College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

University of Nevada-Reno

NVLarge public institution · Overall rank #209 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Azimuth gives the university an 86th overall standing among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Who it’s a good fit for

University of Nevada-Reno is a public university in Reno, Nevada, where the degree mix is led by Business and Health Professions. Mobility is well above average, and most graduates are estimated to go into jobs rather than on to further study.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures adds, and the part it attributes to what it cannot explain subtracts.

Students who arrive with Pell Grants finish within a few points of the rate for the entering cohort as a whole. The lowest income band pays well under the published cost, while the highest pays closer to it.

The admission rate is below the median for comparable institutions, and the largest programs are not the best-paid ones. A student drawn to Psychology should go in knowing that Nursing graduates earn considerably more.

UNR at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
73.7%
Six-year completion[2]
61.2%
Four-year earnings[3]
$67,498

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$14,537
Median student debt[4]
$18,922
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$26,150

UNR rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

University of Nevada-Reno is a public university in Reno, Nevada, enrolling 15,599 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits in the top sixth among nonprofit four-year institutions (86th percentile).

The university admits 73.7% of applicants, against a peer median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size). Among first-time full-time students, 79.7% return for a second year, compared with a peer median of 83.1%.

The six-year graduation rate stands at 61.2%, against a peer median of 65.0%. An estimated 25.0% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, so the six-year graduation rate does not reflect the experience of that group.

Return is the weakest of the four (70th percentile), while mobility is the strongest (88th percentile). Access and affordability fall between those two, at the 71st and 75th percentiles.

The pillars are grouped within a narrow range, with no single dimension far removed from the others.

Mobility is the clearest advantage in the university’s profile, reaching the 88th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, Azimuth places return in the 70th percentile, access in the 71st percentile, and affordability in the 75th percentile.

Return is the weakest pillar, so the profile is led by mobility rather than by its return measure.

22.9% of undergraduates at University of Nevada-Reno receive Pell Grants. Azimuth ranks University of Nevada-Reno #422 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell recipients complete at a rate of 62.8%, which is 1.6 percentage points above the rate for the entering cohort as a whole (61.2%). Azimuth ranks University of Nevada-Reno #173 for mobility. Graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students.

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

UNR rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#209

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 88
Access & reach
National percentile: 71
Affordability
National percentile: 75
Return on investment
National percentile: 70

Top-ranked majors

  1. Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management#9
  2. Social Work#14
  3. Business/Commerce, General#20

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 / UNR briefing

UNR cost & financial aid[6][7]

The published cost of attendance at University of Nevada-Reno is $25,786. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported in-state tuition of $8,656 and required fees of $1,642 for the 2026-27 academic year.

Nonresidents face a published tuition of $27,288. After grants and scholarships, aid recipients pay an average net price of $15,927.

That is $293 above the $15,634 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Aid covers about 38% of the published cost for the average aid recipient.

Azimuth ranks the university #351 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

At University of Nevada-Reno, the published cost of attendance is $25,786, and aid leaves different prices across family-income bands. The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $12,674 for the lowest family-income band, $13,125 for the lower-middle band, $14,537 for the middle band, $18,317 for the upper-middle band, and $21,646 for the highest band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $8,972. Azimuth ranks the university #351 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, financial aid savings total $9,859 against the sticker price, and aid covers about 38% of the published cost. Across all aid recipients, the is $15,927.

The peer median net price, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $15,634, placing the university’s average $293 above that benchmark. Aid offsets part of the published cost, though the typical net price sits above the peer midpoint.

Borrowing is lower than the peer median, though federal loans reach many undergraduates. Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $18,922, and 75.4% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans.

Comparable institutions (same type and size) have median federal debt of $20,076, making the university’s figure $1,154 below the peer median. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $215 a month if repaid over ten years.

Median Parent PLUS borrowing is $26,150.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$14,537

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at UNR

At University of Nevada-Reno, completing federal-loan borrowers have median debt of $18,922, which is $1,154 below the peer median of $20,076 for comparable institutions (same type and size). For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $26,150.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported that 100% of graduates borrowed from any source, with average cumulative borrowing of $22,729 per borrower. The figures include 98% of graduates with federal loans, averaging $18,070 in cumulative federal borrowing.

They also include 15% of graduates with private loans, averaging $33,238 in cumulative private borrowing.

At University of Nevada-Reno, earnings above the model’s expectation and debt below peers give the investment picture a favorable lean, though earnings scenarios vary across the program mix. Four years after completion, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $67,498.

Azimuth places that measure in the 71st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is a separate modeled measure.

Graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth places in the 69th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The downside, typical, and upside earnings scenarios are $50,820, $67,498, and $85,437. Median federal debt of $18,922 is $1,154 below the peer median of $20,076.

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $215 a month if repaid over ten years. Above-expected earnings and lower debt point in the same direction, while the scenarios show a broad range.

Parent PLUS parent borrowers have median borrowing of $26,150, separate from federal student loan borrowers. The median federal student debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $215 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
$18,922
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$26,150

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$215/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$332/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 / UNR briefing

UNR career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

For graduates, the model and peer figures offer a favorable return picture. Graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, that earnings-beyond-expectations result—the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students—is in the 69th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $10,686.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $6,560. Azimuth places the return pillar for University of Nevada-Reno in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $67,498 four years after completion, in the 71st percentile. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $65,610, with university earnings $1,888 above it. The model result and peer comparison point in the same direction.

Four years after completing a degree, graduates of University of Nevada-Reno earn a median of $67,498, based on a cohort of 3,937 completers. That is $1,888 above the median for comparable institutions (same type and size), and Azimuth places it in the 71st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students. The gap sits at the 69th percentile.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the university's program mix, give a sense of the range. The typical earnings scenario is $67,498, with a downside of $50,820 and an upside of $85,437.

An estimated 30.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.

University of Nevada-Reno has median earnings of $67,498 four years after completion, placing the university in the 71st percentile. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $65,610, and the university’s figure is $1,888 above it.

Graduates earn about $4,126 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, is in the 69th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $10,686. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $6,560.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $3,048. Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix run from $50,820 in the downside scenario to $85,437 in the upside scenario.

Azimuth ranks the return pillar #438 among nonprofit four-year institutions. Nursing sets the highest program earnings shown, with 168 degrees awarded and median earnings of $97,949 four years after completion.

Azimuth ranks the program #81 nationally within its field. Other high-earning programs include Electrical Engineering, with 57 degrees awarded and $96,291 in earnings, and Mechanical Engineering, with 135 degrees awarded and $88,460.

Accounting adds 80 degrees awarded, $85,943 in earnings, and an Azimuth national rank of #79 within its field. These programs show a wide earnings range within the university’s program mix.

The modeled earnings range is broad at University of Nevada-Reno, reflecting its program mix. The downside scenario is $50,820, and the upside scenario is $85,437; both are earnings scenarios rather than observed graduate groups.

Borrowing sits below the peer reference point at University of Nevada-Reno. Among borrowers who completed, the university has median federal student loan debt of $18,922 at completion.

This measure excludes Parent PLUS and does not describe every graduate. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $20,076.

The university's figure is below it by $1,154. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $215 a month if repaid over ten years.

Graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students. Lower borrowing and higher-than-expected earnings point the same way.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$10,686
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$6,560
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$4,126

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 / UNR briefing

UNR acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

University of Nevada-Reno admits 73.7% of applicants, a rate that sits close to the median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size). In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 19,136 first-year applicants and 15,908 admitted applicants, with 3,747 enrolling.

SAT: reported composite scores
Admission rate
73.7%
25th percentile
1060
Median
1170
75th percentile
1280

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Read the full admissions brief

04 / UNR briefing

What are the largest majors at UNR?[12]

The largest programs at University of Nevada-Reno show a wide earnings spread four years after completion. Nursing leads the group with 168 degrees awarded and median earnings of $97,949; Azimuth ranks it #81 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

Business/Commerce follows with 158 degrees awarded and median earnings of $68,419, placing it #20 nationally. Psychology, the largest program with published earnings on campus at 223 degrees awarded, reports median earnings of $51,553 and ranks #152 nationally.

Marketing sits between the two ends, with 174 degrees awarded, median earnings of $67,914, and a national rank of #87. The contrast between Nursing and Psychology shows that program choice here carries a substantial earnings difference.

University of Nevada-Reno has 35 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, with earnings data available for 40 fields. The largest program with published earnings, Psychology, awarded 223 degrees in the most recent year.

Azimuth ranks it #152 within its field, with median earnings of $51,553 four years after completion. Nursing is both a large program at 168 degrees awarded and the highest-earning, with a median of $97,949 and a national rank of #81.

The best nationally ranked program is Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management, which Azimuth places #9 in its field. Social Work follows at #14 nationally with 112 degrees awarded and median earnings of $60,320, while Business/Commerce ranks #20 and awarded 158 degrees, with median earnings of $68,419.

The bachelor's degrees at University of Nevada-Reno spread across a wide set of fields, with 40 programs reporting four-year earnings. The largest families are Business, at 16.4% of degrees awarded, and Health Professions, at 15.4%, followed by Biological Sciences at 8.9%.

The largest programs with published earnings are Psychology with 223 degrees awarded, Biology with 177, and Marketing with 174. Azimuth ranks 35 of the university's programs nationally within their fields.

The highest-ranked program is Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management, which Azimuth places #1 in Nevada within its field. Social Work ranks #14 nationally and #1 in Nevada, from 112 degrees awarded.

The highest-earning program is Nursing, where graduates earn a median of $97,949 four years after completion, with 168 degrees awarded. Electrical Engineering follows at $96,291, from a smaller cohort of 57 degrees awarded.

The pattern is one of strength distributed across several fields rather than concentrated in a single area. The largest programs with published earnings are not the highest-earning, but the gap is not extreme: Psychology, the largest, earns $51,553, while the highest-earning program posts a median above that.

28.4% of degrees awarded are in STEM fields, and the strongest ranks appear in natural resources, social science, and business programs.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Public Health 353 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Psychology, General 223 degrees awarded
$51,553
Biology, General 177 degrees awarded
$59,715
Marketing 174 degrees awarded
$67,914
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 168 degrees awarded
$97,949
Criminal Justice and Corrections 165 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 / UNR briefing

How does UNR serve students from different backgrounds?

Completion and modeled earnings give the university its strongest showing in mobility. The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 61.2%, and Pell recipients complete within six years at 62.8%, above the overall rate by 1.6 percentage points.

Azimuth places the mobility pillar in the 88th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings beyond expectations are the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, and graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students.

That measure sits in the 69th percentile. Strong completion and higher-than-expected earnings point in the same direction.

At University of Nevada-Reno, Pell Grants go to 22.9% of undergraduates, and an estimated 25.0% enter as transfers or part-time students. The university enrolls 15,599 undergraduates and admits 73.7% of applicants, indicating multiple routes into a substantial undergraduate population.

Azimuth places the access pillar in the 71st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Pell participation, transfer entry, and the admission rate describe an access profile with room for several kinds of applicants.

06 / UNR briefing

What colleges are similar to UNR?[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 UNR.

Admissions peerSaint Edward's University81.4% admitted
Comparison with UNR
MeasureUNRSaint Edward's University
Peer earnings · 4 years$67,498$59,999-$7,499 vs UNR
Average annual net price$15,927$25,578+$9,651 vs UNR · higher cost
Admission rate73.7%81.4%
Explore Saint Edward's University →
Higher-admission alternativeOklahoma Christian University96.5% admitted
Comparison with UNR
MeasureUNROklahoma Christian University
Peer earnings · 4 years$67,498$67,575+$77 vs UNR
Average annual net price$15,927$21,872+$5,945 vs UNR · higher cost
Admission rate73.7%96.5%
Nearby alternativeUniversity of Nevada-Las VegasNearby option · NV
Comparison with UNR
MeasureUNRUniversity of Nevada-Las Vegas
Peer earnings · 4 years$67,498$62,637-$4,861 vs UNR
Average annual net price$15,927$10,359-$5,568 vs UNR · lower cost
Admission rate73.7%96.2%
Explore University of Nevada-Las Vegas →
Higher-earnings alternativeUniversity of Massachusetts-Lowell$81,163 earnings
Comparison with UNR
MeasureUNRUniversity of Massachusetts-Lowell
Peer earnings · 4 years$67,498$81,163+$13,665 vs UNR
Average annual net price$15,927$17,163+$1,236 vs UNR · higher cost
Admission rate73.7%83.0%
Explore University of Massachusetts-Lowell →
Lower-cost alternativeCUNY Brooklyn College$3,103 average net price
Comparison with UNR
MeasureUNRCUNY Brooklyn College
Peer earnings · 4 years$67,498$62,833-$4,665 vs UNR
Average annual net price$15,927$3,103-$12,824 vs UNR · lower cost
Admission rate73.7%58.4%
Explore CUNY Brooklyn College →
Similar profileUniversity of New Mexico-Main CampusMatched across several measures
Comparison with UNR
MeasureUNRUniversity of New Mexico-Main Campus
Peer earnings · 4 years$67,498$59,818-$7,680 vs UNR
Average annual net price$15,927$15,489-$438 vs UNR · lower cost
Admission rate73.7%95.2%
Explore University of New Mexico-Main Campus →

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