College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

University of Nebraska at Kearney

NEMedium public institution · Overall rank #443 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth places University of Nebraska at Kearney in the 70th percentile nationally.

Who it’s a good fit for

University of Nebraska at Kearney is a public university in Kearney, Nebraska, where the degree mix is led by Business and Education. Affordability is well above average, and mobility is above average.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures — field of study, enrollment and the local labor market — adds, and the part it cannot explain subtracts.

The typical graduate earns below the median at comparable schools. Pell students complete below the overall rate.

Families at the bottom of the income scale pay well below the published cost, while those at the top pay closer to it. The admission rate is above the median for comparable institutions, 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 ones are smaller.

University of Nebraska at Kearney at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
89.5%
Six-year completion[2]
57.7%
Four-year earnings[3]
$56,647

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$14,547
Median student debt[4]
$19,500
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$14,457

University of Nebraska at Kearney rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

University of Nebraska at Kearney is a public university in Kearney, Nebraska, enrolling 4,088 undergraduates. Its composite standing is in the upper-middle of the field, with affordability as the strongest and return as the weakest.

The university admits 89.5% of applicants, against a peer median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size). Of students who start full time, 80.0% return for a second year, above the peer median of 73.7%.

The six-year graduation rate is 57.7%, also above the peer median of 49.1%. An estimated 25.9% of undergraduates arrive as transfers or part-time students.

The four pillars are spread across the middle of the field. Affordability is the strongest, with mobility close behind, while access and return sit lower, creating a shape where cost and outcomes for low-income students are the relative strengths.

Affordability is the clearest strength at University of Nebraska at Kearney, placing in the 78th percentile of nonprofit four-year institutions. Mobility stands in the 70th percentile, access in the 60th percentile, and return in the 54th percentile.

Affordability is the strongest pillar, while return is the weakest, so the pillar picture favors cost more than post-completion return.

Pell Grants reach 36.9% of undergraduates at University of Nebraska at Kearney, the share of the student body receiving federal need-based aid. The access pillar weighs financial access and completion.

Pell recipients finish at 48.2%, 9.5 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate (57.7%). Azimuth places University of Nebraska at Kearney at #583 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth ranks the university #441 for mobility among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $2,449 more than the model expects for similar students.

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

University of Nebraska at Kearney rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#443

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 70
Access & reach
National percentile: 60
Affordability
National percentile: 78
Return on investment
National percentile: 54

Top-ranked majors

  1. Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies#9
  2. Family and Consumer Economics and Related Studies#10
  3. Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions#33

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 Nebraska at Kearney briefing

University of Nebraska at Kearney cost & financial aid[6][7]

At University of Nebraska at Kearney, aid reduces the published budget for the average aid recipient, although its net price sits above that of comparable institutions. The published cost of attendance is $25,808.

In-state tuition and fees are $8,676, and out-of-state tuition and fees are $15,284. Room and board add $12,198.

The , what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $16,242, with average aid savings of $9,566 against the published cost. Aid covers about 37% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.

The peer median net price at comparable institutions (same type and size) is $14,068, so this figure is above it by $2,174. Azimuth ranks the university #314 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. The peer-price comparison is less favorable than the affordability rank.

The published cost of attendance is $25,808. Azimuth ranks University of Nebraska at Kearney #314 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

After grants and scholarships, the average net price for aid recipients from families earning under $30,000 is $13,066, for those earning $48,001 to $75,000 it is $14,547, and for those earning over $110,000 it is $20,664. The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $7,598.

Aid covers about 37% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, bringing the average net price across all bands to $16,242. That is $2,174 above the $14,068 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Borrowers who finish carry a median of $19,500 in federal student loans, $1,729 below the $21,229 peer median. 82.4% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.

Parents who borrow hold a separate median of $14,457 in Parent PLUS loans. If repaid over ten years, the median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 a month. It estimates what a family might pay based on their own finances.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$14,547

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at University of Nebraska at Kearney

Federal debt at completion sits below the comparable-school benchmark, even though 82.4% of federal aid recipients take federal loans. At University of Nebraska at Kearney, borrowers who completed have median federal student loan debt of $19,500.

The peer median for comparable institutions (same type and size) is $21,229, leaving the university's median $1,729 below it. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $14,457.

In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported that 45% of graduates borrowed from any source, with average cumulative borrowing of $19,929 per borrower. That group included 44% of graduates with federal loans, averaging $17,547.

Among graduates, 6% had private loans, with average cumulative private borrowing of $19,083.

At University of Nebraska at Kearney, graduates earn about $2,449 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, sit in the 64th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Median earnings are $56,647 four years after completion. Azimuth places that earnings measure in the 38th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The earnings scenarios put the downside case at $43,994, the typical scenario at $56,647, and the upside case at $68,750. Median federal debt at completion is $19,500, below the $21,229 peer median at comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,729.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 a month if repaid over ten years. Above-expected earnings and lower borrowing point in the same direction, while the observed earnings percentile is more modest.

Parent and student federal borrowing are measured separately here. For parents who used Parent PLUS, median federal borrowing was $14,457, a figure for a separate parent-borrower population.

Student borrowers had median federal student loan debt of $19,500; that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 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
$19,500
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$14,457

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$222/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$184/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 Nebraska at Kearney briefing

University of Nebraska at Kearney career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

The return picture at University of Nebraska at Kearney is about average among nonprofit four-year institutions, with the pillar at the 54th percentile. Four years after completion, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $56,647, which is in the 38th percentile.

That median sits $654 below the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Graduates earn about $2,449 more than the model expects for similar students, placing the gap at the 64th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $6,962. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $4,513. Within the measured factors, the STEM component subtracts $148.

At University of Nebraska at Kearney, graduates post median earnings of $56,647 four years after completion, a measure for federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. This is an earnings result near the middle of the national distribution rather than a record of every alumnus.

Azimuth puts the four-year median in the 38th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The underlying earnings cohort contains 1,226 completers.

Graduates earn about $2,449 more than the model expects for similar students. The program-mix model sets a typical earnings scenario at $56,647, alongside a downside scenario of $43,994 and an upside scenario of $68,750.

An estimated 27.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. The model points to a wide range of possible earnings outcomes by field.

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $56,647, in the 38th percentile for earnings. This is $654 below the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Azimuth ranks University of Nebraska at Kearney #672 for return among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $2,449 more than the model expects for similar students.

That places the earnings-beyond-expectations result at the 64th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $6,962.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $4,513. Within the measured factors, the STEM component subtracts $148.

The program mix clusters heavily in business and education, with smaller showings in parks and recreation and allied health. Earnings scenarios, estimated from that mix, stretch from $43,994 on the downside to $68,750 on the upside.

An estimated 27.9% of graduates continue on to graduate study, based on the program mix rather than observed enrollment.

At University of Nebraska at Kearney, earnings scenarios show a wide spread in earnings by program mix, from $43,994 in the downside scenario to $68,750 in the upside scenario. The typical earnings scenario is $56,647, and each is a model rather than an observed group.

Published program medians help show that variation four years after completion: Allied Health Professions completers earn $77,034, Biology completers earn $67,151, and Business Administration and Management completers earn $64,684. Field choice is closely tied to where an outcome falls within the modeled range.

Affordability is the strongest pillar at University of Nebraska at Kearney, and the debt figures bear that out. Borrowers who complete a degree carry a median of $19,500 in federal student loans, which is $1,729 below the median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $222 a month if repaid over ten years. The published cost of attendance is $25,808, but the average net price—what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships—is $16,242.

Aid covers about 37% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, though this is an average, not a personal quote. Graduates earn about $2,449 more than the model expects for similar students.

A debt load below the peer median and earnings above the model's expectation point the same way for a student who finishes.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$6,962
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$4,513
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$2,449

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 Nebraska at Kearney briefing

University of Nebraska at Kearney acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, University of Nebraska at Kearney reported 5,283 first-year applicants, of whom 4,728 were admitted. The federal admission rate of 89.5% means most applicants in its reporting group were admitted.

It sits above the median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size). The rate summarizes that reporting group rather than predicting an individual admission decision.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
89.5%
25th percentile
915
Median
1080
75th percentile
1125

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

Read the full admissions brief

04 / University of Nebraska at Kearney briefing

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

Program earnings vary sharply across the university's nationally ranked fields, so the field of study matters to the return picture. Four years after completion, Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies reports median earnings of $54,563 from 53 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #9 among nonprofit four-year institutions nationally within its field.

Family and Consumer Economics and Related Studies posts $49,584 and 34 degrees awarded, with an Azimuth rank of #10 among nonprofit four-year institutions nationally within its field. Allied Health Professions has median earnings of $77,034 across 45 degrees awarded and ranks #33 by Azimuth among nonprofit four-year institutions nationally within its field.

The third field shows the highest earnings of the three, while the first two fields are more moderate.

University of Nebraska at Kearney has 10 nationally ranked bachelor's programs. The strongest is Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies, which Azimuth ranks #9 in its field and #1 in Nebraska.

It awarded 53 degrees and its completers earned a median of $54,563 four years after completion. The largest program is Business Administration and Management, with 181 degrees awarded.

Allied Health Professions is the third ranked program, at #33 nationally and #1 in Nebraska.

The bachelor's degrees at University of Nebraska at Kearney are spread across several fields, with Business accounting for the largest share at 21.3% of degrees awarded, followed by Education at 15.2% and Parks, Recreation & Fitness at 7.9%. Of the 18 programs with published four-year earnings, 10 carry an Azimuth national rank.

The largest single program is Business Administration and Management, which awards 181 degrees a year, while Teacher Education awards 97 and Liberal Arts and General Studies awards 62. The highest-ranked program is Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies, which Azimuth ranks #1 in Nebraska within its field.

It awards 53 degrees a year and its graduates earn a median of $54,563 four years after completion. The highest-earning program is Allied Health Professions, where graduates earn a median of $77,034 from 45 degrees awarded.

Biology follows at $67,151, with 43 degrees awarded. Business Administration and Management, the largest program, also ranks #2 in Nebraska within its field, with median earnings of $64,684.

The pattern here is one of breadth rather than concentration: the largest family accounts for just over a fifth of degrees. The highest-ranked program is a mid-sized one in Parks, Recreation & Fitness.

The highest earnings come from Allied Health Professions, a program that is also among the five largest. The largest program, Business Administration and Management, posts earnings below the national median for its field.

A student drawn to the highest-ranked program will find a different earnings profile than one choosing the highest-earning field. The spread across families means no single department dominates the undergraduate experience.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Business Administration, Management and Operations 181 degrees awarded
$64,684
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods 97 degrees awarded
$41,922
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities 62 degrees awarded
$47,600
Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies 53 degrees awarded
$54,563
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions 45 degrees awarded
$77,034
Biology, General 43 degrees awarded
$67,151

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 Nebraska at Kearney briefing

How does University of Nebraska at Kearney serve students from different backgrounds?

For the first-time full-time cohort, the six-year graduation rate is 57.7%, and Pell recipients complete at 48.2%, below the overall rate by 9.5 percentage points. Azimuth places University of Nebraska at Kearney's mobility pillar in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $2,449 more than the model expects for similar students. That earnings-beyond-expectations measure, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, stands in the 64th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Broad admission and transfer entry shape access at University of Nebraska at Kearney. It admits 89.5% of applicants, enrolls 4,088 undergraduates, and has an estimated share of entrants outside the first-time, full-time group of 25.9%.

Pell Grants go to 36.9% of undergraduates. Azimuth assigns the university’s access pillar a 60th percentile position among nonprofit four-year institutions. These measures describe entry routes into undergraduate study.

06 / University of Nebraska at Kearney briefing

What colleges are similar to University of Nebraska at Kearney?[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 Nebraska at Kearney.

Admissions peerUniversity of Nebraska at Omaha87.0% admitted
Comparison with University of Nebraska at Kearney
MeasureUniversity of Nebraska at KearneyUniversity of Nebraska at Omaha
Peer earnings · 4 years$56,647$60,448+$3,801 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney
Average annual net price$16,242$13,441-$2,801 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney · lower cost
Admission rate89.5%87.0%
Explore University of Nebraska at Omaha →
Higher-admission alternativeLoras College99.9% admitted
Comparison with University of Nebraska at Kearney
MeasureUniversity of Nebraska at KearneyLoras College
Peer earnings · 4 years$56,647$55,860-$787 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney
Average annual net price$16,242$20,716+$4,474 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney · higher cost
Admission rate89.5%99.9%
Nearby alternativeHastings CollegeNearby option · NE
Comparison with University of Nebraska at Kearney
MeasureUniversity of Nebraska at KearneyHastings College
Peer earnings · 4 years$56,647$52,539-$4,108 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney
Average annual net price$16,242$24,452+$8,210 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney · higher cost
Admission rate89.5%71.7%
Higher-earnings alternativeUniversity of Massachusetts-Lowell$81,163 earnings
Comparison with University of Nebraska at Kearney
MeasureUniversity of Nebraska at KearneyUniversity of Massachusetts-Lowell
Peer earnings · 4 years$56,647$81,163+$24,516 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney
Average annual net price$16,242$17,163+$921 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney · higher cost
Admission rate89.5%83.0%
Explore University of Massachusetts-Lowell →
Lower-cost alternativeTrinity International University-Illinois$2,835 average net price
Comparison with University of Nebraska at Kearney
MeasureUniversity of Nebraska at KearneyTrinity International University-Illinois
Peer earnings · 4 years$56,647$51,985-$4,662 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney
Average annual net price$16,242$2,835-$13,407 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney · lower cost
Admission rate89.5%100.0%
Similar profileIndiana University-South BendMatched across several measures
Comparison with University of Nebraska at Kearney
MeasureUniversity of Nebraska at KearneyIndiana University-South Bend
Peer earnings · 4 years$56,647$55,103-$1,544 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney
Average annual net price$16,242$8,653-$7,589 vs University of Nebraska at Kearney · lower cost
Admission rate89.5%83.8%
Explore Indiana University-South Bend →

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