College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

University of Michigan-Dearborn

MIMedium public institution · Overall rank #88 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

A public university where graduates earn well above expectations.

Who it’s a good fit for

University of Michigan-Dearborn is a public university in Dearborn, Michigan, where the degree mix is led by Engineering and Business. Return is among the highest we track.

Graduates out-earn what the model predicts for students like them. The model attributes more of that to the remainder it does not explain than to the factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market.

Affordability is well above average, and the spread between the lowest and highest income bands is modest. Pell students complete below the overall rate, and access is among the highest we track.

The admission rate is below the median for comparable schools. A student drawn to engineering or computing will find the strongest earnings here, though the largest programs are not the highest-earning ones.

University of Michigan-Dearborn at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
55.6%
Six-year completion[2]
58.0%
Four-year earnings[3]
$77,294

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$7,997
Median student debt[4]
$22,500
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$16,132

University of Michigan-Dearborn rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

University of Michigan-Dearborn is a public university in Dearborn, Michigan, enrolling 5,952 undergraduates. Its composite standing is in the top tenth of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions (94th percentile).

The four sit close together, with return the strongest and affordability the weakest, a shape that suggests a consistent performance across the framework rather than a single standout dimension. The university admits 55.6% of applicants, a rate that is well below the 85.9% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size.

Of students who start full time, 82.5% return for a second year and 58.0% finish within six years. Both figures run above the peer medians of 73.7% and 49.1%.

An estimated 35.4% of entrants arrive as transfers, so a substantial part of the student body did not begin here, and the six-year rate describes the first-time, full-time cohort only. The return pillar sits at the 91st percentile, with access and mobility close behind at the 91st and 90th percentiles.

Affordability is the weakest of the four at the 86th percentile, though the gap between the strongest and weakest pillars is modest.

Azimuth ranks University of Michigan-Dearborn #88 among 1,467 nonprofit four-year institutions. The university's strongest pillar is return, at the 91st percentile, reflecting completers who earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students.

Access lands in the top decile at the 91st percentile, and mobility stands at the 90th percentile. Affordability, while the weakest pillar, still sits at the 86th percentile.

46.2% of undergraduates at University of Michigan-Dearborn receive Pell Grants. Azimuth ranks the university #134 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell recipients complete at 50.5%, 7.5 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate (58.0%). Azimuth ranks University of Michigan-Dearborn #152 for mobility. Graduates earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students.

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

University of Michigan-Dearborn rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#88

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 90
Access & reach
National percentile: 91
Affordability
National percentile: 86
Return on investment
National percentile: 91

Top-ranked majors

  1. Computer Programming#1
  2. Management Information Systems and Services#19
  3. Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering#21

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 Michigan-Dearborn briefing

University of Michigan-Dearborn cost & financial aid[6][7]

The University of Michigan-Dearborn publishes a cost of attendance of $24,040. In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported sticker charges for the 2025-26 academic year of $15,840 in-state tuition and $400 in required fees.

Out-of-state tuition is $33,768. After financial aid, the average net price for aid recipients is $9,492, a savings of $14,548 against the sticker price.

That sits below the peer median of $14,068 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $4,576. Azimuth ranks the university #193 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The University of Michigan-Dearborn publishes a cost of attendance of $24,040. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $7,211, and for those in the $30,001–$48,000 band it is $6,284.

The middle band, $48,001–$75,000, sees an average net price of $7,997, while the $75,001–$110,000 band averages $13,630. Families earning over $110,000 face an average net price of $17,529.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $10,318. Azimuth ranks the university #193 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Aid covers about 61% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, a savings of roughly $14,548 against the sticker price. The average net price across all aid recipients is $9,492, which sits below the peer median of $14,068 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $4,576.

Median federal student loan debt at completion is $22,500, with about 75.3% of federal aid recipients borrowing. That figure is above the peer median of $21,229 by $1,271.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing stands at $16,132. If repaid over ten years, the estimated monthly payment for a graduate with the median federal debt is $256.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$7,997

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at University of Michigan-Dearborn

Completers who borrowed at University of Michigan-Dearborn face a median federal debt of $22,500. Federal loans reach 75.3% of federal aid recipients, and that amount sits above the $21,229 median at comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,271.

Parent borrowers represent a separate population; their median Parent PLUS debt is $16,132. In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported that 45% of 679 bachelor's graduates borrowed from any source, averaging $22,305 per borrower.

That figure included 44% with federal loans averaging $19,162 and 6% with private loans averaging $25,413.

Graduates of University of Michigan-Dearborn earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students, an outcome in the 95th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The median earnings four years after completion reach $77,294, which sits in the 86th percentile nationally.

Earnings scenarios anchored on the university's program mix show a typical earnings figure of $77,294, a downside scenario of $49,554, and an upside scenario of $103,554. Borrowers complete their degrees with a median federal debt of $22,500, which is above the $21,229 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). If repaid over ten years, the estimated monthly payment is $256.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing, a separate parent-borrower population, is $16,132. The estimated monthly student payment if repaid over ten years is $256.

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

Financial GPS

What does repayment look like?

Institution median student debt
$22,500
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$16,132

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$256/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$205/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 Michigan-Dearborn briefing

University of Michigan-Dearborn 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 $77,294. That figure is $19,993 above the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size), and sits at the 86th percentile.

Graduates earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students, placing that gap at the 95th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Of that gap, the model attributes $8,904 to the factors it measures, a share that adds to expected earnings.

It attributes $10,557 to a remainder it does not explain, which also adds to expected earnings. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $6,046.

Azimuth places the university at the 91st percentile for return among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates of University of Michigan-Dearborn earn a median of $77,294 four years after completion. That is $19,993 above the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth places the earnings measure in the 86th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 1,557 completers. Graduates earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students.

That gap lands at the 95th percentile. Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix put typical earnings at $77,294, with a downside scenario of $49,554 and an upside scenario of $103,554.

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

Four years after completion, graduates of University of Michigan-Dearborn earn a median of $77,294, which places the university in the 86th percentile nationally. That figure is above the median of $57,301 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $19,993.

Graduates earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students, a result in the 95th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $8,904.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $10,557. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $6,046.

Azimuth ranks the university #126 for the return pillar among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix show a downside of $49,554 and an upside of $103,554.

The largest program, Mechanical Engineering, awarded 134 degrees and shows median earnings of $94,919 four years after completion, ranking #65 nationally in its field according to Azimuth. Electrical Engineering follows with 121 degrees awarded and a median of $105,446.

The highest-earning program is Computer Engineering, with 36 degrees awarded and a median of $111,740. Computer Programming awarded 57 degrees and a median of $106,484, which is 1.28x the national median for that field.

The earnings scenarios for University of Michigan-Dearborn span from $49,554 to $103,554, reflecting the range of outcomes associated with different program clusters. The university's highest-earning programs include Computer Engineering, where completers earn a median of $111,740, and Computer Programming, with median earnings of $106,484.

Electrical Engineering completers earn a median of $105,446, and Management Information Systems and Services completers earn $95,864.

Graduates of University of Michigan-Dearborn earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students. The median federal student debt for borrowers who complete is $22,500, which is $1,271 above the $21,229 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $256 a month if repaid over ten years. Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $16,132.

The published cost of attendance is $24,040, and aid covers about 61% of that for the average aid recipient. After grants and scholarships, aid recipients in the lowest income band average $7,211, while those in the highest band average $17,529. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $10,318.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$8,904
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$10,557
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$19,461

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 Michigan-Dearborn briefing

University of Michigan-Dearborn acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

University of Michigan-Dearborn admitted 55.6% of applicants, a rate well below the median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size). In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported 13,942 applicants, 7,758 admitted, and 1,112 enrolled first-year students.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
55.6%
25th percentile
990
Median
1120
75th percentile
1250

CDS 2024-25 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / University of Michigan-Dearborn briefing

What are the largest majors at University of Michigan-Dearborn?[12]

The five largest programs at University of Michigan-Dearborn show a wide spread in earnings four years after completion. Electrical Engineering leads the group at $105,446, with 121 degrees awarded.

Psychology sits at the other end, at $48,052 and 121 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #237 nationally within its field. Mechanical Engineering is the largest single program, with 134 degrees awarded.

Graduates earn a median of $94,919, and Azimuth ranks the program #65 nationally within its field. Computer and Information Sciences has 76 degrees awarded and median earnings of $90,430.

The program mix here is weighted toward engineering and computing fields, which sit well above the social and natural sciences in median earnings four years after completion.

University of Michigan-Dearborn has 16 nationally ranked bachelor's programs and publishes earnings data for 21 programs. The largest program, Mechanical Engineering, awarded 134 degrees and holds a national rank of #65 with median earnings of $94,919 four years after completion.

Electrical Engineering follows with 121 degrees awarded and median earnings of $105,446. Psychology, the third-largest program, awarded 121 degrees and ranks #237 nationally, with median earnings of $48,052.

The bachelor's degree mix at University of Michigan-Dearborn is anchored in Engineering and Business, which together account for nearly half of all degrees awarded. Engineering leads at 23.8% of degrees, followed by Business at 22.5%.

Computer & Information Sciences is a smaller but notable third at 9.7%. Across 21 programs with published four-year earnings data, Azimuth ranks 16 within their fields nationally.

The largest single program is Mechanical Engineering, with 134 degrees awarded, followed by Electrical Engineering and Psychology, each at 121 degrees awarded. The strongest programs by earnings and rank are concentrated in engineering and computing.

The highest-earning program is Computer Engineering, where graduates earn a median of $111,740 four years after completion, from 36 degrees awarded. Computer Programming follows at $106,484, from 57 degrees awarded, with a benchmark ratio of 1.28x against the national median for its field.

Mechanical Engineering, the largest program, is also the highest-ranked, earning $94,919 and ranking #5 in Michigan within its field. Electrical Engineering graduates earn $105,446, a benchmark ratio of 1.05x.

The pattern is one of strength concentrated in technical fields, though not uniformly. The two largest programs are in engineering, and their earnings sit above the national medians for their fields.

The highest-earning programs are small, but the largest programs are also among the best-paid, so the earnings advantage is not confined to a niche. A student drawn to Psychology, the third-largest program, should know that its median earnings of $48,052 sit below the national median for the field.

That is a different trajectory from the engineering programs that dominate the degree mix.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Mechanical Engineering 134 degrees awarded
$94,919
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering 121 degrees awarded
$105,446
Psychology, General 121 degrees awarded
$48,052
Biology, General 104 degrees awarded
$53,888
Computer and Information Sciences, General 76 degrees awarded
$90,430
Public Health 66 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report

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 Michigan-Dearborn briefing

How does University of Michigan-Dearborn serve students from different backgrounds?

For mobility, University of Michigan-Dearborn sits in the 90th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth assigns a mobility rank of #152 to the university among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The six-year completion rate for Pell recipients in the first-time full-time cohort is 50.5%, which is below the overall graduation rate of 58.0% by 7.5 percentage points. Graduates earn about $19,461 more than the model expects for similar students, an outcome measured four years after completion that sits in the 95th percentile.

Azimuth places the access pillar of University of Michigan-Dearborn in the 91st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The public university admits 55.6% of applicants, a rate well below the peer median of 85.9%.

Pell Grant recipients account for 46.2% of the 5,952 undergraduates, and an estimated 35.4% arrive as transfers or part-time students.

06 / University of Michigan-Dearborn briefing

What colleges are similar to University of Michigan-Dearborn?[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 Michigan-Dearborn.

Admissions peerSpring Arbor University51.5% admitted
Comparison with University of Michigan-Dearborn
MeasureUniversity of Michigan-DearbornSpring Arbor University
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,294$55,203-$22,091 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn
Average annual net price$9,492$19,353+$9,861 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn · higher cost
Admission rate55.6%51.5%
Higher-admission alternativeUniversity of Detroit Mercy75.4% admitted
Comparison with University of Michigan-Dearborn
MeasureUniversity of Michigan-DearbornUniversity of Detroit Mercy
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,294$78,953+$1,659 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn
Average annual net price$9,492$15,232+$5,740 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn · higher cost
Admission rate55.6%75.4%
Nearby alternativeLawrence Technological UniversityNearby option · MI
Comparison with University of Michigan-Dearborn
MeasureUniversity of Michigan-DearbornLawrence Technological University
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,294$90,760+$13,466 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn
Average annual net price$9,492$32,918+$23,426 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn · higher cost
Admission rate55.6%55.9%
Explore Lawrence Technological University →
Lower-cost alternativeUniversity of Florida$4,815 average net price
Comparison with University of Michigan-Dearborn
MeasureUniversity of Michigan-DearbornUniversity of Florida
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,294$77,321+$27 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn
Average annual net price$9,492$4,815-$4,677 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn · lower cost
Admission rate55.6%61.3%
Explore University of Florida →
Similar profilePurdue University NorthwestMatched across several measures
Comparison with University of Michigan-Dearborn
MeasureUniversity of Michigan-DearbornPurdue University Northwest
Peer earnings · 4 years$77,294$73,337-$3,957 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn
Average annual net price$9,492$6,079-$3,413 vs University of Michigan-Dearborn · lower cost
Admission rate55.6%72.4%
Explore Purdue University Northwest →

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