Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts
Saint Louis, Missouri · Private For-Profit · 100.0% acceptance rate
ROI Score: 4/100 · Below Benchmark
Data: 2024-25 College Scorecard release
Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts (SIBA) earns an ROI score of 4. Every single subscore is very low: 3 for earnings premium, 7 for payback (999-year flag, meaning earnings never recoup costs), 5 for debt-to-earnings (1.034 ratio, students owe more than they earn), 2 for completion (14.3%), and 1 for repayment rate (28.1%). Tuition is $14,332 but average net price is $19,137 (higher than tuition, indicating fees and indirect costs add substantially), totaling $76,548 over four years. Median 10-year earnings are $29,058 against $27,000 in median debt. The 999-year payback flag means earnings will never recoup the cost. Only 14.3% of enrollees complete, and only 28.1% are making meaningful progress on loan principal. This is a school where the financial outcomes for federal-loan-funded students are deeply problematic.
How Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts 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 Score4/100 - Below Benchmark tier of our scale (below 45). For context, 38% of the schools we score reach 60 or higher.
- Debt-to-earnings1.03 - Median debt is larger than one year of average earnings six years after entry (a ratio above 1.0).
- 6-year graduation rate14.3% - 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.
Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts
Quick Numbers
| In-state tuition + fees | $14,332/yr |
| Out-of-state tuition + fees | $14,332/yr |
| Average net price | $19,137/yr |
| Total 4-year cost (net) | $76,548 |
| Median earnings (10yr post-entry) | $29,058 |
| Average earnings (6yr post-entry) | $26,100 |
| Median debt at graduation | $27,000 |
| Estimated monthly loan payment | $286 |
| Estimated payback period | >50 years |
| 6-year graduation rate | 14.3% |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 89 |
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: $14,332/year, 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 $19,137/year, or roughly $76,548 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 $19,137/year here, while families earning over $110,000 pay N/A/year.
Among graduates who borrowed, the median federal loan debt from this school is $27,000, which works out to about $286 a month on the standard 10-year repayment plan. Our debt-to-earnings ratio divides that debt by average earnings six years after entry ($26,100) and comes to 1.03, 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 | $19,137 |
| $30,001 - $48,000 | N/A |
| $48,001 - $75,000 | N/A |
| $75,001 - $110,000 | N/A |
| $110,001+ | N/A |
Cost by Income Bracket Explained
Lower-income families (under $30K)
Families under $30,000 pay $19,137 per year, $76,500 over four years. Median 10-year earnings are $29,058 and the debt-to-earnings ratio is 1.034. The 67.4% Pell rate suggests this is the dominant population, and they are the most vulnerable to the school's poor outcomes profile.
Middle-income families ($30K-$110K)
Net price by income is null for all middle-income brackets in current Scorecard data. Given the small enrollment, this is likely small-sample suppression rather than a meaningful price floor. Middle-income families should run the school's net price calculator directly.
Higher-income families ($110K+)
The $110,001-plus bracket reports null. Higher-income families would face the full $19,137 net price or close to it. With 999-year payback for typical students, no income tier produces a defensible financial picture for this credential.
Earnings by Major
Top 2 most popular majors at Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts with available earnings data.
| Major | Median Earnings | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Design and Applied Arts | $40,288 | - |
| General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations | $37,244 | - |
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.
Design and Applied Arts
Design and Applied Arts has 8 graduates with four-year earnings of $40,288. Debt and ROI grade data are not reported. The very small graduate cohort makes the data noisy.
General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations
Sales and Merchandising has 5 graduates with four-year earnings of $37,244. Debt and ROI grade data are not reported. The earnings figure is modest for the field and the credential typically does not require a four-year degree at this price point, retail and merchandising career paths are accessible through associate-level credentials and in-house training at much lower cost.
How Graduates Do
Earnings
Loan Repayment
| Metric | This School | Median of schools we score |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year repayment | 21.4% | 68.8% |
| 3-year repayment | 28.1% | 73.6% |
| 5-year repayment | 30.5% | 67.7% |
| 7-year repayment | 41.0% | 72.8% |
Completion Rate
Trends Over Time
How Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts’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 | 100.0% |
| Enrollment | 89 |
| Pell Grant recipients | 67.4% |
| Avg faculty salary (monthly) | $5,726 |
SIBA admits 100% of applicants, fully open admission. The combination of open admission, 14.3% completion, and 28.1% repayment rate paints a difficult picture of student outcomes, the institutional structure does not produce strong results for the population it enrolls.
Compared to Similar Schools
Peer institutions matched by type, size, and selectivity.
SIBA's ten-year earnings are $29,058 and its completion rate is 14.3%.
| School | ROI | Net Price | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts (this school) | 4 | $19,137 | $29,058 |
| Chamberlain University-Missouri | 87 | $30,716 | $92,405 |
| DeVry University-Florida | 21 | $29,477 | $45,987 |
| Eagle Gate College-Layton | 8 | $25,873 | $37,518 |
| South University-Austin | 7 | $25,680 | $34,421 |
| American InterContinental University-Houston | 6 | $20,249 | $36,144 |
Who Thrives Here
With just 89 students enrolled and a 67.4% Pell rate, SIBA is a tiny for-profit career college serving primarily low-income students in St. Louis pursuing design and merchandising credentials. The 999-year payback flag means the financial math simply does not work for federal-loan-funded students.
The Verdict: Below Benchmark Under Our Scoring
Under our methodology, Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts scores 4/100, which falls in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At a net price of $19,137 per year, with typical graduate earnings of $29,058 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 14.3% graduation rate, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.03 (median across the schools we score: 0.61), a three-year loan repayment rate of 28.1% (median across the schools we score: 73.6%), a long payback period.
Median debt of $27,000 among graduates who borrowed, against average earnings of $26,100 six years after entry, gives a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.03. 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.
Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts: Common Questions
Is Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts worth it?
In our view, the financial case is a hard one to make on the numbers alone. Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts scores 4/100 on our ROI scale, in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At $19,137 a year after aid against $29,058 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 Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts 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 $19,137 a year, or roughly $76,548 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 Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts graduates earn?
The typical graduate earns about $29,058 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 Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts?
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 Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts. The median across the schools we track is about 12 years.
How much debt do Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts graduates take on?
Among graduates who borrowed, median federal loan debt from this school is about $27,000, against average earnings of $26,100 six years after entry - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.03. 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 Stevens-The Institute of Business & Arts?
The six-year graduation rate is 14.3%. 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.
NewsletterCollege decisions are better with data.
From CampusROI, when there is something worth acting on.
Rankings & Links
Guides & Tools
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.