Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium ProgramsPrivate (for-profit)

Waldorf University

Forest City, Iowa·Private for-profit, 4-year or above·Plains·waldorf.edu
6-yr Graduation
21%
-9.0pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Total enrollment
2,225
peer median 1,764
Avg net price
$19,693
-$275 vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
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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
1,238
1,238 candidates competed
Admitted
953
77.0% acceptance rate
Enrolled
189
19.8% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
21%-9.0pp vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
4-year graduation
21%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
24%
Full-time retention
44%

Pell equity

5.0pp gap
Pell recipients
18%15 of 85
Non-Pell (all)
23%37 of 161
Subsidized loan, no Pell
39%9 of 23
No Federal Aid
20%28 of 138

Non-Pell students graduate at a 5.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Source: IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) — Pell/SSL cohort, 2024 cohort.

Program outcomes

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

Of 46 Title IV programs, 13 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 33 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
46
Passing
13
28.3% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

46programs
  • Passing13 · 28.3%
  • No Data33 · 71.7%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
13
No data
33

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.

13
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+26.7%
$76,173 vs $60,112
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
+41.4%
$49,228 vs $34,808
Communication and Media Studies
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+42.1%
$49,473 vs $34,808
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+44.2%
$50,184 vs $34,808
Business Administration Management and Operations
Associate Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+53.8%
$53,549 vs $34,808
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
+56.0%
$54,289 vs $34,808
Business/Commerce General
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+82.0%
$63,357 vs $34,808
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians
Associate Degree · Engineering Technologies/Technicians
+105.7%
$71,592 vs $34,808

Debt vs earnings

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

10
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
46%
$25,204 debt · $54,289 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
46%
$23,016 debt · $50,184 earn
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
37%
$28,356 debt · $76,173 earn
Business/Commerce General
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
36%
$23,038 debt · $63,357 earn
Homeland Security
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
33%
$25,000 debt · $76,520 earn
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians
Bachelor Degree · Engineering Technologies/Technicians
24%
$20,312 debt · $83,151 earn
Fire Protection
Bachelor Degree · Security And Protective Services
18%
$18,365 debt · $100,060 earn
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians
Associate Degree · Engineering Technologies/Technicians
18%
$12,893 debt · $71,592 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1948Next review Aug 2027

Programmatic accreditations · 1

Action history · 1

  1. Jun 2017Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission

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$16,448
$30–48k$18,378
$48–75k$23,045
$75–110k$21,244
$110k+$23,667

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

Avg net price (private)
$19,693
-$274vs Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs median $19,968
Federal loans
39.3%
In-state tuition
$25,978
Out-of-state
$25,978

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 1,091 students received $5.4M in Pell grants, alongside $11.7M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
1,091
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$5.4M
$5,444,028 total
Direct Loans
$11.7M
1,943 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$3.3M
811 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$4.2M
864 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$2.9M
170 loan awards
Parent PLUS$1.3M
96 loan awards
Grad PLUS$28K
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 757 borrowers who entered repayment, 12 (1.5%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
1.5%
-0.8pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
757
Defaulted
12
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
7.7%
2017
10.3%
2018
8.1%
2019
1.5%
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 Waldorf

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs38
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

912 total completions
01Business
33136.3%
02Security/Protective
21823.9%
03Engineering Tech
13514.8%
04Psychology
808.8%
05Education
606.6%
06Family/Consumer Sci
252.7%
07Health Professions
242.6%
08Communication
232.5%
09Parks/Recreation
121.3%
10History
40.4%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
2,225
12-mo unduplicated
3,531
Undergraduate
2,892
Graduate
639

Gender split

Men
62%2,206
Women
38%1,325

Race / ethnicity composition

White
57.3%
Black
16.3%
Unknown
15.3%
Hispanic
3.6%
Two or more
3.6%
Asian
1.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native
1.0%
Non-resident
0.3%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
480
332 M · 148 W
Women athletes
30.8%
Athletic aid
$3.7M
Total student aid
Budget
$6.6M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$2.2M
$1.3M
Recruiting expense
$42K
$24K
Head-coach salaries
$36K
$45K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 11

Football
102 M ·
$1.4M
Wrestling
28 M · 29 W
$796K
Soccer
30 M · 17 W
$714K
Basketball
30 M · 16 W
$703K
Ice Hockey
46 M ·
$245K
Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)
28 M · 12 W
$441K

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
6.02
16 offenses · 2,657 students

3-year trend

3.172 yrs ago9.051 yr ago6.02Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
49
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
17
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
4
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
3

Criminal offenses by type

Aggravated assault
7
Burglary
6
Rape
3

By location

16total
  • On campus15
  • Public property1

Includes 13 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
0
Dating violence
4
Stalking
4 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

  • Ethnicity1
  • National origin1

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs29
Liquor028

Residence-hall fires

  • Rasmusson Hall1 fire
    CookingDamage $0-$99
  • Ormseth Hall2 fires
    CookingDamage $0-$99
  • Ormseth Hall2 fires
    CookingDamage $0-$99

Data quality: 2 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
22.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
48

Waldorf vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Waldorf 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
SubjectWaldorf University
21%2,225$19,693Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
21%98.5%2,403$33,744Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
39%2,750$23,043Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
100%1,303$16,064Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
9%801$16,482Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
67%7.3%1,096$20,242Masters Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
Peer group median30%52.9%1,764$19,968

Institutions like Waldorf

Explore the federal data for institutions in Waldorf's comparison group.

Waldorf Institutional Research office

The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.

Office
Office of Institutional Effectiveness & Assessment
Phone
800.292.1903
Address
106 S 6th St, Forest City, IA 50436

The Institutional Effectiveness & Assessment page at Waldorf University provides contact information, including a phone number and physical address, for the department. No specific office mission, head of office, or additional resources are provided on the page.

Visit IR office page
Team
1 member
  • Sue Burrack, Ph.D.
    Director of Institutional Effectiveness

Frequently asked questions about Waldorf University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Waldorf.

What is the graduation rate at Waldorf University?

Waldorf University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 21% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Waldorf University?

Waldorf University reports a total enrollment of 2,225 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Waldorf University?

The average net price at Waldorf University is $19,693 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Waldorf University?

Waldorf University's yield rate is 19.8%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Waldorf University located?

Waldorf University is located in Forest City, Iowa 50436-1713.

Who runs Institutional Research at Waldorf University?

Waldorf University's IR work is done by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness & Assessment.

About the data on this page

Every figure comes from an official federal or public source. Here is each one and the release it is currently on.

IPEDS2025 provisional data (Fall 2025–26 release, July 28, 2026)
Enrollment, completions, graduation rates, tuition, financial aid, staffing, and finance for every U.S. institution in federal student aid programs.
College ScorecardJune 10, 2026 release (merged 2025–26 files)
Institution and field-of-study costs, graduate earnings, debt, completion, and admissions outcomes compiled from federal aid records, tax data, and IPEDS.
FVT/GE program performanceProvisional preview, May 18, 2026 release
Program-level debt-to-earnings and earnings-premium measures behind the FVT/GE and STATS accountability frameworks.
DAPIP accreditationContinuously refreshed
Accreditation status for institutions and programs, reported by recognized accrediting agencies.
Federal Pell Grant volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
Pell Grant recipient counts, award amounts, and disbursements by institution and award year.
Federal student loan volumeAY 2025–26 (through Q3), through March 31, 2026
Federal Direct Loan recipient counts and disbursement volume by institution and award year.
Cohort Default RatesFY 2022 official rates
Institution-level federal student loan default rates, measuring borrowers who default within three years of entering repayment.
Equity in Athletics (EADA)Academic year 2024–25
Athletics participation, coaching, revenues, and expenses by sport and gender for Title IV institutions.
Campus Safety & SecurityData through reporting year 2024
Criminal offenses, arrests, disciplinary actions, VAWA offenses, and fire statistics reported by campus under the Clery Act.

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