Northland College
Ashland, Wisconsin · Private Nonprofit · 75.0% acceptance rate
ROI Score: 21/100 · Below Benchmark
Data: 2024-25 College Scorecard release
Northland College, a small private-nonprofit in Ashland, Wisconsin, earns an ROI score of 21 out of 100 and lands in the Below Benchmark tier. The drivers are sobering: average earnings six years after entry sit at just $27,500 and rise only to a median $44,560 by year ten, while the median debt of $25,450 produces a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.925. The projected payback period stretches nearly 30 years, meaning a typical graduate would still be carrying loan-related costs through age 50 or beyond. Sticker tuition is $44,403, and the average net price is $36,119, putting four-year total cost above $144,000. The one bright spot is a repayment rate above 77% at three years, suggesting alumni who do find work are servicing loans even on modest incomes. With under 300 students enrolled and an environmentally focused liberal-arts mission, Northland is a niche pick whose financial math currently does not work for most students.
How Northland 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 Score21/100 - Below Benchmark tier of our scale (below 45). For context, 38% of the schools we score reach 60 or higher.
- Payback period29.8 years - The median payback across the schools we score is about 12 years.
Northland College
Quick Numbers
| In-state tuition + fees | $44,403/yr |
| Out-of-state tuition + fees | $44,403/yr |
| Average net price | $36,119/yr |
| Total 4-year cost (net) | $144,476 |
| Median earnings (10yr post-entry) | $44,560 |
| Average earnings (6yr post-entry) | $27,500 |
| Median debt at graduation | $25,450 |
| Estimated monthly loan payment | $270 |
| Estimated payback period | 29.8 years |
| 6-year graduation rate | 49.7% |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 269 |
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: $44,403/year, which covers tuition and fees only. After grants, scholarships, and aid, the average student here pays a net price of $36,119/year, or roughly $144,476 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 $16,842/year here, while families earning over $110,000 pay $56,889/year.
Among graduates who borrowed, the median federal loan debt from this school is $25,450, which works out to about $270 a month on the standard 10-year repayment plan. Our debt-to-earnings ratio divides that debt by average earnings six years after entry ($27,500) and comes to 0.93, 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 | $16,842 |
| $30,001 - $48,000 | $22,695 |
| $48,001 - $75,000 | $21,581 |
| $75,001 - $110,000 | $47,714 |
| $110,001+ | $56,889 |
Cost by Income Bracket Explained
Lower-income families (under $30K)
Families earning under $30,000 pay a net price of $16,842 - the lowest tier, reflecting solid Pell and institutional aid. Over four years that is around $67,000, against a 10-year median earnings of $44,560. Aid materially helps, but the underlying earnings ceiling and 30-year payback period mean even the best-priced bracket is a stretch unless the student is certain about completing a degree.
Middle-income families ($30K-$110K)
Middle-income families ($48,001-$75,000) pay $21,581 net - slightly less than the $30,001-$48,000 bracket's $22,695, suggesting a mild aid-cliff anomaly around $30K. Four-year cost lands near $86,000, while median earnings stay in the mid-$40s. The math is hard: middle-income families are paying roughly twice annual graduate earnings for the full degree.
Higher-income families ($110K+)
High-income families face $47,714 in the $75,001-$110,000 band and $56,889 above $110,000 - numbers that exceed the $44,403 sticker tuition, signaling minimal merit discounting for higher earners. Four-year cost at the top tier exceeds $227,000 against $44,560 in median earnings. For these families Northland is essentially a full-pay private-college decision driven by mission fit, not financial return.
Earnings by Major
Top 2 most popular majors at Northland College with available earnings data.
| Major | Median Earnings | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Biology | $45,396 | F |
| Natural Resources Conservation | $25,563 | F |
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.
Natural Resources Conservation
Natural Resources Conservation is Northland's signature program and a banner draw, with $25,563 in first-year earnings against $27,000 in median debt yielding a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.056 and an F grade. Conservation jobs (state DNR, federal land agencies, nonprofits) pay modestly early and improve with seniority, so the lifetime picture is better than year one suggests - but graduates need a clear plan for picking up agency credentials and field experience to escape the entry-wage band.
Biology
Biology shows the same pattern: $24,540 in first-year earnings rising to $45,396 by year four, against $26,500 in median debt (debt-to-earnings 1.08, grade F). With only 13 graduates, the sample is small, but the trajectory matches national biology data - the degree only pays off with grad school (medical, dental, PA, PhD). Students who plan to finish at the bachelor's level should know the first-year earnings ceiling here is materially below the cost of attendance.
How Graduates Do
Earnings
Loan Repayment
| Metric | This School | Median of schools we score |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year repayment | 73.2% | 68.8% |
| 3-year repayment | 77.1% | 73.6% |
| 5-year repayment | 78.6% | 67.7% |
| 7-year repayment | 79.2% | 72.8% |
Completion Rate
Trends Over Time
How Northland College’s cost and outcomes have moved across College Scorecard releases (2009-2023).
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 | 75.0% |
| SAT Math (25th-75th) | 450-590 |
| SAT Reading (25th-75th) | 500-550 |
| ACT Composite (25th-75th) | 18-25 |
| Enrollment | 269 |
| Pell Grant recipients | 31.9% |
| Avg faculty salary (monthly) | $6,903 |
Northland admits about 75% of applicants, so it is broadly accessible. SAT mid-ranges (Math 450-590, Reading 500-550) and ACT 18-25 confirm a wide academic band. The 49.7% completion rate suggests many admitted students arrive academically underprepared or financially stretched and do not finish. Prepared applicants with clear environmental-science career plans will find the door open; less-prepared students should weigh the high non-completion risk.
Compared to Similar Schools
Peer institutions matched by type, size, and selectivity.
Northland's score is 21.
| School | ROI | Net Price | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northland College (this school) | 21 | $36,119 | $44,560 |
| Bellin College | 72 | $37,408 | $76,222 |
| Alverno College | 39 | $22,540 | $53,145 |
| Welch College | 23 | $25,263 | $42,198 |
| Cottey College | 22 | $13,805 | $35,422 |
| Arlington Baptist University | 14 | $24,906 | $44,644 |
Who Thrives Here
Northland fits a narrow profile: students passionate about environmental studies, natural resources, and outdoor education who value a 269-student campus on Lake Superior's south shore. Pell rate is 31.9%, so roughly a third of students come from lower-income families and tend to benefit from generous discounting. The enrollment scale signals heavy faculty contact, but also limited program breadth. Strong outcomes are concentrated for students who finish a degree and stay in the Upper Midwest conservation labor market; everyone else faces a tough debt-to-earnings math.
The Verdict, Historically: Below Benchmark Under Our Scoring
Northland College closed in May 2025. The assessment below describes how this school performed while it was operating, and is not a recommendation about where to enroll now.
Under our methodology, Northland College scores 21/100, which falls in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At a net price of $36,119 per year, with typical graduate earnings of $44,560 ten years after entry, we estimate the payback period at about 29.8 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 49.7% graduation rate, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.93 (median across the schools we score: 0.61), a long payback period.
Median debt of $25,450 among graduates who borrowed, against average earnings of $27,500 six years after entry, gives a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.93. 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.
If you borrowed to attend, check closed school discharge first.
Federal student loans can sometimes be discharged in full if your school closed while you were enrolled or shortly after you withdrew. Eligibility depends on your withdrawal date and whether you completed your program or transferred the credits. Refinancing federal loans into a private loan gives up this and every other federal protection permanently, so check discharge before you refinance anything.
Northland College: Common Questions
Is Northland College worth it?
In our view, the financial case is a hard one to make on the numbers alone. Northland College scores 21/100 on our ROI scale, in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At $36,119 a year after aid against $44,560 in typical earnings ten years out, we estimate the payback period at about 29.8 years. Your major and aid package can change the picture, so run your own numbers.
How much does Northland 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 $36,119 a year, or roughly $144,476 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 Northland College graduates earn?
The typical graduate earns about $44,560 ten years after enrolling, roughly $2,760 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 Northland 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 29.8 years for Northland College. The median across the schools we track is about 12 years.
How much debt do Northland College graduates take on?
Among graduates who borrowed, median federal loan debt from this school is about $25,450, against average earnings of $27,500 six years after entry - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.93. 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 Northland College?
The six-year graduation rate is 49.7%. 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.