Doctoral/ProfessionalPrivate nonprofit

Wilkes University

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Mid East·wilkes.edu
6-yr Graduation
63%
-1.5pp vs Doctoral/Professional
Total enrollment
5,381
peer median 4,732
Avg net price
$27,700
+$2.4k vs Doctoral/Professional
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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
7,660
7,660 candidates competed
Admitted
6,943
90.6% acceptance rate
Enrolled
647
9.3% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
63%-1.5pp vs Doctoral/Professional
4-year graduation
54%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
63%
Full-time retention
72%

Pell equity

13.0pp gap
Pell recipients
53%
Non-Pell
66%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 13.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

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

Of 81 Title IV programs, 21 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 1 fails. 59 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
81
Passing
21
25.9% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
1
1.2% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.2%
+0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

81programs
  • Passing21 · 25.9%
  • No Data59 · 72.8%
  • Failing1 · 1.2%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
1
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
21
No data
59

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.

22
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies
Master's Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
-9.5%
$37,334 vs $41,236
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Subject Areas
Master's Degree · Education
+28.4%
$59,548 vs $46,391
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+36.2%
$48,033 vs $35,274
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Master's Degree · Education
+40.8%
$65,331 vs $46,391
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
+48.1%
$52,234 vs $35,274
Education General
Master's Degree · Education
+48.6%
$68,953 vs $46,391
Business Administration Management and Operations
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+61.6%
$57,020 vs $35,274
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+62.3%
$95,365 vs $58,761

Debt vs earnings

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

20
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies
Master's Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
110%
$41,059 debt · $37,334 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
54%
$26,000 debt · $48,033 earn
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor Degree · Education
51%
$26,405 debt · $52,234 earn
Pharmacy Pharmaceutical Sciences and Administration
First Professional Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
48%
$66,000 debt · $137,560 earn
Biology General
Bachelor Degree · Biological And Biomedical Sciences
47%
$27,000 debt · $57,332 earn
Business Administration Management and Operations
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
46%
$26,000 debt · $57,020 earn
Sociology
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
45%
$26,000 debt · $58,006 earn
Business Administration Management and Operations
Master's Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
41%
$38,866 debt · $95,365 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Accredited since 1937Next review Jan 2028

Programmatic accreditations · 5

Action history · 10

  1. Apr 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on English Language Program Accreditation · English Language
  2. Apr 2021Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNURED) - Nursing education programs at the graduate degree levels
  3. Jan 2021Renewal of Accreditation
    Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education · Pharmacy (PHAR) - Professional degree programs
  4. Nov 2020Renewal of Accreditation
    Middle States Commission on Higher Education
  5. Apr 2020Grant Substantive Change: Degree
    Middle States Commission on Higher Education

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$23,760
$30–48k$24,199
$48–75k$26,339
$75–110k$29,365
$110k+$31,745

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

Avg net price (private)
$27,700
+$2,431vs Doctoral/Professional median $25,269
Federal loans
70.2%
In-state tuition
$42,286
Out-of-state
$42,286

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 828 students received $4.8M in Pell grants, alongside $39.9M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
828
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$4.8M
$4,826,262 total
Direct Loans
$39.9M
4,562 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$4.6M
1,148 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$5.0M
1,408 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$24.2M
1,626 loan awards
Parent PLUS$4.3M
241 loan awards
Grad PLUS$1.9M
139 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 1,124 borrowers who entered repayment, 17 (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
1,124
Defaulted
17
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
5.7%
2017
5.3%
2018
3.5%
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 Wilkes

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs64
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,444 total completions
01Health Professions
52936.6%
02Education
49033.9%
03Business
1238.5%
04English Language
735.1%
05Liberal Arts
573.9%
06Engineering
453.1%
07Psychology
412.8%
08Biological Sciences
392.7%
09Social Sciences
251.7%
10Communication
221.5%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
5,381
12-mo unduplicated
7,059
Undergraduate
2,225
Graduate
4,834

Gender split

Men
29%2,071
Women
71%4,988

Race / ethnicity composition

White
70.2%
Hispanic
11.4%
Black
5.8%
Non-resident
5.8%
Two or more
3.6%
Asian
2.8%
Unknown
0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
498
337 M · 161 W
Women athletes
32.3%
Athletic aid
$0
Total student aid
Budget
$4.7M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$0
$0
Recruiting expense
$56K
$29K
Head-coach salaries
$49K
$43K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 14

Football
128 M ·
$637K
Soccer
31 M · 26 W
$235K
Ice Hockey
27 M · 27 W
$504K
Lacrosse
28 M · 21 W
$252K
Wrestling
41 M ·
$163K
Baseball
30 M ·
$242K

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
0.58
3 offenses · 5,207 students

3-year trend

1.252 yrs ago0.761 yr ago0.58Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
13
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
4
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
2

Criminal offenses by type

Rape
1
Burglary
1
Aggravated assault
1

By location

3total
  • On campus2
  • Public property1

Includes 1 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

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
Drugs021
Liquor017

Residence-hall fires

  • University Towers1 fire
    CookingDamage $0-$99

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
13.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
166

Wilkes vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Wilkes 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
SubjectWilkes University
63%5,381$27,700Doctoral/Professional
Widener University
68%70.9%5,713$30,470Doctoral/Professional
Robert Morris University
66%89.9%5,275$25,747Doctoral/Professional
Gannon University
67%74.2%4,189$23,206Doctoral/Professional
La Salle University
58%96.6%3,153$21,409Doctoral/Professional
Point Park University
59%96.9%3,448$24,791Doctoral/Professional
Peer group median65%89.9%4,732$25,269

Frequently asked questions about Wilkes University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Wilkes.

What is the graduation rate at Wilkes University?

Wilkes University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 63% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Wilkes University?

Wilkes University reports a total enrollment of 5,381 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Wilkes University?

The average net price at Wilkes University is $27,700 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Wilkes University?

Wilkes University's yield rate is 9.3%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Wilkes University located?

Wilkes University is located in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 18766.

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