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College profile

University of Nebraska at Kearney

NE · Public · Distant town · 7,253 applicants 2023

86% admit rate SAT 970–1150 $16K–$26K/yr in-state — aid decides

A parent's read

  • The payoff holds even at full price: roughly 5× over a decade. With no aid at all — the full in-state ~$25,808/yr — a decade of median earnings (~$50,105/yr) still runs about 5× the four-year cost. This payoff doesn't depend on qualifying for anything. (Out-of-state costs more.)
  • Ask the submit question deliberately. This college is test-optional — but at many such colleges, applicants who submit strong scores are admitted at meaningfully higher rates. “Optional” is a strategy decision, not a pass.

Composed from this page's data — every claim is backed by a number in the sections below.

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Odds at University of Nebraska at Kearney

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Parent/student verdict

Accessible

Accessible for most applicants. Affordable — net price averages ~$16,242/yr among aid recipients. Major value play for in-state residents.

Best for

  • In-state residents (tuition ~$8,676 — major value play)
  • Students drawn to Business, Management, & Marketing or Education (the two biggest majors)

The reality

  • You'd be near the bottom of their admitted class if: SAT below 970, or ACT below 18 (test bands are the school's own; the GPA floor is our estimate, not a published figure)

Verdict is composed from this college's structured data (admit rate, SAT bands, net price with aid and at full price, Carnegie classification, scholarship grids) using transparent rule thresholds — not a chat-bot's opinion.

What are your child's odds here?

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Weighted is the higher GPA, with honors/AP credit in it — pick whichever your school reports. PSAT scores work in the SAT box.

Institutional snapshot

What kind of college is this?

Carnegie classification
M1: Master's - Larger Programs
Undergraduates
4,088
5,000 - 9,999 including graduate students
In-state tuitionThe published full price before any aid. Families who don't qualify for need-based aid at a given college pay this, minus any merit scholarships — whether you qualify depends on the college's price and policies, not on any fixed income line.
$8,676
sticker, before aid
Out-of-state tuition
$15,284
+$6,608 vs in-state
Admit rateThe share of applicants a college accepts. Useful context, but your student's odds depend on their own grades and scores, not the average.
85.8%
Accepts the majority
SAT middle 50%The middle half of the enrolled first-years who sent this test scored in this range — a quarter of them scored BELOW the low end and still got in, and a quarter scored above the high end. At a test-optional college the students who submitted are often a minority of the class, so the range describes them rather than everyone who enrolled. Above the top number is a genuine strength; below the bottom isn't automatic rejection.
970–1150
EBRW + Math composite
ACT middle 50%The middle half of the enrolled first-years who sent this test scored in this range — a quarter of them scored BELOW the low end and still got in, and a quarter scored above the high end. At a test-optional college the students who submitted are often a minority of the class, so the range describes them rather than everyone who enrolled. Above the top number is a genuine strength; below the bottom isn't automatic rejection.
18–25
composite
Test policyApplicants choose whether to send SAT/ACT scores. At many such colleges, students who submit strong scores are still admitted at higher rates.
Test-optional
2023
10-yr earningsMedian yearly pay of former students ten years after they STARTED here — not ten years after graduating — all majors combined. The broadest single outcome number a college reports.
$50,105
median, after entry

4% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, 88% an ACT — these ranges describe students who submitted, not the whole class.

Source: federal IPEDS Admissions 2023 for scores + admit rate; federal College Scorecard (20260606 vintage) for earnings + outcomes. SAT/ACT bands are the 25th–75th percentile of enrolled submitters.

Outcomes & cost

What graduates actually earn, finish, and owe.

Federal College Scorecard data. Earnings are median annual income measured years after entering. Debt is for federal-aid borrowers only (cash-pay students aren't counted).

Earnings, 6 yrs after entry
$43,241
Earnings, 10 yrs after entryMedian yearly pay of former students ten years after they STARTED here — not ten years after graduating — all majors combined. The broadest single outcome number a college reports.
$50,105
Graduate within 6 yrsThe share of students who start here and finish a bachelor's within six years — the standard federal measure, and the one College Scorecard publishes. It is not a four-year rate. Read it as the odds of finishing at all: nationally about a third of students who start never do, and an unfinished degree is the most expensive outcome in this decision.
58%
Median debt (completers)The federal-loan balance of the typical graduating borrower. Families who pay cash aren't counted, so read it as "among those who borrowed."
$19,500

The real cost

What University of Nebraska at Kearney actually costs

If you qualify for need aidGrant money based on your family's finances (via FAFSA and the college's own forms), not your student's stats.
$16,242/yr
average among aid-receiving families, all incomes — your number depends on your finances
If you don't
$25,808/yr
the full published price for in-state students — out-of-state runs higher

Which side your family lands on isn't set by any national income line — it's set by University of Nebraska at Kearney's own aid decision: the gap between its price and your family's finances.

Get your family's number — University of Nebraska at Kearney's Net Price Calculator ↗ 10–15 minutes; have a tax return handy. It's still an estimate — but it's this college's own, built from your family's numbers, not anyone's average.
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Your odds + estimated cost across your whole college list, side by side.

The payoffTen years of typical graduate pay minus four years of cost — how many dollars ahead a typical graduate runs by year ten. Check both the full-price and with-aid versions to see which applies to you; median pay reflects who a college admits and what they study as much as the college itself., both ways

+$398K ahead at full price +$436K with aid
Full price, no aidThe all-in yearly price — tuition, housing, food, books, fees — before any aid. This is the real "full price," not just the tuition line. (4 yrs, in-state)
$103,232
~$25,808/yr all-in (out-of-state runs higher)
Aid recipients pay (4 yrs)
$64,968
$16,242/yr average
10-yr earnings total
$501,050
$50,105/yr median, 10 yrs out
Years to recoup the cost
2.1 yrs
at full price (1.3 with aid), at the median earnings rate

Source: College Scorecard (average net price among Title IV first-time, full-time undergraduates who received aid) and each college's published cost of attendance. We don't show the federal net-price-by-income brackets: their categories were fixed in 2008 and never adjusted, and none of the averages is your family's own number — the full story. Payoff = (10-yr median earnings × 10) − (4 years of cost), in dollars — how far ahead a typical graduate runs by year ten; medians travel with the students a college admits and the majors they choose as much as with the college itself. Full price is the published cost of attendance, largely in-state for publics; earnings are 10 years after enrollment, all majors combined.

What students study here

Most popular majors at University of Nebraska at Kearney

Top 5 fields of study by bachelor's degrees awarded (most recent IPEDS Completions). Use this to see what University of Nebraska at Kearney actually graduates — not just what it markets.

1. Business, Management, & Marketing
155 degrees · 32.8%
Broad set of corporate roles. Finance + consulting pay top, accounting + HR pay middle, sales spread is wide.
2. Education
149 degrees · 31.6%
Teaching is the largest path. Salary depends heavily on district + state.
3. Health Professions
63 degrees · 13.3%
Highest-paying group on this list, but most careers require additional training beyond a 4-year degree.
4. Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness
61 degrees · 12.9%
Coaching, athletic training, public-sector recreation, fitness industry.
5. Public Administration & Social Services
44 degrees · 9.3%
Government, nonprofit, social work. Mission-driven; lower wages than private sector but stable.

What those majors earn here

Median earnings 4 years after entry, by major — University of Nebraska at Kearney's own graduates, not national averages.

Major (CIP) Credential Cohort 1-yr earnings 4-yr earnings
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Bachelor's Degree 45 — $77,034
Biology, General. Bachelor's Degree 43 — $67,151
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Bachelor's Degree 181 $48,861 $64,684
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Bachelor's Degree 18 $60,771 $61,988
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies. Bachelor's Degree 4 $35,726 $61,941
Agricultural Business and Management. Bachelor's Degree 10 $61,152 $61,438
Criminal Justice and Corrections. Bachelor's Degree 32 $40,128 $55,356
Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies. Bachelor's Degree 53 $28,241 $54,563
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. Bachelor's Degree 19 — $53,348
Social Work. Bachelor's Degree 38 $39,218 $53,203

Sources: IPEDS Completions (C2023_a; bachelor's-level first majors, 2-digit CIP family — share is of the top 5 only) · College Scorecard program-level outcomes (PP-FOS). Full college-vs-major comparison: /college-outcomes →

AI program signal

AI + computing education at University of Nebraska at Kearney

CS degrees (annual)
21
CIP 11.0701 + 11.0101

Full multi-lens comparison: /ai-colleges →

Alternatives to University of Nebraska at Kearney

Matched not just by selectivity, but by strategic goal — what a family actually decides on.

Better merit-aid options
These similar-selectivity schools publish merit scholarships your family can plan around — your kid’s stats could unlock real scholarship dollars.
Texas Tech University
TX · Public
30 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
University of Mississippi
MS · Public
14 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
University of Louisville
KY · Public
13 stats-based + 6 competitive scholarships
Lower full price
Similar selectivity, but a meaningfully lower full sticker price — the comparison that matters most for families who won't qualify for much need-based aid.
United States Merchant Marine Academy
NY · Public
$9,168/yr full price (in-state) · $16,640 less before aid for NY residents
Indiana University-Kokomo
IN · Public
$11,837/yr full price (in-state) · $13,971 less before aid for IN residents
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
GA · Public
$13,956/yr full price (in-state) · $11,852 less before aid for GA residents

Or compare any college side-by-side

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At a glance

JSON · Using this page with an AI assistant

University of Nebraska at Kearney is a public four-year college in NE. It admitted 86% of applicants (7,253 applied, 2023). Test policy: Test-optional.

Middle 50% of enrolled first-years who submitted that test: SAT 970–1150, ACT 18–25. 4% of enrolled first-years submitted an SAT score, 88% an ACT — these ranges describe students who submitted, not the whole class.

Cost: about $16,242 a year on average with aid, $25,808 a year at full price for in-state students.

Median earnings ten years after entry: $50,105 a year. Payoff, meaning ten years of that pay minus four years of cost: $436,082 ahead with aid, $397,818 ahead at full price.

Highest median earnings four years after the degree, by program: Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions ($77,034); Biology, General ($67,151); Business Administration, Management and Operations ($64,684).

Machine-readable version of this page: https://highschoolreach.com/colleges/university-of-nebraska-at-kearney.json

By major: Art (Studio)BiologyBusiness AdministrationComputer ScienceCriminal Justice and CriminologyEnglishHistoryJournalismKinesiologyLiberal Studies (teacher preparation)PsychologySocial Work
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What families ask next

Can my kid get in? Score odds calculator → See how a higher SAT or ACT changes admit odds — college by college. What will it cost — and pay back? Earnings by major → What graduates actually earn, program by program. What do we do next? Free Family Decision Report Reach / Competitive / Match / Likely for every college on their list, plus the real cost. Start with a 10-second odds check — no email needed. Check odds →