Savannah State University
Savannah, Georgia · Public
ROI Score: 10/100 · Below Benchmark
Data: 2024-25 College Scorecard release
Savannah State University, a public HBCU on Georgia's coast, scores 10 (Below Benchmark). The headline numbers explain why: 28% completion rate, $26,200 six-year average earnings, $37,981 ten-year median earnings, $28,000 median federal debt, and a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.069 (graduates owe more than they earn annually). The payback period is calculated at 57.9 years - effectively, earnings never recoup cost on any reasonable horizon. Repayment rate is just 32.5%, meaning more than two-thirds of borrowers are not actively paying down principal. The cost side looks affordable on paper - $5,750 in-state tuition and $8,172 net price - but completion and earnings outcomes are weak relative to even modest debt. With 67.6% Pell rate and 2,833 students, Savannah State serves an overwhelmingly low-income student body.
How Savannah State 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 Score10/100 - Below Benchmark tier of our scale (below 45). For context, 38% of the schools we score reach 60 or higher.
- Debt-to-earnings1.07 - Median debt is larger than one year of average earnings six years after entry (a ratio above 1.0).
- 6-year graduation rate28.0% - The national average for four-year schools is 64% (NCES, 2022). Completion is 15% of our score, since a degree that is not finished rarely pays back.
- Payback period>50 years - In our estimate, the earnings premium over a high school completer is small next to the cost, so the cost may not be recouped within a working career.
Savannah State University
Quick Numbers
| In-state tuition + fees | $5,750/yr |
| Out-of-state tuition + fees | $19,043/yr |
| Average net price | $8,172/yr |
| Total 4-year cost (net) | $32,688 |
| Median earnings (10yr post-entry) | $37,981 |
| Average earnings (6yr post-entry) | $26,200 |
| Median debt at graduation | $28,000 |
| Estimated monthly loan payment | $297 |
| Estimated payback period | >50 years |
| 6-year graduation rate | 28.0% |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 2,833 |
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: $5,750/year ($19,043/year out-of-state), which covers tuition and fees only. The net price counts books, supplies, and average living costs on top of tuition and fees, then subtracts grants and scholarships. For the average student here it comes to $8,172/year, or roughly $32,688 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 $6,739/year here, while families earning over $110,000 pay $12,597/year.
Among graduates who borrowed, the median federal loan debt from this school is $28,000, which works out to about $297 a month on the standard 10-year repayment plan. Our debt-to-earnings ratio divides that debt by average earnings six years after entry ($26,200) and comes to 1.07, 1.0 or higher, meaning median debt is at least 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 | $6,739 |
| $30,001 - $48,000 | $7,033 |
| $48,001 - $75,000 | $9,882 |
| $75,001 - $110,000 | $12,694 |
| $110,001+ | $12,597 |
Cost by Income Bracket Explained
Lower-income families (under $30K)
Families earning under $30K pay $6,739 net per year - genuinely low. Pell stacking provides real coverage. The financial concern is not the tuition but the combination of low completion, modest earnings, and debt that accumulates over extended time-to-degree. Even at $6,739, students who don't finish or who major in the weakest programs end up financially worse than they started.
Middle-income families ($30K-$110K)
The $48K-$75K band pays $9,882 and the $75K-$110K band climbs to $12,694. Middle-income Georgia families face $40K-$51K in four-year out-of-pocket cost. The cost is workable in isolation but the earnings ceiling implied by the data ($38K at 10 years out) makes the math fragile across most major choices.
Higher-income families ($110K+)
Families above $110K pay $12,597 net per year - actually slightly less than the $75K-$110K band ($12,694), a minor inversion worth flagging. For high-income Georgia families, the school's HBCU identity is a values purchase.
Earnings by Major
Top 10 most popular majors at Savannah State University with available earnings data.
| Major | Median Earnings | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Business Administration, Management, and Operations | $46,957 | F |
| Biology | $45,983 | F |
| Journalism | $39,677 | F |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | $51,430 | F |
| Information Science | $60,183 | C |
| Social Work | $49,360 | C+ |
| Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services, Other | $58,382 | C |
| Marketing | $42,391 | F |
| Research and Experimental Psychology | $48,594 | F |
| Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, General | $39,208 | 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.
Business Administration, Management, and Operations
Business Admin is the largest single major with 66 graduates: $30,170 first-year earnings against $36,836 debt - a 1.221 debt-to-earnings ratio (F grade). Graduates owe roughly $1.22 for every dollar of annual income. This represents financial harm at scale and is one of the strongest signals of structural program weakness on the campus.
Biology
Biology produces 59 graduates with $26,114 first-year earnings, $33,777 debt, and a 1.293 D/E ratio (F grade). Pre-med aspirations without the institutional support to actualize them - students who don't continue to graduate or professional school face severe debt-vs-earnings mismatch. Choose this path only with a concrete medical/PA-school plan.
Information Science
Information Science produces 18 graduates with $46,840 first-year earnings, $27,000 debt, and a 0.576 D/E ratio (C grade). One of Savannah State's least-bad ROI paths - the bachelor's clears debt service modestly and feeds Savannah-area IT roles. Not strong, but defensible.
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Criminal Justice enrolls 29 graduates with $30,195 first-year earnings, $33,875 debt, and a 1.122 D/E ratio (F grade). The classic CJ-at-a-weak-school dynamic: starting law-enforcement salaries cap below where the debt service can clear. Years of strain even for graduates who land their target jobs.
Accounting
Accounting produces 14 graduates with $38,206 first-year earnings, $26,000 debt, and a 0.681 D/E ratio (C grade). Among the more rational paths Savannah State offers, with regulated-credential earnings that clear debt service if the student persists. Better fit than business administration despite similar career framing.
How Graduates Do
Earnings
Loan Repayment
| Metric | This School | Median of schools we score |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year repayment | 24.2% | 68.8% |
| 3-year repayment | 32.5% | 73.6% |
| 5-year repayment | 25.5% | 67.7% |
| 7-year repayment | 31.9% | 72.8% |
Completion Rate
Trends Over Time
How Savannah State 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
| Enrollment | 2,833 |
| Pell Grant recipients | 67.5% |
| Avg faculty salary (monthly) | $8,445 |
Admission rate is not reported in current Scorecard data, making selectivity assessment difficult. The university does not report SAT or ACT mid-ranges either. The completion rate is 28%. This combination of missing selectivity data and very low completion makes a four-year commitment harder for prospective students to assess.
Compared to Similar Schools
Peer institutions matched by type, size, and selectivity.
| School | ROI | Net Price | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Savannah State University (this school) | 10 | $8,172 | $37,981 |
| Alabama A & M University | 10 | $17,621 | $40,628 |
| University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff | 10 | $12,653 | $35,550 |
| Philander Smith University | 10 | $14,224 | $38,427 |
| Lincoln University | 10 | $19,092 | $39,463 |
| Texas Southern University | 10 | $16,590 | $38,924 |
Who Thrives Here
Savannah State fits Pell-eligible Georgia students drawn to its HBCU identity and Savannah location, particularly those who would otherwise not attend college at all. With 67.6% Pell rate and 2,833 students, the financial profile is overwhelmingly low-income. Students should approach enrollment with eyes open: the school's mission of access is real, but completion and earnings outcomes are weak. Strong fit for students with strong external supports who pick the school's information science, accounting, or homeland security programs. Weak fit for students who borrow significantly and concentrate in the largest majors (business, biology, criminal justice) where outcomes are worst.
The Verdict: Below Benchmark Under Our Scoring
Under our methodology, Savannah State University scores 10/100, which falls in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At a net price of $8,172 per year, with typical graduate earnings of $37,981 ten years after entry, we estimate the payback period at more than 50 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 28.0% graduation rate, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.07 (median across the schools we score: 0.61), a three-year loan repayment rate of 32.5% (median across the schools we score: 73.6%), a long payback period.
Median debt of $28,000 among graduates who borrowed, against average earnings of $26,200 six years after entry, gives a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.07. That is 1.0 or higher, meaning median debt is at least a full year of those earnings, so your major - and how much you borrow - really matters.
Savannah State University: Common Questions
Is Savannah State University worth it?
In our view, the financial case is a hard one to make on the numbers alone. Savannah State University scores 10/100 on our ROI scale, in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At $8,172 a year after aid against $37,981 in typical earnings ten years out, we estimate the payback period at more than 50 years. Your major and aid package can change the picture, so run your own numbers.
How much does Savannah State 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 $8,172 a year, or roughly $32,688 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 Savannah State University graduates earn?
The typical graduate earns about $37,981 ten years after enrolling, at or below the $41,800 median for high-school graduates (NCES, 2022). With little earnings gap to cover the cost, the financial return is hard to make.
How long does it take to pay off Savannah State 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 more than 50 years for Savannah State University. The median across the schools we track is about 12 years.
How much debt do Savannah State University graduates take on?
Among graduates who borrowed, median federal loan debt from this school is about $28,000, against average earnings of $26,200 six years after entry - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.07. That is 1.0 or higher, meaning median debt is at least a full year of those earnings, so how much you borrow really matters.
What is the graduation rate at Savannah State University?
The six-year graduation rate is 28.0%. 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.