2017 Top Christian Colleges by Return on Investment
Listed below are the ten highest-ranked governing members of the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) in The Student Loan Report's 2017 Student Debt Repayment Success Indicator (SDRSI) report on American colleges and universities. The SDRSI is calculated using three metrics: Early Career Pay, Student Debt Per Borrower, and Default Rate. You can read their methodology and see the complete rankings on StudentLoans.net.
The Student Loan Report explains SDRSI this way:
A larger value indicates a greater chance of success in student loan repayment. In other words, graduates from schools with high SDRSI scores tend to have higher salaries, lower debt, and fellow alumni are typically also successful in repayment as shown by low default rates. A lower value, on the other hand, means that graduates are more likely to face difficulty in repayment due to lower pay and high debt, on average, as well as the tendency of fellow alumni to struggle with their student debt.
Based on this description, we feel that it's fair to describe this as one way to measure financial return on investment for graduates.
1. George Fox University
Rank: 105
SDRSI: 2.05
Early Career Pay: $49,700
Debt Per Borrower: $23,633
Default Rate: 2.54%
Newberg, Oregon
Denominational Affiliation: Friends
Athletic Association: NCAA D3
https://www.georgefox.edu/
2. Dallas Baptist University
Rank: 157
SDRSI: 1.84
Early Career Pay: $46,200
Debt Per Borrower: $23,811
Default Rate: 5.28%
Dallas, Texas
Denominational Affiliation: Baptist
Athletic Association: NCAA D2
http://www.dbu.edu
3. Emmanuel College
Rank: 226
SDRSI: 1.67
Early Career Pay: $44,900
Debt Per Borrower: $25,717
Default Rate: 4.18%
Franklin Springs, Georgia
Denominational Affiliation: International Pentecostal Holiness Church
Athletic Association: NCAA D2
http://www.ec.edu
4. Wheaton College
Rank: 255
SDRSI: 1.62
Early Career Pay: $43,300
Debt Per Borrower: $26,593
Default Rate: 0.37%
Wheaton, Illinois
Denominational Affiliation: Inter-denominational
Athletic Association: NCAA D3
http://www.wheaton.edu/
5. Harding University
Rank: 262
SDRSI: 1.61
Early Career Pay: $42,200
Debt Per Borrower: $25,295
Default Rate: 3.42%
Searcy, Arkansas
Denominational Affiliation: Church of Christ
Athletic Association: NCAA D2
http://www.harding.edu/
6. Houston Baptist University
Rank: 275
SDRSI: 1.59
Early Career Pay: $49,200
Debt Per Borrower: $29,122
Default Rate: 6.16%
Houston, Texas
Denominational Affiliation: Baptist General Association of Virginia
Athletic Association: NCAA D1
http://www.hbu.edu
7. John Brown University
Rank: 277
SDRSI: 1.58
Early Career Pay: $38,900
Debt Per Borrower: $23,695
Default Rate: 3.92%
Siloam Springs, Arkansas
Denominational Affiliation: Inter-denominational
Athletic Association: NAIA
http://www.jbu.edu/
8. King University
Rank: 379
SDRSI: 1.44
Early Career Pay: $35,300
Debt Per Borrower: $22,607
Default Rate: 7.75%
Bristol, Tennessee
Denominational Affiliation: Presbyterian Church (USA)
Athletic Association: NCAA D2
http://www.king.edu
9. Indiana Wesleyan University
Rank: 385
SDRSI: 1.44
Early Career Pay: $44,000
Debt Per Borrower: $29,298
Default Rate: 4.38%
Marion, Indiana
Denominational Affiliation: Wesleyan
Athletic Association: NAIA
http://www.indwes.edu/
10. Trevecca Nazarene University
Rank: 414
SDRSI: 1.4
Early Career Pay: $44,800
Debt Per Borrower: $30,667
Default Rate: 4.38%
Nashville, Tennessee
Denominational Affiliation: Church of the Nazarene
Athletic Association: NAIA
http://www.trevecca.edu