Skip to content
Best College Rankings

Private nonprofit · Urban campus · verified rankings · federal data

Carolina University

Students comparing Carolina University on federal cost, completion, and earnings data who will layer in fit, location, and program strength separately.

CompareOfficial site
Winston-Salem, North Carolina460 undergraduatesMean consensus percentile 68Private nonprofitSelectiveSmall enrollment

The short answer

Carolina University: Washington Monthly ranks it #1067 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #1714 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 2.5 stars. It enrolls 460 undergraduates, admits 39.5% of applicants, and posts a 21.6% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $17,575; aid recipients pay $20,828 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $32,864.

The six numbers that matter most

Acceptance rate
39.5%

Below the dataset median of 76%

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported entering class, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Average net price
$20,828

31% below the $29,975 published price

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardAverage for full-time first-time aid recipients, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Median earnings, 10 yrs
$32,864

Below the dataset median of $54,053

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMedian earnings 10 years after entry, working and not enrolled, College Scorecard June 2026 release

6-year graduation rate
21.6%

Below the dataset median of 56%

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent six-year cohort, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Median debt at graduation
$20,287

Above the dataset median of $23,250

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMedian federal loan debt of completers, College Scorecard June 2026 release

SAT middle 50%
Not reportedCarolina University reports that it neither requires nor recommends admissions test scores, and does not report a score range to the Department of Education.

U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard

Where Carolina University ranks, and why the answers differ

Each publisher's position, the list it belongs to, and how many institutions it was drawn from.

SourceListRank
US News2026National universities, liberal arts, regional and specialty listsNot ranked by this source
Forbes2026America's Top CollegesNot ranked by this source
Washington Monthly2026Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars#1067of 1,504Tuition & tax value (WM)
WSJ2026Best Colleges in the U.S.Not ranked by this source
Niche2026Best Colleges (Overall)#1714of 2,605Overall (Niche)
Money2026Best Value Colleges2.5 starsListedBest value (Money)
Princeton Review2026Best Colleges (Overall)Not ranked by this source
QS2026World University RankingsNot ranked by this source

Methodology sensitivity: Carolina University's position moves 5 percentile points depending on which published list you read. That is a moderate spread; the ranking you look at changes the answer somewhat. How we compute this

Ranking positions are the editorial property of their publishers and are reproduced here with attribution for comparison and commentary. Follow each source link for its full list and methodology.

About Carolina University

Carolina University is a private nonprofit institution in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Federal data show 56.4% first-year retention and a 15:1 student-faculty ratio. Figures on this page come from College Scorecard and IPEDS; publisher rankings shown here are transcribed from named sources and checked in our dataset.

Strengths and honest considerations

Strengths

  • Cost and outcome metrics on this profile come directly from federal collections, not self-reported marketing sheets.
  • Net price $20,828 reflects what aid recipients actually paid in the most recent federal reporting year.

Considerations

  • This school may not appear on every publisher list we track; an empty rankings table means no tracked publisher ranked it, not missing federal data.
  • Compare $29,975 sticker cost against $20,828 net price before ruling a school in or out on price alone.
  • Publishers we have not loaded yet, or lists that omit this school, show as “not ranked by this source” — that is expected.

Who this school genuinely fits

Students comparing Carolina University on federal cost, completion, and earnings data who will layer in fit, location, and program strength separately.

What it costs

Published price, then what families actually pay after grants and scholarships.

Tuition & fees
$17,575

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported academic year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Undergraduates on Pell grants
37.3%

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardShare of undergraduates, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Room & board
$12,400

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported academic year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Published cost of attendance comes to roughly $29,975 a year, but the average family pays $20,828 — a 31% difference. 37.3% of undergraduates receive Pell grants, the federal marker of low family income.

Net price varies enormously by income band, so run Carolina University's net price calculator for your own household before drawing conclusions. Why net price is the only cost number that matters.

Programs and academics

Most popular majors

  1. 1Business
  2. 2Biology
  3. 3Psychology
  4. 4Computer Science
  5. 5Economics

Standout programs

    Student-faculty ratio
    15:1

    IPEDS / National Center for Education StatisticsIPEDS 2023 fall enrollment

    First-year retention
    56.4%

    U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent first-year cohort, College Scorecard June 2026 release

    Undergraduate enrollment
    460

    U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

    Carolina University: questions families ask

    Out-of-state tuition is $17,575 and on-campus room and board is $12,400, for a published total of $29,975 before aid. The average net price for first-time full-time students receiving aid is $20,828.

    The most recent federal admissions rate reported to the Department of Education is 39.5%. Test policy as reported in IPEDS: see the admissions section on this page for the institution's own category.

    Similar colleges

    Matched on institutional character, overlapping majors and comparable cross-source standing.

    Fisk University

    Nashville, TNPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Fisk University: U.S. News ranks it #158 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #620 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #1175 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 3 stars. It enrolls 1,035 undergraduates, admits 37.4% of applicants, and posts a 29.9% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $25,858; aid recipients pay $32,020 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $45,454.

    Acceptance rate
    37.4%
    Average net price
    $32,020
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $45,454
    6-yr graduation rate
    29.9%
    US News · Liberal arts colleges#158 of 210Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#620 of 1,504Niche · Overall (Niche)#1175 of 2,605+1 more on profile

    1,035 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 54 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Marymount University

    Arlington, VAPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Marymount University: U.S. News ranks it #273 on National Universities (2026); Forbes ranks it #418 on America's Top Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #1320 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #700 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 3 stars. It enrolls 1,810 undergraduates, admits 93.2% of applicants, and posts a 53.5% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $40,920; aid recipients pay $29,137 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $67,516.

    Acceptance rate
    93.2%
    Average net price
    $29,137
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $67,516
    6-yr graduation rate
    53.5%
    US News · National universities#273 of 436Forbes · Top colleges (Forbes)#418 of 500Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#1320 of 1,504+2 more on profile

    1,810 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 65 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Johnson C Smith University

    Charlotte, NCPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Johnson C Smith University: U.S. News ranks it #175 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #1087 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #978 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 2.5 stars. It enrolls 1,244 undergraduates, admits 45.2% of applicants, and posts a 34.3% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $21,300; aid recipients pay $20,894 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $42,680.

    Acceptance rate
    45.2%
    Average net price
    $20,894
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $42,680
    6-yr graduation rate
    34.3%
    US News · Liberal arts colleges#175 of 210Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#1087 of 1,504Niche · Overall (Niche)#978 of 2,605+1 more on profile

    1,244 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 64 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

    Compare Carolina University against these