College Viability Inspection Report

Southern Utah University

Utah · Public

Southern Utah University is a public institution in Utah, enrolling 11,014 students as of 2024. It graduates 29% of students in four years, returns 76% of freshmen for a second year, and costs an average of $11,840 a year after grants and scholarships. Of the 9 inspection checks that could be evaluated, 4 are flagged: Retention, Graduation, Equity Gap, and Endowment. This report benchmarks Southern Utah 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.

Southern Utah 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

Southern Utah University — All Reported Indicators

Plain-text reference table of every metric and inspection flag for Southern Utah 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 Rate29.0%+38.1%30th
Six-Year Graduation Rate47.0%+17.5%34th
Full-Time Retention Rate76.0%+5.6%47th
Pell Grant Six-Year Graduation Rate46.2%+54.1%46th
Pell-to-Non-Pell Graduation Gap5.4pp-62.3%36th
Pell Share of Cohort26.9%-32.4%26th

Financial Health

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Revenue-to-Expense Ratio1.02×+2.2%35th
Total FTE Enrollment11,014+31.6%90th
Endowment Value$41.8M+36.3%45th
Net Assets (End of Year)$325.9M+41.1%77th

Value for Money

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Instructional Spending %36.7%+4.5%64th
Student Support Spending %17.0%+14.3%67th
Administrative Spending %10.9%+2.1%18th
Instruction+Support to Admin Ratio4.92×+5.2%88th
Average Net Price$11,840-11.8%19th
Net Price: $0-30K Income$6,070-38.5%11th
Net Price: $30K-48K Income$7,235-32.4%14th
Net Price: $48-75K Income$9,297-30.9%13th
Net Price: $75K-110K Income$12,487-17.0%13th
Net Price: $110K+ Income$14,917-0.4%10th

Inspection Flags

FlagSectionStatus
Retention Below 80%
Southern Utah 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%
Southern Utah 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
Southern Utah 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
Southern Utah University's ratio stayed at or above 1.0 in all 5 reported years — ending at 1.02× in 2024.
Financial HealthCleared
Enrollment Declined 5% or More
Southern Utah University's total enrollment grew from 8,372 to 11,014 students between 2020 and 2024 (+31.6%).
Financial HealthCleared
Endowment Under $50M or Growth Under 15%
Southern Utah University's endowment is $41.8M, under the $50 million threshold. A smaller endowment leaves less cushion for scholarships and for tough budget years, even though it grew +36.3% over the period.
Financial HealthTriggered
High Cost, Low Completion
Southern Utah 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
Southern Utah University spends $4.92 on instruction and student support per $1 of admin in 2024 — at or above the national median of $2.75 in every reported year.
Value for MoneyCleared
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