Bethel College-North Newton
North Newton, Kansas · Private Nonprofit · 93.5% acceptance rate
ROI Score: 30/100 · Below Benchmark
Data: 2024-25 College Scorecard release
Bethel College-North Newton is a small Mennonite liberal arts institution in south-central Kansas enrolling roughly 504 students. Its sticker tuition of $35,014 is softened only marginally by financial aid - the average net price sits at $32,917. The college's ROI score of 30 (Below Benchmark) reflects a 41% completion rate - meaning fewer than half of enrollees finish - combined with a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.656. The bright spot is the Registered Nursing program, where early-career median earnings of $68,369 stand in sharp contrast to the institutional median. With 40% of students receiving Pell Grants, the campus serves a meaningful share of lower-income students, but the financial returns for most graduates do not justify the $131,668 four-year total cost. Prospective students should run the net price calculator carefully and consider whether Bethel's faith-based mission and tight-knit community environment outweigh the financial headwinds documented in this data.
How Bethel College-North Newton scores under our methodology
These are the College Scorecard measures that pull this school's CampusROI score down. They describe the published figures, not the quality of the education, and they are our reading of the data. Check them against your own aid offer and intended major.
- ROI Score30/100 - Below Benchmark tier of our scale (below 45). For context, 38% of the schools we score reach 60 or higher.
- Payback period18.2 years - The median payback across the schools we score is about 12 years.
Bethel College-North Newton
Quick Numbers
| In-state tuition + fees | $35,014/yr |
| Out-of-state tuition + fees | $35,014/yr |
| Average net price | $32,917/yr |
| Total 4-year cost (net) | $131,668 |
| Median earnings (10yr post-entry) | $49,898 |
| Average earnings (6yr post-entry) | $36,600 |
| Median debt at graduation | $24,000 |
| Estimated monthly loan payment | $254 |
| Estimated payback period | 18.2 years |
| 6-year graduation rate | 41.1% |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 504 |
Data as of 2024-2025. Source: College Scorecard API (U.S. Department of Education).
The Full Financial Picture
The first number you'll see is the sticker price: $35,014/year, which covers tuition and fees only. After grants, scholarships, and aid, the average student here pays a net price of $32,917/year, or roughly $131,668 over four years. That's the number to plan around.
What you actually pay depends a lot on what your family earns. Families making under $30,000/year pay an average of $35,147/year here, while families earning over $110,000 pay $32,270/year.
Among graduates who borrowed, the median federal loan debt from this school is $24,000, which works out to about $254 a month on the standard 10-year repayment plan. Our debt-to-earnings ratio divides that debt by average earnings six years after entry ($36,600) and comes to 0.66, under 1.0, meaning median debt is less than a full year of those earnings.
Net Price by Family Income
What families actually pay after grants and scholarships, by income bracket.
| Family Income | Avg Net Price/Year |
|---|---|
| $0 - $30,000 | $35,147 |
| $30,001 - $48,000 | $32,633 |
| $48,001 - $75,000 | $33,019 |
| $75,001 - $110,000 | $31,293 |
| $110,001+ | $32,270 |
Cost by Income Bracket Explained
Lower-income families (under $30K)
Students from families earning under $30,000 face a net price of $35,147 - paradoxically higher than the institutional average net price of $32,917. This is unusual: Pell Grants and need-based aid are not keeping pace with the listed cost. With average earnings at $36,600 six years out, a low-income student borrowing the median $24,000 will still find debt payments consuming a large share of early income.
Middle-income families ($30K-$110K)
Middle-income families in the $48,001 - $75,000 range pay an average net price of $33,019 - essentially full freight with minimal discount. Over four years that totals roughly $132,000 including living costs. Given average six-year earnings of $36,600, this cohort faces a payback period exceeding 18 years. The calculus only improves meaningfully for students who complete nursing or another health-field program.
Higher-income families ($110K+)
Higher-income students ($110,001-plus) see a net price near $32,270, offering little discount differentiation from lower brackets. For families who can absorb the cost, the question becomes whether Bethel's mission alignment and community experience hold sufficient non-monetary value to justify the investment.
Earnings by Major
Top 2 most popular majors at Bethel College-North Newton with available earnings data.
| Major | Median Earnings | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Business Administration and Management | $48,612 | D |
| Registered Nursing | $75,293 | B |
Earnings reflect median 4-year post-completion (or 1-year where 4-year unavailable). Grades based on debt-to-earnings ratio.
Program Analysis
Why these programs deliver their earnings outcomes.
Registered Nursing
Nursing is Bethel's strongest ROI program by a significant margin. Graduates earn a median of $68,369 just one year out and $75,293 at four years, against median debt of $27,000 - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.395 (grade B). With only nine recent graduates in the dataset, the cohort is small. Nursing students should verify clinical placement availability given the college's rural Kansas location.
Business Administration and Management
Business graduates earn $34,879 at one year and $48,612 at four years with $27,000 in median debt, producing a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.774 (grade D). The earnings gap relative to nursing is stark - business majors earn roughly half as much early on while carrying similar debt.
How Graduates Do
Earnings
Loan Repayment
| Metric | This School | Median of schools we score |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year repayment | N/A | 68.8% |
| 3-year repayment | N/A | 73.6% |
| 5-year repayment | 78.2% | 67.7% |
| 7-year repayment | 76.4% | 72.8% |
Completion Rate
Trends Over Time
How Bethel College-North Newton’s cost and outcomes have moved across College Scorecard releases (2009-2024).
Average Net Price
Completion Rate
Median Earnings, 10 Years After Entry (as reported)
Earnings reflect borrowers measured 10 years after entry and publish on an irregular cadence with a multi-year reporting lag, so this series shows only the years the Department of Education reported - the data is never interpolated.
Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, release years shown. Net price and completion are reported annually.
Admissions Snapshot
| Acceptance rate | 93.5% |
| Enrollment | 504 |
| Pell Grant recipients | 40.6% |
| Avg faculty salary (monthly) | $6,033 |
With a 93.5% admission rate, Bethel-North Newton is effectively open-enrollment. No SAT/ACT data are reported, indicating standardized tests are not a meaningful filter. Acceptance alone does not guarantee degree completion - the 41% completion rate is the more critical planning variable. Students should factor in the high net price relative to post-graduation earnings before committing.
Compared to Similar Schools
Peer institutions matched by type, size, and selectivity.
| School | ROI | Net Price | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel College-North Newton (this school) | 30 | $32,917 | $49,898 |
| Baker University | 65 | $25,301 | $63,855 |
| Benedictine College | 45 | $27,891 | $53,175 |
| Ozark Christian College | 32 | $20,580 | $41,297 |
| Calumet College of Saint Joseph | 29 | $22,451 | $46,945 |
| Blue Mountain Christian University | 27 | $24,016 | $40,421 |
Who Thrives Here
Bethel College-North Newton suits students who prize a Mennonite faith community, small class sizes, and personalized faculty attention, and who plan to pursue nursing or another health-care field where the earnings premium is clear. Students enrolling in non-health programs should enter with a realistic plan to manage a debt-to-earnings ratio that exceeds 0.65 at the institutional level. The 93% admission rate signals open access, but a completion rate of 41% suggests many students face academic or financial obstacles before finishing their degree.
The Verdict: Below Benchmark Under Our Scoring
Under our methodology, Bethel College-North Newton scores 30/100, which falls in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At a net price of $32,917 per year, with typical graduate earnings of $49,898 ten years after entry, we estimate the payback period at about 18.2 years. In our view that makes the financial case a hard one to make on the numbers alone, but those numbers are averages: your major, your aid package and what you want from a degree all change the picture, so run your own numbers before you commit.
What to keep an eye on: weak earnings relative to cost, its 41.1% graduation rate, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.66 (median across the schools we score: 0.61), a long payback period.
Median debt of $24,000 among graduates who borrowed, against average earnings of $36,600 six years after entry, gives a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.66. That is under 1.0 (a full year of those earnings); the median across the schools we score is about 0.61. Your major - and how much you borrow - really matters.
Bethel College-North Newton: Common Questions
Is Bethel College-North Newton worth it?
In our view, the financial case is a hard one to make on the numbers alone. Bethel College-North Newton scores 30/100 on our ROI scale, in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At $32,917 a year after aid against $49,898 in typical earnings ten years out, we estimate the payback period at about 18.2 years. Your major and aid package can change the picture, so run your own numbers.
How much does Bethel College-North Newton cost after financial aid?
The average net price - the cost of attendance (tuition, fees, books, supplies and average living costs) minus grants and scholarships, for full-time, first-time students receiving federal aid - is about $32,917 a year, or roughly $131,668 over four years. Because it counts living costs, it can run above tuition alone. That is the number to plan around. Actual cost varies by family income, per the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
What do Bethel College-North Newton graduates earn?
The typical graduate earns about $49,898 ten years after enrolling, roughly $8,098 a year more than the median high-school graduate ($41,800, per NCES, 2022). That earnings gap is what has to cover the cost of the degree.
How long does it take to pay off Bethel College-North Newton?
We estimate the payback period - the time it takes for the earnings bump over a high-school graduate to cover what you spent - at about 18.2 years for Bethel College-North Newton. The median across the schools we track is about 12 years.
How much debt do Bethel College-North Newton graduates take on?
Among graduates who borrowed, median federal loan debt from this school is about $24,000, against average earnings of $36,600 six years after entry - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.66. That is under 1.0 (a full year of those earnings); the median across the schools we score is about 0.61. How much you borrow really matters.
What is the graduation rate at Bethel College-North Newton?
The six-year graduation rate is 41.1%. The national average for four-year schools is 64% (NCES, 2022). Completion is 15% of our ROI score, since a degree you don't finish rarely pays back.
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Data: College Scorecard API (U.S. Department of Education)
Vintage: 2024-2025 · Last updated: 2026-03-25
Earnings reflect median outcomes for all federal financial aid recipients. Individual results vary by major, effort, and career path.