College Azimuth

Research brief & institution hub

Woodbury University

CASmall private nonprofit institution · Overall rank #961 nationally

Data snapshot Updated

Overall, Woodbury University sits in Azimuth’s 35th percentile.

Who it’s a good fit for

Woodbury University is a private nonprofit university in Burbank, California, where the degree mix is led by Visual & Performing Arts and Architecture. Return is well above average, and the university suits a student drawn to creative fields who wants to see the earnings picture before committing.

Graduates out-earn what predicts for students like them. The model attributes a subtraction to the factors it measures and an addition to the remainder it does not explain.

Affordability is below the levels seen at many peers, and the net price sits above the median at comparable institutions. Pell students complete at a rate below the cohort as a whole, and mobility is below the levels seen at many peers.

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 considering the largest program, Film/Video and Photographic Arts, should know it is not the best-paid one.

Woodbury University at a glance

Admissions and outcomes

Admission rate[1]
81.7%
Six-year completion[2]
60.0%
Four-year earnings[3]
$66,794

Cost and family borrowing

Average annual net price · $48–75K family income[6]
$30,748
Median student debt[4]
$26,960
Median Parent PLUS debt[7]
$39,059

Woodbury University rankings: how Azimuth assesses value[5]

Woodbury University is a private nonprofit university in Burbank, California, enrolling 779 undergraduates. Its composite standing sits in the lower third of the Azimuth ranking among nonprofit four-year institutions (35th percentile).

The four are spread widely: return is the strongest, at the 80th percentile, while affordability is the weakest, at the 7th percentile. The university admits 81.7% of applicants, a rate that is above the 75.7% median for comparable institutions of the same type and size.

Of students who start full time, 74.0% return for a second year, slightly below the peer median of 74.2%. The six-year graduation rate is 60.0%, a rate that is above the peer median of 54.9%.

An estimated 44.1% of entrants arrive as transfers or part-time students, and the six-year rate describes only the first-time, full-time cohort. The shape is a small private university where return on investment is the standout pillar, while affordability is a clear challenge.

Access sits near the middle of the field, at the 47th percentile, while mobility is in the lower quarter, at the 25th percentile. The profile is one where strong earnings outcomes coexist with a high net price.

Return is the clearest strength in Woodbury University's Azimuth profile, but affordability is the part that most warrants cost scrutiny. Among nonprofit four-year institutions, Azimuth places return in the 80th percentile and access in the 47th percentile.

Mobility sits in the 25th percentile, while affordability is in the 7th percentile. The stronger return result and much weaker affordability result point in different directions for families weighing outcomes against cost.

46.2% of undergraduates at Woodbury University receive Pell Grants. Azimuth ranks Woodbury University #776 for access among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Pell recipients complete at a rate of 51.4%, which is 8.6 percentage points below the overall six-year graduation rate. Azimuth ranks the university #1,105 for mobility. Graduates earn about $11,982 more than the model expects for similar students.

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

Woodbury University rankings in context
GeographyRank
National#961
California#69
West#139

Azimuth overall value rankings within each geographic comparison group.

National pillar percentiles

Economic mobility
National percentile: 25
Access & reach
National percentile: 47
Affordability
National percentile: 7
Return on investment
National percentile: 80

01 / Woodbury University briefing

Woodbury University cost & financial aid[6][7]

At Woodbury University, the average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $33,692, leaving a substantial published cost even after aid. The standard cost of attendance is $58,010, an average across living arrangements.

Tuition and fees are $47,056 and room and board is $14,843. Average financial aid reduces the sticker price by $24,318 for aid recipients.

At comparable institutions (same type and size), the peer median net price is $22,347; Woodbury’s average sits above it by $11,345. Azimuth ranks the university #1,310 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The higher-than-peer net price and low affordability standing point in the same direction.

At Woodbury University, the published cost of attendance is $58,010 (an average across living arrangements), and aid recipients’ prices differ across family-income bands. Average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $28,815 in the lowest-income band, $28,368 in the lower-middle band, $30,748 in the middle band, $32,773 in the upper-middle band, and $39,808 in the highest-income band.

The spread between the lowest and highest bands is $10,993. Azimuth ranks the university #1,310 for affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions.

For the average aid recipient, aid covers about 42% of the published cost, offsetting $24,318 against the sticker price. Across all aid recipients, the is $33,692, which is $11,345 above the peer median of $22,347 at comparable institutions (same type and size).

Published tuition and fees are $47,056, and room and board are $14,843. Average aid reduces the published price, but the overall net price remains above that of comparable institutions.

Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt is $26,960, and 92.6% of federal aid recipients borrow federal loans. That median is $1,960 above the peer median of $25,000 at comparable institutions (same type and size).

That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $306 a month if repaid over ten years. Parent PLUS borrowers have median borrowing of $39,059.

Your family income

Choose a household income range to see estimated net price.

Reported average annual net price · $48–75K$30,748

After grants and scholarships. Your aid offer may differ.

Averages within each income band; individual aid packages vary.

Borrowing and repayment at Woodbury University

Federal borrowing reaches 92.6% of federal aid recipients, so loan use is common at Woodbury University. Among borrowers who completed, median federal student loan debt at completion is $26,960.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $25,000; Woodbury’s median is $1,960 above it. For the separate parent-borrower population, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $39,059.

Broad federal borrowing coincides with a median debt figure above the comparable-institution benchmark.

Graduates of Woodbury University earn a median of $66,794 four years after completion, at the 70th percentile nationally. That is $10,879 above the $55,915 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Graduates earn about $11,982 more than the model expects for similar students, an outcome that places the gap at the 87th percentile. Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, range from $50,237 in a downside case to $74,641 in an upside case, with $66,794 as the typical outcome.

On the borrowing side, the median federal student debt at completion is $26,960, $1,960 above the $25,000 peer median. That debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $306 a month if repaid over ten years.

Among the separate population of parent borrowers, median Parent PLUS borrowing is $39,059. For borrowers with median federal student debt, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $306 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
$26,960
Institution Parent PLUS debt
$39,059

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

Estimated student payment · monthly
$306/mo
Estimated Parent PLUS payment · monthly
$496/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 / Woodbury University briefing

Woodbury University career outcomes & earnings[3][8][9]

The return case rests on earnings that sit above both the peer midpoint and the model’s expectation. Four years after completion, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled at Woodbury University have median earnings of $66,794.

That places earnings in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $55,915, with the university $10,879 above it.

Graduates earn about $11,982 more than the model expects for similar students. That places earnings beyond expectations in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth puts the return pillar in the 80th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) subtracts $6,424.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $18,406. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $809. Above-peer earnings and higher-than-expected earnings point the same way.

At $66,794, Woodbury University has a relatively high four-year earnings median for its measured graduate cohort. This figure covers federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled four years after completion.

The cohort includes 214 completers, and Azimuth places the median in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $11,982 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 a modeled comparison rather than a direct comparison with another school. Program-mix-based earnings scenarios range from $50,237 in the downside scenario to $74,641 in the upside scenario; the typical scenario matches the reported median.

An estimated 28.8% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

Woodbury University has a return record that sits above its comparable-institution benchmark. Among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled, median earnings are $66,794 four years after completion; Azimuth places that figure in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $55,915, leaving Woodbury $10,879 above it. Graduates earn about $11,982 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, stands in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) subtracts $6,424.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $18,406. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $809.

Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix run from a downside of $50,237 to an upside of $74,641. Azimuth places the return pillar in the 80th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, consistent with both comparison measures.

Film/Video and Photographic Arts is the largest program with published earnings listed field, with 44 degrees awarded and median earnings of $50,387 four years after completion. Design and Applied Arts had 34 degrees awarded and $62,092 in median earnings, while Business Administration and Management had 12 degrees awarded and $77,992.

The largest field earns less than the business field, so earnings differ across the programs with the most awards.

Earnings vary across the program mix, so the modeled range matters alongside the institutional median. The downside scenario is $50,237, and the upside scenario is $74,641; both are earnings scenarios rather than observed groups of graduates.

Program medians four years after completion are $77,992 in Business Administration and Management, $68,020 in Communication and Media Studies, and $62,092 in Design and Applied Arts. Those field results help show why the earnings scenarios span a broad range.

Graduates of Woodbury University earn about $11,982 more than the model expects for similar students, and the median earnings four years after completion sit above the peer median. The cost of getting there, however, is high.

The average net price, what aid recipients pay after grants and scholarships, is $33,692. That figure is $11,345 above the median for comparable institutions (same type and size), and the spread between the lowest and highest income bands is $10,993.

Aid covers about 42% of the published cost for the average aid recipient, but this is an average rather than a personal quote. Borrowers who finish carry a median of $26,960 in federal student loans, which is $1,960 above the peer median.

If repaid over ten years, that debt corresponds to an estimated payment of $306 a month. Parents who borrow separately hold a median of $39,059 in Parent PLUS loans.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
-$6,424
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
+$18,406
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$11,982

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 / Woodbury University briefing

Woodbury University acceptance rate & admissions[1][10][11]

Admission is relatively broad at Woodbury University, where 81.7% of applicants were admitted in the reported cycle. That rate is above the median of 75.7% for comparable institutions (same type and size), so the school admitted a larger share than its peer midpoint.

Admissions
Admission rate
81.7%
Read the full admissions brief

04 / Woodbury University briefing

What are the largest majors at Woodbury University?[12]

At Woodbury University, the published program medians show that field choice matters to the earnings picture four years after completion. Business Administration and Management records median earnings of $77,992 and 12 degrees awarded in an academic year.

Communication and Media Studies follows at $68,020, with 5 degrees awarded. Design and Applied Arts is a more moderate-earning field, reporting $62,092 in median earnings and 34 degrees awarded.

Film/Video and Photographic Arts also sits at the moderate end, with $50,387 in median earnings and 44 degrees awarded. The published fields run from business and communication to design and film, so their reported earnings do not sit at one common level.

Published program results span a wide earnings range across Woodbury University's largest fields. The program figures range from creative fields to business, so the field selected matters to the earnings picture.

Woodbury University awards bachelor's degrees across 4 programs with published four-year earnings data. The program mix is anchored by design and media: Visual & Performing Arts accounts for 36.3% of bachelor's degrees awarded, and Architecture is close behind at 35.4%.

Business makes up another 14.4%, and 14.9% of degrees are in STEM fields. The largest program with published earnings is Film/Video and Photographic Arts, at 44 degrees awarded a year.

Graduates earn a median of $50,387 four years after completion, which is 1.15x the national median for its field. Design and Applied Arts is the second-largest program with published earnings, with 34 degrees awarded and median earnings of $62,092.

The highest-earning program is Business Administration and Management, where graduates earn a median of $77,992 from 12 degrees awarded a year. Communication and Media Studies follows at $68,020, with 5 degrees awarded.

Both sit above the national median for their fields. The pattern here is a concentrated one: the two largest programs are also the two lowest-earning, while the best-paid program is a smaller one.

The largest program with published earnings, Film/Video and Photographic Arts, earns $50,387, and the highest-earning, Business Administration and Management, earns $77,992.

Four-year earnings · six largest reported fields
Architectural Sciences and Technology 67 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Film/Video and Photographic Arts 44 degrees awarded
$50,387
Design and Applied Arts 34 degrees awarded
$62,092
Criminal Justice and Corrections 13 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Accounting and Related Services 13 degrees awarded
Too few graduates to report
Business Administration, Management and Operations 12 degrees awarded
$77,992

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 / Woodbury University briefing

How does Woodbury University serve students from different backgrounds?

Completion is a concern in Woodbury University’s mobility picture: the six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 60.0%, and Pell recipients complete at 51.4%, below the overall rate by 8.6 percentage points. Earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, are favorable.

Graduates earn about $11,982 more than the model expects for similar students. Azimuth places in the 87th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Azimuth places the mobility pillar in the 25th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Strong modeled earnings sit alongside lower completion.

Woodbury University has a comparatively open admission pattern, admitting 81.7% of applicants to an undergraduate population of 779 undergraduates. Pell Grants reach 46.2% of undergraduates, an indicator of financial access, and the estimated share of entrants outside the first-time, full-time group is 44.1%.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, Azimuth puts the access pillar in the 47th percentile. Admission, Pell participation, and transfer entry describe several paths into the university.

06 / Woodbury University briefing

What colleges are similar to Woodbury University?[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 Woodbury University.

Admissions peerArt Center College of Design74.5% admitted
Comparison with Woodbury University
MeasureWoodbury UniversityArt Center College of Design
Peer earnings · 4 years$66,794$74,009+$7,215 vs Woodbury University
Average annual net price$33,692$48,661+$14,969 vs Woodbury University · higher cost
Admission rate81.7%74.5%
Higher-admission alternativeCalifornia State University-Northridge93.5% admitted
Comparison with Woodbury University
MeasureWoodbury UniversityCalifornia State University-Northridge
Peer earnings · 4 years$66,794$59,664-$7,130 vs Woodbury University
Average annual net price$33,692$7,021-$26,671 vs Woodbury University · lower cost
Admission rate81.7%93.5%
Explore California State University-Northridge →
Nearby alternativeBiola UniversityNearby option · CA
Comparison with Woodbury University
MeasureWoodbury UniversityBiola University
Peer earnings · 4 years$66,794$61,363-$5,431 vs Woodbury University
Average annual net price$33,692$31,495-$2,197 vs Woodbury University · lower cost
Admission rate81.7%74.4%
Explore Biola University →
Higher-earnings alternativeUniversity of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis$131,813 earnings
Comparison with Woodbury University
MeasureWoodbury UniversityUniversity of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis
Peer earnings · 4 years$66,794$131,813+$65,019 vs Woodbury University
Average annual net price$33,692$31,817-$1,875 vs Woodbury University · lower cost
Admission rate81.7%89.8%
Explore University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis →
Lower-cost alternativeCalifornia State University-Los Angeles$3,967 average net price
Comparison with Woodbury University
MeasureWoodbury UniversityCalifornia State University-Los Angeles
Peer earnings · 4 years$66,794$59,756-$7,038 vs Woodbury University
Average annual net price$33,692$3,967-$29,725 vs Woodbury University · lower cost
Admission rate81.7%91.3%
Explore California State University-Los Angeles →
Similar profileWestminster UniversityMatched across several measures
Comparison with Woodbury University
MeasureWoodbury UniversityWestminster University
Peer earnings · 4 years$66,794$72,401+$5,607 vs Woodbury University
Average annual net price$33,692$27,094-$6,598 vs Woodbury University · lower cost
Admission rate81.7%66.6%

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