Doctoral/ProfessionalPrivate nonprofit

Brenau University

Gainesville, Georgia·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Southeast·brenau.edu
6-yr Graduation
33%
-22.0pp vs Doctoral/Professional
Total enrollment
2,436
peer median 2,608
Avg net price
$20,786
+$300 vs Doctoral/Professional
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Admissions & acceptance rate

First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.

Applied
3,625
3,625 candidates competed
Admitted
3,182
87.8% acceptance rate
Enrolled
290
9.1% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
33%-22.0pp vs Doctoral/Professional
4-year graduation
27%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
35%
Full-time retention
65%

Pell equity

19.0pp gap
Pell recipients
24%
Non-Pell
43%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 19.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 75 Title IV programs, 16 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 1 fails. 58 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
75
Passing
16
21.3% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
1
1.3% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.3%
+0.7pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

75programs
  • Passing16 · 21.3%
  • No Data58 · 77.3%
  • Failing1 · 1.3%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
1
At Risk
1
Watch
2
Safe
13
No data
58

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

17
Gerontology
Master's Degree · Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
-0.7%
$50,743 vs $51,086
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
+2.2%
$47,251 vs $46,221
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+14.6%
$36,910 vs $32,203
Health and Medical Administrative Services
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+19.8%
$38,591 vs $32,203
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+32.0%
$74,827 vs $56,700
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+32.2%
$42,586 vs $32,203
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+41.9%
$80,464 vs $56,700
Health and Medical Administrative Services
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+42.5%
$80,790 vs $56,700

Near the line (±5%)

Programs within five points of the pass line, one cohort year from flipping.

2
Gerontology
Master's Degree · Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
-0.7%
$343
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
+2.2%
+$1,030

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

16
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
154%
$115,500 debt · $74,827 earn
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Doctoral Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
147%
$123,940 debt · $84,269 earn
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
129%
$60,850 debt · $47,251 earn
Gerontology
Master's Degree · Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
80%
$40,750 debt · $50,743 earn
Health and Medical Administrative Services
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
70%
$27,000 debt · $38,591 earn
Human Resources Management and Services
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
68%
$36,271 debt · $53,693 earn
Health and Medical Administrative Services
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
66%
$53,504 debt · $80,790 earn
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
64%
$29,500 debt · $46,138 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges

Accredited since 1929Next review Jun 2028

Programmatic accreditations · 11

Action history · 16

  1. Jan 2026Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary Withdrawal
    Commission on English Language Program Accreditation · English Language
  2. Apr 2025Grant Substantive Change: Program
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  3. Dec 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on English Language Program Accreditation · English Language
  4. Dec 2024Accreditation Reaffirmed: Warning Removed
    American Occupational Therapy Association, Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education · Occupational Therapy (OTM) - Programs leading to a Master's Degree
  5. Aug 2024Warning or Equivalent-Factors Affecting Academic Quality
    American Occupational Therapy Association, Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education · Occupational Therapy (OTM) - Programs leading to a Master's Degree

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$20,696
$30–48k$19,278
$48–75k$21,551
$75–110k$24,922
$110k+$19,129

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price (private)
$20,786
+$300vs Doctoral/Professional median $20,487
Federal loans
74.6%
In-state tuition
$33,275
Out-of-state
$33,275

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 706 students received $3.9M in Pell grants, alongside $44.3M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
706
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$3.9M
$3,885,951 total
Direct Loans
$44.3M
3,108 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

1k
20
1k
21
1k
22
1k
23
1k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$2.4M
617 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$3.0M
683 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$20.9M
1,149 loan awards
Parent PLUS$790K
57 loan awards
Grad PLUS$17.3M
602 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 1,103 borrowers who entered repayment, 22 (1.9%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
1.9%
-0.4pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
1,103
Defaulted
22
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
5.5%
2017
6.9%
2018
6.1%
2019
1.9%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Brenau

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs63
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

609 total completions
01Health Professions
30049.3%
02Education
10917.9%
03Business
7712.6%
04Psychology
416.7%
05Visual/Performing Arts
396.4%
06Liberal Arts
152.5%
07Communication
81.3%
08Biological Sciences
71.1%
09Multi/Interdisciplinary
71.1%
10Parks/Recreation
61.0%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
2,436
12-mo unduplicated
3,055
Undergraduate
1,455
Graduate
1,600

Gender split

Men
14%442
Women
86%2,613

Race / ethnicity composition

White
43.7%
Black
24.5%
Hispanic
19.0%
Non-resident
5.8%
Two or more
4.0%
Asian
1.8%
Unknown
1.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

Athletes
160
0 M · 160 W
Women athletes
100.0%
Athletic aid
$1.7M
Total student aid
Budget
$2.8M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$1.7M
Recruiting expense
$8K
Head-coach salaries
$30K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 11

Basketball
· 29 W
$416K
Soccer
· 22 W
$339K
Softball
· 22 W
$364K
Track and Field (Indoor)
· 22 W
$115K
Track and Field (Outdoor)
· 22 W
$120K
Other Sports
· 19 W
$264K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
1.11
3 offenses · 2,704 students

3-year trend

1.072 yrs ago1.181 yr ago1.11Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
9
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
4
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Rape
1
Fondling
1
Motor vehicle theft
1

By location

3total
  • On campus3

Includes 2 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
0
Dating violence
1
Stalking
1 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs01
Liquor00

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
11.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
142

Brenau vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Brenau selected for federal comparison reporting.

GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectBrenau University
33%2,436$20,786Doctoral/Professional
Union University
66%60.4%2,713$26,815Doctoral/Professional
University of Pikeville
42%100.0%2,547$13,591Doctoral/Professional
University of Lynchburg
57%43.0%2,316$20,187Doctoral/Professional
Carson-Newman University
53%90.4%2,669$18,661Doctoral/Professional
Bellarmine University
64%86.1%2,886$23,587Doctoral/Professional
Peer group median55%86.1%2,608$20,487

Frequently asked questions about Brenau University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Brenau.

What is the graduation rate at Brenau University?

Brenau University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 33% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Brenau University?

Brenau University reports a total enrollment of 2,436 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Brenau University?

The average net price at Brenau University is $20,786 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Brenau University?

Brenau University's yield rate is 9.1%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Brenau University located?

Brenau University is located in Gainesville, Georgia 30501-3668.

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