Doctoral/ProfessionalPublicHBCU

Winston-Salem State University

Winston-Salem, North Carolina·Public, 4-year or above·Southeast·wssu.edu
6-yr Graduation
47%
-4.0pp vs Doctoral/Professional
Total enrollment
4,782
peer median 8,207
Avg net price
$13,393
-$248 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
9,108
9,108 candidates competed
Admitted
7,128
78.3% acceptance rate
Enrolled
931
13.1% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
47%-4.0pp vs Doctoral/Professional
4-year graduation
30%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
47%
Full-time retention
77%

Pell equity

2.0pp gap
Pell recipients
46%
Non-Pell
48%

Pell and non-Pell students graduate at nearly identical rates — a notably small equity gap.

Program outcomes

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

Of 47 Title IV programs, 23 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 24 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
47
Passing
23
48.9% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

47programs
  • Passing23 · 48.9%
  • No Data24 · 51.1%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
2
Watch
1
Safe
20
No data
24

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.

23
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+6.0%
$58,006 vs $54,745
Communication and Media Studies
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
+8.0%
$34,786 vs $32,203
Sociology
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
+18.8%
$38,245 vs $32,203
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
+26.7%
$40,797 vs $32,203
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Bachelor Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
+30.5%
$42,020 vs $32,203
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+31.0%
$42,179 vs $32,203
Business Administration Management and Operations
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+34.4%
$43,292 vs $32,203
Sports Kinesiology and Physical Education/Fitness
Bachelor Degree · Parks, Recreation, Leisure, And Fitness Studies
+34.5%
$43,313 vs $32,203

Debt vs earnings

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

18
Communication and Media Studies
Bachelor Degree · Communication, Journalism, And Related Programs
74%
$25,608 debt · $34,786 earn
Sociology
Bachelor Degree · Social Sciences
73%
$28,058 debt · $38,245 earn
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Doctoral Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
70%
$55,437 debt · $79,144 earn
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Bachelor Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
68%
$28,347 debt · $42,020 earn
Business Administration Management and Operations
Bachelor Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
67%
$29,000 debt · $43,292 earn
Health and Medical Administrative Services
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
64%
$29,000 debt · $45,182 earn
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions
Bachelor Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
63%
$26,399 debt · $42,179 earn
Psychology General
Bachelor Degree · Psychology
61%
$25,000 debt · $40,797 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 1947Next review Jun 2026

Programmatic accreditations · 7

Action history · 9

  1. Oct 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    American Physical Therapy Association, Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education · Physical Therapy (PT) - Professional programs for the physical therapist
  2. Nov 2023Grant Substantive Change: Program
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  3. Dec 2021Renewal of Accreditation
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  4. May 2020Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNDNP) - Nursing education programs at the doctorate degree levels
  5. May 2020Renewal of Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNURED) - Nursing education programs at the baccalaureate degree levels

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$11,012
$30–48k$12,586
$48–75k$15,668
$75–110k$20,214
$110k+$20,815

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

Avg net price
$13,393
-$248vs Doctoral/Professional median $13,641
Federal loans
62.3%
In-state tuition
$6,735
Out-of-state
$17,391

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 3,169 students received $20.0M in Pell grants, alongside $32.6M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
3,169
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$20.0M
$19,982,315 total
Direct Loans
$32.6M
6,603 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

3k
20
3k
21
3k
22
3k
23
3k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$10.9M
2,822 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$8.7M
2,738 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$5.5M
385 loan awards
Parent PLUS$7.4M
643 loan awards
Grad PLUS$108K
15 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 1,518 borrowers who entered repayment, 80 (5.2%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
5.2%
+2.9pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
1,518
Defaulted
80
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
15.0%
2017
13.6%
2018
11.2%
2019
5.2%
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 Winston-Salem State

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs45
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

981 total completions
01Health Professions
47248.1%
02Biological Sciences
10210.4%
03Business
10210.4%
04Psychology
606.1%
05Liberal Arts
585.9%
06Social Sciences
444.5%
07Parks/Recreation
414.2%
08Security/Protective
363.7%
09Public Admin
333.4%
10Education
333.4%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
4,782
12-mo unduplicated
5,324
Undergraduate
4,711
Graduate
613

Gender split

Men
25%1,320
Women
75%4,004

Race / ethnicity composition

Black
83.1%
White
5.4%
Hispanic
4.8%
Two or more
3.8%
Unknown
1.2%
Asian
0.7%
Non-resident
0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
213
126 M · 87 W
Women athletes
40.8%
Athletic aid
$1.5M
Total student aid
Budget
$4.4M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$874K
$637K
Recruiting expense
$9K
$5K
Head-coach salaries
$63K
$45K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 9

Football
96 M ·
$1.6M
Basketball
18 M · 18 W
$1.4M
Track and Field (Outdoor)
· 31 W
$259K
Track and Field (Indoor)
· 29 W
$89K
Softball
· 17 W
$245K
Volleyball
· 15 W
$274K

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
6.00
30 offenses · 5,004 students

3-year trend

3.872 yrs ago5.931 yr ago6.00Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
81
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
92
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
2
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Burglary
10
Rape
6
Aggravated assault
6
Motor vehicle theft
4
Fondling
3
Robbery
1

By location

30total
  • On campus24
  • Non-campus5
  • Public property1

Includes 10 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

2
Domestic violence
40
Dating violence
5
Stalking
47 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons411
Drugs8100
Liquor335

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Data quality: 6 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
15.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
223

Winston-Salem State vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Winston-Salem State 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
SubjectWinston-Salem State University
47%4,782$13,393Doctoral/Professional
Western Carolina University
60%81.8%11,686$12,579Doctoral/Professional
Alabama State University
30%97.6%4,081$13,889Doctoral/Professional
Radford University
49%89.5%7,812$16,640Doctoral/Professional
University of Louisiana at Monroe
53%84.8%8,601$11,633Doctoral/Professional
University of Central Arkansas
53%89.5%10,112$16,775Doctoral/Professional
Peer group median51%89.5%8,207$13,641

Frequently asked questions about Winston-Salem State University

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Winston-Salem State.

What is the graduation rate at Winston-Salem State University?

Winston-Salem State University reports a 6-year graduation rate of 47% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Winston-Salem State University?

Winston-Salem State University reports a total enrollment of 4,782 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Winston-Salem State University?

The average net price at Winston-Salem State University is $13,393 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Winston-Salem State University?

Winston-Salem State University's yield rate is 13.1%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Winston-Salem State University located?

Winston-Salem State University is located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27110-0001.

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