BaccalaureatePublicHBCULand-grant

Central State University

Wilberforce, Ohio·Public, 4-year or above·Great Lakes·centralstate.edu
6-yr Graduation
23%
-4.0pp vs Baccalaureate
Total enrollment
2,708
peer median 1,462
Avg net price
$16,544
+$3.0k vs Baccalaureate
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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
2,810
2,810 candidates competed
Admitted
2,771
98.6% acceptance rate
Enrolled
537
19.4% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
23%-4.0pp vs Baccalaureate
4-year graduation
13%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
23%
Full-time retention
56%

Pell equity

1.0pp gap
Pell recipients
21%
Non-Pell
22%

Pell and non-Pell students graduate at nearly identical rates — a notably small equity gap.

Program outcomes

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

Of 39 Title IV programs, 5 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 34 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
39
Passing
5
12.8% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

39programs
  • Passing5 · 12.8%
  • No Data34 · 87.2%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
1
Watch
1
Safe
3
No data
34

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.

5
Journalism
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+4.3%
$36,311 vs $34,808
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+13.8%
$39,628 vs $34,808
Business/Commerce General
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+28.3%
$44,662 vs $34,808
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
+34.8%
$46,914 vs $34,808
Social Work
Bachelor Degree · Public Administration And Social Service Professions
+37.5%
$47,853 vs $34,808

Near the line (±5%)

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

1
Journalism
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+4.3%
+$1,503

Debt vs earnings

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

5
Journalism
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
98%
$35,642 debt · $36,311 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
76%
$30,000 debt · $39,628 earn
Business/Commerce General
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
71%
$31,500 debt · $44,662 earn
Social Work
Bachelor Degree · Public Administration And Social Service Professions
62%
$29,675 debt · $47,853 earn
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
58%
$27,273 debt · $46,914 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1949Next review Aug 2033

Programmatic accreditations · 3

Action history · 3

  1. Jun 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  2. Aug 2014Change in Agency recognition
    National Association of Schools of Art and Design, Commission on Accreditation · Art and Design (ART) - Degree-granting schools and departments and non-degree-granting programs
  3. Aug 2014Change in Agency recognition
    National Association of Schools of Music, Commission on Accreditation · Music (MUS) - Institutions and units within institutions offering degree-granting and/or non-degree-granting programs

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$15,607
$30–48k$16,661
$48–75k$18,187
$75–110k$21,211
$110k+

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

Avg net price
$16,544
+$2,959vs Baccalaureate median $13,585
Federal loans
28.8%
In-state tuition
$7,824
Out-of-state
$9,824

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 1,636 students received $9.4M in Pell grants, alongside $12.1M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
1,636
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$9.4M
$9,425,201 total
Direct Loans
$12.1M
2,854 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

3k
20
3k
21
2k
22
2k
23
2k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$4.4M
1,254 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$4.7M
1,312 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$452K
27 loan awards
Parent PLUS$2.5M
259 loan awards
Grad PLUS$11K
2 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 780 borrowers who entered repayment, 27 (3.4%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
3.4%
+1.1pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
780
Defaulted
27
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
26.9%
2017
24.2%
2018
16.5%
2019
3.4%
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 Central State

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs39
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,045 total completions
01Education
35734.2%
02Business
33331.9%
03Security/Protective
20419.5%
04Multi/Interdisciplinary
757.2%
05Engineering
171.6%
06Parks/Recreation
171.6%
07Psychology
151.4%
08Public Admin
121.1%
09Social Sciences
80.8%
10Biological Sciences
70.7%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
2,708
12-mo unduplicated
4,238
Undergraduate
4,205
Graduate
33

Gender split

Men
33%1,417
Women
67%2,821

Race / ethnicity composition

Black
49.3%
White
17.7%
Unknown
12.0%
Hispanic
9.4%
Two or more
5.0%
Non-resident
4.9%
Asian
1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.3%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
259
197 M · 62 W
Women athletes
23.9%
Athletic aid
$670K
Total student aid
Budget
$3.6M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$487K
$183K
Recruiting expense
$21K
$16K
Head-coach salaries
$70K
$46K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 4

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)
73 M · 62 W
$402K
Football
131 M ·
$1.0M
Volleyball
20 M · 21 W
$410K
Basketball
18 M · 17 W
$563K

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
0.74
4 offenses · 5,434 students

3-year trend

0.502 yrs ago0.171 yr ago0.74Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
7
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
8
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Fondling
3
Rape
1

By location

4total
  • On campus4

Includes 4 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

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

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons11
Drugs57
Liquor00

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Data quality: 3 reports were later determined unfounded across the reporting period and are excluded from the totals above.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
16.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
111

Central State vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Central State 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
SubjectCentral State University
23%2,708$16,544Baccalaureate
Miami University-Hamilton
24%2,480$13,346Baccalaureate
Wright State University-Lake Campus
35%99.8%1,356$12,603Baccalaureate
Miami University-Middletown
30%1,190$13,824Baccalaureate
Ohio State University-Lima Campus
14%723$12,458Baccalaureate
Lake Superior State University
50%68.0%1,567$14,368Baccalaureate
Peer group median27%83.9%1,462$13,585

Frequently asked questions about Central State University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Central State.

What is the graduation rate at Central State University?

Central State University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 23% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Central State University?

Central State University reports a total enrollment of 2,708 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Central State University?

The average net price at Central State University is $16,544 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Central State University?

Central State University's yield rate is 19.4%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Central State University located?

Central State University is located in Wilberforce, Ohio 45384-1004.

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