Private nonprofit

Southern College of Optometry

Memphis, Tennessee·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Southeast·sco.edu
Total enrollment
530
peer median 494
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Program outcomes

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

Of 1 Title IV programs, 1 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail.

Total programs
1
Passing
1
100.0% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

1programs
  • Passing1 · 100.0%
  • No Data0 · 0.0%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

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

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.

1
Optometry
Doctoral Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+159.8%
$133,907 vs $51,545

Debt vs earnings

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

1
Optometry
Doctoral Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
112%
$149,682 debt · $133,907 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 1967Next review Jun 2029

Programmatic accreditations · 7

Action history · 9

  1. Jul 2025Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary Withdrawal
    American Optometric Association, Accreditation Council on Optometric Education · Optometry (OPTR) - Residency programs
  2. Jul 2025Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary Withdrawal
    American Optometric Association, Accreditation Council on Optometric Education · Optometry (OPTR) - Residency programs
  3. Dec 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  4. Apr 2021Renewal of Accreditation
    American Optometric Association, Accreditation Council on Optometric Education · Optometry (OPT) - Professional degree programs
  5. Jul 2020Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary Withdrawal
    American Optometric Association, Accreditation Council on Optometric Education · Optometry (OPTR) - Residency programs

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, students received in Pell grants, alongside $11.8M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
null total
Direct Loans
$11.8M
430 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

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

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Unsubsidized · Grad$10.0M
293 loan awards
Grad PLUS$1.8M
137 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 105 borrowers who entered repayment, 0 (0.0%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.0%
-2.3pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
105
Defaulted
0
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
0.0%
2017
0.0%
2018
0.0%
2019
0.0%
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 Southern College of Optometry

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs1
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

135 total completions
01Health Professions
135100.0%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
530
12-mo unduplicated
548

Gender split

Men
32%174
Women
68%374

Campus safety & crime statistics

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

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
5.64
3 offenses · 532 students

3-year trend

0.002 yrs ago18.621 yr ago5.64Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
13
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
3
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Motor vehicle theft
2
Burglary
1

By location

3total
  • On campus3

VAWA offenses

1
Domestic violence
0
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
Weapons00
Drugs00
Liquor00

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Southern College of Optometry vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Southern College of Optometry 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
SubjectSouthern College of Optometry
530
Middle Tennessee School of Anesthesia Inc
319
Richmont Graduate University
329
Baptist Health Sciences University
38%82.0%891$13,401
Virginia University of Integrative Medicine
457
Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing
591
Peer group median38%82.0%494$13,401

Frequently asked questions about Southern College of Optometry

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Southern College of Optometry.

How many students attend Southern College of Optometry?

Southern College of Optometry reports a total enrollment of 530 students per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Southern College of Optometry located?

Southern College of Optometry is located in Memphis, Tennessee 38104-2211.

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