Delaware · higher cost
Admission rate70.6%75.5%
Higher-admission alternativeThe Catholic University of America82.8% admitted
Comparison with University of Delaware
MeasureUniversity of DelawareThe Catholic University of America
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,675$79,320+$1,645 vs University of Delaware
Average annual net price$17,799$29,561+$11,762 vs University of Delaware · higher cost
Admission rate70.6%82.8%
Nearby alternativeThe Catholic University of AmericaNearby option · DC
Comparison with University of Delaware
MeasureUniversity of DelawareThe Catholic University of America
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,675$79,320+$1,645 vs University of Delaware
Average annual net price$17,799$29,561+$11,762 vs University of Delaware · higher cost
Admission rate70.6%82.8%
Higher-earnings alternativeMissouri University of Science and Technology$93,514 earnings
Comparison with University of Delaware
MeasureUniversity of DelawareMissouri University of Science and Technology
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,675$93,514+$15,839 vs University of Delaware
Average annual net price$17,799$16,298-$1,501 vs University of Delaware · lower cost
Admission rate70.6%72.6%
Explore Missouri University of Science and Technology →
Lower-cost alternativeHoly Family University$13,143 average net price
Comparison with University of Delaware
MeasureUniversity of DelawareHoly Family University
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,675$82,892+$5,217 vs University of Delaware
Average annual net price$17,799$13,143-$4,656 vs University of Delaware · lower cost
Admission rate70.6%71.0%
Explore Holy Family University →
Similar profileJames Madison UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with University of Delaware
MeasureUniversity of DelawareJames Madison University
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,675$70,627-$7,048 vs University of Delaware
Average annual net price$17,799$23,322+$5,523 vs University of Delaware · higher cost
Admission rate70.6%71.5%
Explore James Madison 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 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