Private nonprofit

Mercy College of Health Sciences

Des Moines, Iowa·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Plains·mchs.edu
6-yr Graduation
66%
+17.0pp vs peer
Total enrollment
869
peer median 1,084
Avg net price
$23,417
+$2.0k vs peer
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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
679
679 candidates competed
Admitted
677
99.7% acceptance rate
Enrolled
174
25.7% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
66%+17.0pp vs peer
4-year graduation
67%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
67%
Full-time retention
69%

Pell equity

3.0pp gap
Pell recipients
70%
Non-Pell
67%

Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.

Program outcomes

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

Of 15 Title IV programs, 5 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 10 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
15
Passing
5
33.3% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

15programs
  • Passing5 · 33.3%
  • No Data10 · 66.7%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
5
No data
10

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
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+32.9%
$47,946 vs $36,082
Health and Medical Administrative Services
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+38.6%
$50,009 vs $36,082
Allied Health Diagnostic Intervention and Treatment Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+69.6%
$61,202 vs $36,082
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+97.2%
$71,148 vs $36,082
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+100.8%
$72,435 vs $36,082

Debt vs earnings

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

4
Allied Health Diagnostic Intervention and Treatment Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
36%
$21,873 debt · $61,202 earn
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
32%
$23,000 debt · $72,435 earn
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
30%
$21,000 debt · $71,148 earn
Allied Health Diagnostic Intervention and Treatment Professions
Undergraduate Certificate · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
13%
$9,500 debt · $71,704 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1999Next review Aug 2035

Programmatic accreditations · 7

Action history · 12

  1. Feb 2025Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  2. Aug 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology · Radiologic Technology (RAD) - Programs for radiographers
  3. Apr 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
  4. Jul 2023Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: Probation
    Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology · Radiologic Technology (RAD) - Programs for radiographers
  5. Nov 2022Grant Substantive Change: Ownership
    Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology · Radiologic Technology (RAD) - Programs for radiographers

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$21,177
$30–48k$19,440
$48–75k$24,028
$75–110k$24,859
$110k+$28,966

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

Avg net price (private)
$23,417
+$1,972vs peer median $21,446
Federal loans
63.8%
In-state tuition
$17,328
Out-of-state
$17,328

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 503 students received $2.3M in Pell grants, alongside $5.0M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
503
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$2.3M
$2,255,469 total
Direct Loans
$5.0M
1,287 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

0k
20
0k
21
0k
22
0k
23
1k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$2.0M
627 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$2.6M
641 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$5K
1 loan awards
Parent PLUS$381K
17 loan awards
Grad PLUS$8K
1 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 316 borrowers who entered repayment, 3 (0.9%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.9%
-1.4pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
316
Defaulted
3
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
6.3%
2017
4.5%
2018
2.8%
2019
0.9%
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 MCHS

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs10
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

381 total completions
01Health Professions
381100.0%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
869
12-mo unduplicated
1,280
Undergraduate
1,278
Graduate
2

Gender split

Men
14%173
Women
86%1,107

Race / ethnicity composition

White
67.7%
Black
12.6%
Hispanic
11.3%
Asian
5.2%
Unknown
1.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.9%
Two or more
0.8%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.2%

Campus safety & crime statistics

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

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
1.10
1 offenses · 911 students

3-year trend

0.002 yrs ago2.101 yr ago1.10Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
3
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
0
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Robbery
1

By location

1total
  • Public property1

VAWA offenses

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

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs00
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
7.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
51

MCHS vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions MCHS 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
SubjectMercy College of Health Sciences
66%869$23,417
Palmer College of Chiropractic
100.0%2,161
Allen College
483
Clarkson College
36%78.2%1,121$15,928
Northwestern Health Sciences University
1,101$29,794
Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health
49%73.4%1,067$19,474
Peer group median49%78.2%1,084$21,446

Frequently asked questions about Mercy College of Health Sciences

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about MCHS.

What is the graduation rate at Mercy College of Health Sciences?

Mercy College of Health Sciences reports a 6-year graduation rate of 66% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Mercy College of Health Sciences?

Mercy College of Health Sciences reports a total enrollment of 869 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Mercy College of Health Sciences?

The average net price at Mercy College of Health Sciences is $23,417 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Mercy College of Health Sciences?

Mercy College of Health Sciences's yield rate is 25.7%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Mercy College of Health Sciences located?

Mercy College of Health Sciences is located in Des Moines, Iowa 50309-1239.

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