College Viability Inspection Report

Georgia Southwestern State University

Georgia · Public

Georgia Southwestern State University is a public institution in Georgia, enrolling 2,227 students as of 2024. It graduates 20% of students in four years, returns 58% of freshmen for a second year, and costs an average of $11,769 a year after grants and scholarships. Of the 9 inspection checks that could be evaluated, 5 are flagged: Retention, Graduation, Equity Gap, Endowment, and Tuition Allocation. This report benchmarks Georgia Southwestern State University's most recent reported year (2024) against 2,000+ U.S. colleges across three dimensions: student outcomes, financial health, and value for money. All figures are drawn from federal IPEDS filings and are reported without editorial judgment.

Georgia Southwestern State University Inspection Flags

Student Outcomes
Financial Health
Value for Your Money

Inspection flags are nine independent checks across student outcomes, financial health, and cost-to-value that surface areas of a college's reported numbers worth a closer look. A triggered flag means the college's data met a specific threshold that students and families may want to ask about — for example, graduation rates slipping below a level, or tuition rising while outcomes decline. A clear flag means the threshold was not met. Flags are signals for further conversation, not verdicts.

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College Viability
Data Summary

Georgia Southwestern State University — All Reported Indicators

Plain-text reference table of every metric and inspection flag for Georgia Southwestern State University. Values reflect IPEDS-reported figures; percent changes reflect endpoint-to-endpoint 2020 → 2024 comparison; percentiles reflect 2024 national rank against four-year public and private nonprofit institutions. Cells marked "not reported" indicate the indicator was not present in IPEDS for this institution.

Student Outcomes

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Four-Year Graduation Rate20.0%+42.9%19th
Six-Year Graduation Rate36.0%+24.1%20th
Full-Time Retention Rate58.0%-12.1%11th
Pell Grant Six-Year Graduation Rate39.4%+31.7%33rd
Pell-to-Non-Pell Graduation Gap2.5pp-79.3%25th
Pell Share of Cohort52.5%+8.3%75th

Financial Health

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Revenue-to-Expense Ratio1.00×+3.6%27th
Total FTE Enrollment2,227+6.8%59th
Endowment Value$38.9M+4.7%43rd
Net Assets (End of Year)$11.1M+68.4%17th

Value for Money

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Instructional Spending %37.2%+11.7%66th
Student Support Spending %7.6%+1.4%25th
Administrative Spending %19.1%+53.8%54th
Instruction+Support to Admin Ratio2.34×-28.6%39th
Average Net Price$11,769-2.4%19th
Net Price: $0-30K Income$10,477+6.0%31st
Net Price: $30K-48K Income$10,935+5.0%32nd
Net Price: $48-75K Income$13,508+0.9%33rd
Net Price: $75K-110K Income$16,373+13.0%28th
Net Price: $110K+ Income$15,415+1.3%11th

Inspection Flags

FlagSectionStatus
Retention Below 80%
Georgia Southwestern State University's retention rate fell below 80% in 5 of 5 reported years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Four-Year Graduation Rate Below 50%
Georgia Southwestern State University's 4-year graduation rate fell below 50% in 5 of 5 reported years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Pell Gap Exceeds 10 Points
Georgia Southwestern State University's Pell graduation gap exceeded 10 percentage points in 3 of 5 eligible years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Revenue-to-Expense Below 1.0
Georgia Southwestern State University's ratio fell below 1.0 in 1 of 5 reported years — below the 3-of-5 trigger threshold.
Financial HealthCleared
Enrollment Declined 5% or More
Georgia Southwestern State University's total enrollment grew from 2,086 to 2,227 students between 2020 and 2024 (+6.8%).
Financial HealthCleared
Endowment Under $50M or Growth Under 15%
Georgia Southwestern State University's endowment is $38.9M — under $50 million — and grew +4.6% between 2020 and 2024, below the 15% growth threshold. Both conditions are met.
Financial HealthTriggered
High Cost, Low Completion
Georgia Southwestern State University costs less than the national median AND graduates students at below-median rates — only one of two conditions is met.
Value for MoneyCleared
Spending on Students Below the National Median
Georgia Southwestern State University spends $2.34 on instruction and student support per $1 of admin (2024) — below the national median of $2.75 in 4 of 5 reported years.
Value for MoneyTriggered
Rising Price, Falling Outcomes
Either net price did not rise or the graduation rate did not decline between 2020 and 2024 — flag not triggered.
Value for MoneyCleared