North Central University
Minneapolis, Minnesota · Private Nonprofit · 99.0% acceptance rate
ROI Score: 33/100 · Below Benchmark
Data: 2024-25 College Scorecard release
North Central University, an Assemblies of God-affiliated Christian university in downtown Minneapolis, scores 33 (Below Benchmark tier). The financial picture: sticker tuition of $32,220, average net price of $25,817 (modest discounting), and four-year cost of $103,268. Average earnings six years out are just $29,700, climbing to a median $45,064 by year ten - a flat earnings curve reflecting the school's heavy concentration in ministry, religious education, and pastoral counseling tracks where wages are structurally constrained. Median federal debt of $23,200 against those earnings produces a 0.78 debt-to-earnings ratio (sub-score 17). The payback period is 24.2 years (sub-score 22). Where the school performs well: completion rate of 66.3% (sub-score 71) is solid, and three-year repayment rate of 83.3% (sub-score 80) is genuinely strong. The honest read: students who finish at North Central reliably service their loans, but the labor-market output - largely entry-level ministry, church-related, and counseling roles - cannot support the cost of attendance for the typical graduate. This is a school where mission alignment is the dominant value proposition; ROI is structurally constrained by program mix.
How North Central University 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 Score33/100 - Below Benchmark tier of our scale (below 45). For context, 38% of the schools we score reach 60 or higher.
- Payback period24.2 years - The median payback across the schools we score is about 12 years.
North Central University
Quick Numbers
| In-state tuition + fees | $32,220/yr |
| Out-of-state tuition + fees | $32,220/yr |
| Average net price | $25,817/yr |
| Total 4-year cost (net) | $103,268 |
| Median earnings (10yr post-entry) | $45,064 |
| Average earnings (6yr post-entry) | $29,700 |
| Median debt at graduation | $23,200 |
| Estimated monthly loan payment | $246 |
| Estimated payback period | 24.2 years |
| 6-year graduation rate | 66.3% |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 709 |
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: $32,220/year, which covers tuition and fees only. After grants, scholarships, and aid, the average student here pays a net price of $25,817/year, or roughly $103,268 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 $20,450/year here, while families earning over $110,000 pay $30,213/year.
Among graduates who borrowed, the median federal loan debt from this school is $23,200, which works out to about $246 a month on the standard 10-year repayment plan. Our debt-to-earnings ratio divides that debt by average earnings six years after entry ($29,700) and comes to 0.78, 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 | $20,450 |
| $30,001 - $48,000 | $22,393 |
| $48,001 - $75,000 | $23,892 |
| $75,001 - $110,000 | $28,167 |
| $110,001+ | $30,213 |
Cost by Income Bracket Explained
Lower-income families (under $30K)
Families earning under $30,000 pay $20,450 net annually, totaling about $81,800 over four years. The discount off sticker is moderate but the residual cost is substantial for low-income families. Combined with Pell aid plus federal loans, low-income students borrow at or near the school median. The strong 83.3% repayment rate suggests they manage the debt despite modest earnings, but the math is tight.
Middle-income families ($30K-$110K)
Middle-income families ($48,001-$75,000) pay $23,892 per year, about $95,568 over four years. Aid grading flattens through the middle brackets. Middle-income families absorb meaningful cost without proportionate earnings benefit unless the student pursues one of the few professional tracks (business, marketing).
Higher-income families ($110K+)
High-income families ($110,001+) pay $30,213 per year, totaling $120,852 across four years - close to and slightly exceeding the published 4-year cost. For high-income families, the cost-to-outcomes ratio is decisively poor unless mission alignment is the dominant decision factor.
Earnings by Major
Top 7 most popular majors at North Central University with available earnings data.
| Major | Median Earnings | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries | $41,979 | D |
| Business Administration, Management, and Operations | $61,287 | C |
| Teacher Education | $46,380 | C |
| Marketing | $50,707 | B |
| Religious Music and Worship | $30,092 | - |
| Entrepreneurship | $42,327 | - |
| Intercultural/Multicultural and Diversity Studies | $39,407 | D |
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.
Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries
Pastoral Counseling produces 34 graduates - the school's largest cohort - with $27,370 starting earnings, $41,979 at 4 years, $26,750 in median debt, and a 0.98 debt-to-earnings ratio for a D grade. Ministry wages are structurally low in early years, and even the modest 4-year ramp doesn't lift the math out of difficult territory. This is mission-driven enrollment with structural payback challenges; students should fund this with minimum debt where possible.
Business Administration, Management, and Operations
Business Administration produces 25 graduates with $44,708 starting, $61,287 at 4 years, $25,236 in median debt, and a 0.56 debt-to-earnings ratio for a C grade. This is one of the school's clearer ROI tracks for students who want both faith-formation and a professional credential with workable post-graduation earnings.
Teacher Education
Teacher Education produces 19 graduates with $40,927 starting, $46,380 at 4 years, $26,400 in median debt, and a 0.65 debt-to-earnings ratio for a C grade. Mission-aligned and financially defensible at this debt level for graduates entering Christian or public school teaching.
Marketing
Marketing produces 9 graduates with $49,715 starting, $50,707 at 4 years, $21,500 in median debt, and a 0.43 debt-to-earnings ratio for a B grade - the school's strongest formal ROI grade. The flat 4-year earnings curve is unusual and suggests data noise from the very small cohort. The directional read is positive for marketing graduates entering Twin Cities labor market roles.
How Graduates Do
Earnings
Loan Repayment
| Metric | This School | Median of schools we score |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year repayment | 80.0% | 68.8% |
| 3-year repayment | 83.3% | 73.6% |
| 5-year repayment | 74.2% | 67.7% |
| 7-year repayment | 75.3% | 72.8% |
Completion Rate
Trends Over Time
How North Central University’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 | 99.0% |
| Enrollment | 709 |
| Pell Grant recipients | 42.6% |
| Avg faculty salary (monthly) | $6,701 |
North Central admits 99% of applicants - effectively no admissions filter beyond mission/values alignment. SAT and ACT data are not reported. The 66.3% completion rate is reasonable given the open-access admissions and faith-aligned student selection - students arrive committed to the ministry-formation mission and finish at higher rates than the academic profile would suggest. Selectivity is not the issue; program-mix and labor-market constraints are.
Compared to Similar Schools
Peer institutions matched by type, size, and selectivity.
North Central's earnings ceiling is tight.
| School | ROI | Net Price | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Central University (this school) | 33 | $25,817 | $45,064 |
| Colorado Christian University | 34 | $29,500 | $50,416 |
| William Carey University | 34 | $14,258 | $43,087 |
| Lancaster Bible College | 34 | $25,480 | $44,096 |
| Mississippi College | 33 | $27,712 | $47,485 |
| Ozark Christian College | 32 | $20,580 | $41,297 |
Who Thrives Here
North Central fits the student called to vocational ministry, worship leadership, missions, or church-related work in the Assemblies of God tradition. Pell rate of 42.6% indicates a working-class student body. Enrollment of 709 makes this a small institution. The fit case is strongest for students with clear ministry calling who value the school's specific theological tradition and downtown Minneapolis urban-ministry context.
The Verdict: Below Benchmark Under Our Scoring
Under our methodology, North Central University scores 33/100, which falls in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At a net price of $25,817 per year, with typical graduate earnings of $45,064 ten years after entry, we estimate the payback period at about 24.2 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 it has going for it: high loan repayment success. What to keep an eye on: weak earnings relative to cost, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.78 (median across the schools we score: 0.61), a long payback period.
Median debt of $23,200 among graduates who borrowed, against average earnings of $29,700 six years after entry, gives a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.78. 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.
North Central University: Common Questions
Is North Central University worth it?
In our view, the financial case is a hard one to make on the numbers alone. North Central University scores 33/100 on our ROI scale, in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At $25,817 a year after aid against $45,064 in typical earnings ten years out, we estimate the payback period at about 24.2 years. Your major and aid package can change the picture, so run your own numbers.
How much does North Central University 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 $25,817 a year, or roughly $103,268 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 North Central University graduates earn?
The typical graduate earns about $45,064 ten years after enrolling, roughly $3,264 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 North Central University?
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 24.2 years for North Central University. The median across the schools we track is about 12 years.
How much debt do North Central University graduates take on?
Among graduates who borrowed, median federal loan debt from this school is about $23,200, against average earnings of $29,700 six years after entry - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.78. 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 North Central University?
The six-year graduation rate is 66.3%, at or above the 64% national average for four-year schools (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.