Mount Aloysius College
Cresson, Pennsylvania · Private Nonprofit · 82.0% acceptance rate
ROI Score: 34/100 · Below Benchmark
Data: 2024-25 College Scorecard release
Mount Aloysius College, a small Catholic Mercy-tradition private in rural Cresson, PA (in the Allegheny Mountains between Pittsburgh and Altoona), posts an ROI score of 34 - Below Benchmark tier. The numbers behind it explain the tier: median 10-year earnings of $46,165 are modest, modeled payback runs 20.5 years, debt-to-earnings sits at 0.72 against median debt of $24,287. The relative bright spot is the 5-year repayment rate of 68.0% (and 79.7% at three years), suggesting graduates do service their debt even when earnings are compressed. Net price of $22,344 is high relative to the $27,072 sticker - meaning institutional aid is thin. The dominant program is nursing - 46 graduates per year, $72,659 first-year and $87,928 four years out, with a C+ ROI grade. Allied health (10 graduates) also clears C+. Outside of those two health-track programs, business posts a D grade and outcomes weaken.
How Mount Aloysius College 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 Score34/100 - Below Benchmark tier of our scale (below 45). For context, 38% of the schools we score reach 60 or higher.
- Payback period20.5 years - The median payback across the schools we score is about 12 years.
Mount Aloysius College
Quick Numbers
| In-state tuition + fees | $27,072/yr |
| Out-of-state tuition + fees | $27,072/yr |
| Average net price | $22,344/yr |
| Total 4-year cost (net) | $89,376 |
| Median earnings (10yr post-entry) | $46,165 |
| Average earnings (6yr post-entry) | $33,700 |
| Median debt at graduation | $24,287 |
| Estimated monthly loan payment | $257 |
| Estimated payback period | 20.5 years |
| 6-year graduation rate | 56.9% |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 1,094 |
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: $27,072/year, which covers tuition and fees only. After grants, scholarships, and aid, the average student here pays a net price of $22,344/year, or roughly $89,376 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 $21,530/year here, while families earning over $110,000 pay $26,786/year.
Among graduates who borrowed, the median federal loan debt from this school is $24,287, which works out to about $257 a month on the standard 10-year repayment plan. Our debt-to-earnings ratio divides that debt by average earnings six years after entry ($33,700) and comes to 0.72, 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 | $21,530 |
| $30,001 - $48,000 | $20,389 |
| $48,001 - $75,000 | $19,770 |
| $75,001 - $110,000 | $21,769 |
| $110,001+ | $26,786 |
Cost by Income Bracket Explained
Lower-income families (under $30K)
Families under $30,000 pay $21,530 net annually - minimal discounting versus the $22,344 average. Pell carries most of the load, but institutional aid is thin. Four-year cost runs about $86,000. For a Pell-eligible nursing student who completes, the math pencils against $87,928 four-year nursing earnings; for non-nursing tracks, median earnings are $46,165 against that four-year cost.
Middle-income families ($30K-$110K)
The $30,001-$48,000 bracket pays $20,389, the $48,001-$75,000 group pays $19,770 (the lowest in the schedule), and the $75,001-$110,000 range pays $21,769. Middle-income four-year totals run $79,000-$87,000. The narrow spread across most of the schedule suggests Mount Aloysius offers fairly flat institutional aid that doesn't reward high need or high merit aggressively. Middle-income students need a major upgrade (nursing) for the math to work.
Higher-income families ($110K+)
Families above $110,000 pay $26,786 - about 99% of sticker, indicating essentially no institutional discounting at the top. Four years runs roughly $107,000. With median 10-year earnings under $47,000, the lifetime ROI math is weak unless the student is in nursing.
Earnings by Major
Top 4 most popular majors at Mount Aloysius College with available earnings data.
| Major | Median Earnings | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Registered Nursing | $87,928 | C+ |
| Business Administration, Management, and Operations | $45,714 | D |
| Allied Health Diagnostic and Treatment | $66,959 | C+ |
| Accounting | $55,261 | - |
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 Mount Aloysius's flagship and the program where the math works. With 46 graduates per year, $72,659 first-year and $87,928 four-year median earnings, nursing graduates earn well. The Pittsburgh and Altoona hospital networks deliver clinical placements; nursing demand in central Pennsylvania is durable. Prospective nursing students should aggressively pursue scholarships to bring debt down.
Allied Health Diagnostic and Treatment
Allied health graduates 10 students per year with $55,139 first-year and $66,959 four-year median earnings. Median debt of $26,664 yields a 0.48 debt-to-earnings ratio and a C+ ROI grade. Smaller cohort than nursing but the math also pencils for allied health credentials (radiologic tech, sonography). The licensed clinical pathway gives durability.
Accounting
Accounting graduates 4 students per year with $55,261 four-year median earnings (first-year not reported). Median debt is not reported, so the formal ROI grade is null. Cohort is too small to draw firm conclusions, but the four-year earnings figure is modest for an accounting credential.
Business Administration, Management, and Operations
Business graduates 19 students per year and posts a D ROI grade. First-year earnings of $36,952 and four-year earnings of $45,714 are paired with median debt of $27,000, producing a 0.73 debt-to-earnings ratio.
How Graduates Do
Earnings
Loan Repayment
| Metric | This School | Median of schools we score |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year repayment | 75.8% | 68.8% |
| 3-year repayment | 79.7% | 73.6% |
| 5-year repayment | 68.0% | 67.7% |
| 7-year repayment | 70.6% | 72.8% |
Completion Rate
Trends Over Time
How Mount Aloysius College’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 | 82.0% |
| SAT Math (25th-75th) | 445-570 |
| SAT Reading (25th-75th) | 473-598 |
| Enrollment | 1,094 |
| Pell Grant recipients | 15.4% |
| Avg faculty salary (monthly) | $7,396 |
Mount Aloysius admits 82.1% of applicants - broadly accessible. SAT mid-range runs 445-570 math and 473-598 reading. ACT scores are not reported. The 56.9% completion rate is roughly what selectivity would predict - moderate accessibility paired with moderate persistence. Prospective students should self-assess academic preparation, particularly given the rigor required for the nursing prerequisite and clinical sequence.
Compared to Similar Schools
Peer institutions matched by type, size, and selectivity.
| School | ROI | Net Price | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Aloysius College (this school) | 34 | $22,344 | $46,165 |
| Albright College | 56 | $20,024 | $58,700 |
| Our Lady of the Lake University | 35 | $16,442 | $48,675 |
| Bryn Athyn College of the New Church | 34 | $20,586 | $40,457 |
| University of Pikeville | 33 | $20,311 | $48,231 |
| Emory & Henry University | 33 | $19,061 | $47,385 |
Who Thrives Here
Mount Aloysius fits a rural Pennsylvania, often place-bound student drawn to a small Mercy-tradition Catholic campus and a clear nursing or allied health pathway. Enrollment of 1,094 keeps classes intimate. Pell Grant rate is 15.4%, suggesting middle-income family backgrounds rather than high-need profiles. Strong fits are nursing students who can complete the rigorous BSN sequence. Weaker fits are business and general-studies students who would face the school's worst ROI subgroups.
The Verdict: Below Benchmark Under Our Scoring
Under our methodology, Mount Aloysius College scores 34/100, which falls in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At a net price of $22,344 per year, with typical graduate earnings of $46,165 ten years after entry, we estimate the payback period at about 20.5 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, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.72 (median across the schools we score: 0.61), a long payback period.
Median debt of $24,287 among graduates who borrowed, against average earnings of $33,700 six years after entry, gives a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.72. 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.
Mount Aloysius College: Common Questions
Is Mount Aloysius College worth it?
In our view, the financial case is a hard one to make on the numbers alone. Mount Aloysius College scores 34/100 on our ROI scale, in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At $22,344 a year after aid against $46,165 in typical earnings ten years out, we estimate the payback period at about 20.5 years. Your major and aid package can change the picture, so run your own numbers.
How much does Mount Aloysius College 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 $22,344 a year, or roughly $89,376 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 Mount Aloysius College graduates earn?
The typical graduate earns about $46,165 ten years after enrolling, roughly $4,365 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 Mount Aloysius College?
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 20.5 years for Mount Aloysius College. The median across the schools we track is about 12 years.
How much debt do Mount Aloysius College graduates take on?
Among graduates who borrowed, median federal loan debt from this school is about $24,287, against average earnings of $33,700 six years after entry - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.72. 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 Mount Aloysius College?
The six-year graduation rate is 56.9%. 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.