Wilberforce University
About
Wilberforce University (WU) is a private university in Wilberforce, Ohio, United States. It is one of three historically black universities established before the American Civil War. Founded in 1856 by the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC), it is named after English statesman and abolitionist William Wilberforce. In 1863, it was sold to the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), which had ties to the school since its inception. WU remains affiliated with the AME.
Admissions & acceptance rate
First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.
Graduation rate & outcomes
Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.
Pell equity
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 35 Title IV programs, 1 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 34 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing1 · 2.9%
- No Data34 · 97.1%
- Failing0 · 0.0%
Severity spectrum
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.
Debt vs earnings
Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.
Accreditation status & history
Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.
Higher Learning Commission
Higher Learning Commission
Action history · 6
- Oct 2024Accreditation Reaffirmed: Warning RemovedHigher Learning Commission
- Nov 2023Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: WarningHigher Learning Commission
- Nov 2021Accreditation Reaffirmed: Probation RemovedHigher Learning Commission
- Nov 2020Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: ProbationHigher Learning Commission
- Jun 2018Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: ProbationHigher Learning Commission
Tuition & cost
What families actually pay, broken down by family income.
Net price by family income
Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.
Federal aid volume & trends
Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.
In AY 2024–25, 603 students received $4.0M in Pell grants, alongside $4.8M in federal Direct Loans.
Pell recipients · 5-year trend
Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25
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.
Student loan default rate
The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.
Of 292 borrowers who entered repayment, 21 (7.1%) defaulted within three years — above the 2.3% national rate.
Default rate vs national, by cohort
* 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.
Academic programs at Wilberforce
Top program areas ranked by completions.
Top program families by completions
Enrollment trends & demographics
Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.
Gender split
Race / ethnicity composition
Athletics & Title IX gender equity
How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.
Men vs women · spending splits
Sport-by-sport · 5
Campus safety & crime statistics
Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.
3-year trend
Criminal offenses by type
By location
- On campus1
Includes 1 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
No hate crimes reported.
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Wilberforce vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Wilberforce selected for federal comparison reporting.
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 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectWilberforce University | 12% | — | 838 | $5,567 | Baccalaureate |
| 42% | 96.5% | 593 | $21,616 | Baccalaureate | |
| 39% | 75.2% | 589 | $18,600 | Baccalaureate | |
| 58% | 43.5% | 531 | $53,517 | Baccalaureate | |
| 37% | 93.5% | 509 | $32,917 | Baccalaureate | |
| 57% | 63.2% | 513 | $18,460 | Baccalaureate | |
| 35% | 63.5% | 547 | $12,287 | Baccalaureate | |
| 26% | 52.7% | 469 | $11,404 | Baccalaureate | |
| 31% | 47.5% | 568 | $26,337 | Baccalaureate | |
| 41% | 85.0% | 527 | $17,349 | Baccalaureate | |
| 65% | 67.5% | 611 | $16,282 | Baccalaureate | |
| 47% | 75.3% | 431 | $9,329 | Baccalaureate | |
| 48% | 72.6% | 499 | $22,814 | Baccalaureate | |
| 64% | 79.6% | 286 | $34,666 | Baccalaureate | |
| 37% | 60.9% | 550 | $24,038 | Baccalaureate | |
| 38% | 95.8% | 621 | $20,898 | Baccalaureate | |
| 41% | 94.7% | 442 | $30,260 | Baccalaureate | |
| 53% | — | 227 | $33,216 | Baccalaureate | |
| 17% | — | 383 | $20,555 | Baccalaureate | |
| 50% | 75.0% | 286 | $36,119 | Baccalaureate | |
| 15% | 62.1% | 399 | $20,146 | Baccalaureate | |
| 41% | 48.2% | 694 | $22,371 | Baccalaureate | |
| 28% | 53.3% | 427 | $20,011 | Baccalaureate | |
| 49% | 61.2% | 589 | $32,265 | Baccalaureate | |
| 29% | 86.6% | 611 | $13,494 | Baccalaureate | |
| 43% | 65.4% | 578 | $13,335 | Baccalaureate | |
| 49% | 71.1% | 378 | $25,629 | Baccalaureate | |
| 61% | — | 389 | $25,263 | Baccalaureate | |
| 47% | 51.9% | 532 | $20,951 | Baccalaureate | |
| Peer group median | 41% | 67.5% | 527 | $20,951 |
Institutions like Wilberforce
Explore the federal data for institutions in Wilberforce's comparison group.
- BaccalaureateAlaska
Alaska Pacific University
Grad rate42%Admit rate96.5%Enrollment593Net price$21,616View data - BaccalaureateKentucky
Alice Lloyd College
Grad rate39%Admit rate75.2%Enrollment589Net price$18,600View data - BaccalaureateFlorida
Beacon College
Grad rate58%Admit rate43.5%Enrollment531Net price$53,517View data - BaccalaureateKansas
Bethel College-North Newton
Grad rate37%Admit rate93.5%Enrollment509Net price$32,917View data - BaccalaureateIllinois
Blackburn College
Grad rate57%Admit rate63.2%Enrollment513Net price$18,460View data - BaccalaureateArkansas
Central Baptist College
Grad rate35%Admit rate63.5%Enrollment547Net price$12,287View data - BaccalaureateKansas
Central Christian College of Kansas
Grad rate26%Admit rate52.7%Enrollment469Net price$11,404View data - BaccalaureateOhio
Defiance College
Grad rate31%Admit rate47.5%Enrollment568Net price$26,337View data - BaccalaureateIllinois
Eureka College
Grad rate41%Admit rate85.0%Enrollment527Net price$17,349View data - BaccalaureateIowa
Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary
Grad rate65%Admit rate67.5%Enrollment611Net price$16,282View data - BaccalaureateOhio
Gods Bible School and College
Grad rate47%Admit rate75.3%Enrollment431Net price$9,329View data - BaccalaureateMissouri
Hannibal-LaGrange University
Grad rate48%Admit rate72.6%Enrollment499Net price$22,814View data - BaccalaureateCalifornia
John Paul the Great Catholic University
Grad rate64%Admit rate79.6%Enrollment286Net price$34,666View data - BaccalaureateKentucky
Kentucky Christian University
Grad rate37%Admit rate60.9%Enrollment550Net price$24,038View data - BaccalaureateCalifornia
Life Pacific University
Grad rate38%Admit rate95.8%Enrollment621Net price$20,898View data - BaccalaureateConnecticut
Mitchell College
Grad rate41%Admit rate94.7%Enrollment442Net price$30,260View data - BaccalaureateMassachusetts
Montserrat College of Art
Grad rate53%Admit rate—Enrollment227Net price$33,216View data - BaccalaureateSouth Carolina
Morris College
Grad rate17%Admit rate—Enrollment383Net price$20,555View data - BaccalaureateWisconsin
Northland College
Grad rate50%Admit rate75.0%Enrollment286Net price$36,119View data - BaccalaureateOklahoma
Southwestern Christian University
Grad rate15%Admit rate62.1%Enrollment399Net price$20,146View data - BaccalaureateKansas
Sterling College
Grad rate41%Admit rate48.2%Enrollment694Net price$22,371View data - BaccalaureateFlorida
Trinity Baptist College
Grad rate28%Admit rate53.3%Enrollment427Net price$20,011View data - BaccalaureatePennsylvania
University of Valley Forge
Grad rate49%Admit rate61.2%Enrollment589Net price$32,265View data - BaccalaureateNew York
Villa Maria College
Grad rate29%Admit rate86.6%Enrollment611Net price$13,494View data - BaccalaureateSouth Carolina
Voorhees University
Grad rate43%Admit rate65.4%Enrollment578Net price$13,335View data - BaccalaureateOregon
Warner Pacific University
Grad rate49%Admit rate71.1%Enrollment378Net price$25,629View data - BaccalaureateTennessee
Welch College
Grad rate61%Admit rate—Enrollment389Net price$25,263View data - BaccalaureateNebraska
York University
Grad rate47%Admit rate51.9%Enrollment532Net price$20,951View data
Wilberforce Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
The mission of the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, Assessment & Research is to produce high quality information and analyses that supports University strategic initiatives and other related activities in support of planning, assessment, and decision-making, and to facilitate institutional effectiveness that advances the mission of Wilberforce University.
Visit IR office page- Dr. Lisa Bunu Ncube
Reports & documents (2)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
- DFR reportIPEDS Data Feedback Report 20242024nces.ed.gov
- Strategic planWilberforce 2030: A Focused Vision for Academic Innovation and Student Success2026Wilberforce University's strategic plan, 'Wilberforce 2030: A Focused Vision for Academic Innovation and Student Success,' builds on the institution's legacy of resilience and leadership in education. The plan outlines key pillars such as advancing academic excellence, fostering technological advancements, enhancing enrollment and retention, and strengthening community partnerships. With concrete goals like upgrading infrastructure, expanding academic programs, and bolstering brand visibility, Wilberforce is set to continue thriving as a bastion of academic innovation and student success.wilberforce.edu
Notable alumni of Wilberforce (10)
A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.
- Charity Adams EarleyMilitary
- Betty AllenMusic
- Dorothy VaughanMathematics
- William Grant StillMusic
- Floyd FlakePolitics
- Tiny BradshawMusic
- Roberta Byrd BarrEducation
- Chuck BowenBusiness
- Ruth Gaines-SheltonLiterature
- Edward IronsBusiness
Frequently asked questions about Wilberforce University
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Wilberforce.
What is the graduation rate at Wilberforce University?
How many students attend Wilberforce University?
What is the average net price at Wilberforce University?
What is the yield rate at Wilberforce University?
Where is Wilberforce University located?
Who runs Institutional Research at Wilberforce University?
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.
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